Mad Max: Road to Salvation
Episode 19: Tragic Revelations
[awsomerebel55: well this is where you find out. "it was hard to know who was crazier, me, or everyone else."]
[Charles: well he did, and maybe I should've I don't know.]
[Ronmr: thanks mate!]
[Clearwingyuta: you'll see, I don't wan't to spoil anything but... Yes and no. I can't really say without giving something on that away.]
[Evowizard25: Thank you and you're right, to each their own. But that will play a different role, I'll use it to create tension in a different way with three words, new War Boys!]
The bullheads had come very shortly after Qrow arrived and almost everyone had their reservations about it. Anya and Daniel had both bunched together with Dinki-di keeping a watchful eye. One of the flight personnel had nearly incurred the vicious dog's wrath when they attempted to get close to either of the children. Suffice it to say, the dog was being very protective of the youngest members of his pack, especially little Anya who was he shared a deep bond with. Max had scratched the dog behind his ears for doing his job with distinction. Qrow saw Max standing by the open bay door and walked over to him to talk.
"I guess this has been a crazy experience for you so far, hasn't it?" Qrow said as he leaned on the hull next to Max.
"… I've seen worse." Max replied stoically while holding on to a safety rail on the roof.
"Really?" Qrow asked skeptically.
"Yes, I have and you should count yourself fortunate." Max answered the question with growing annoyance.
"I'm not exactly known for that." Qrow replied with an attempt at humor.
"What I've seen is far worse than anything you can possibly imagine. You have not witnessed the true definition of madness made manifest." Max said as he turned to face him.
"We'll see about that." Qrow hinted at what was going to happen in the morning.
"You're hiding something again, stop." Max noticed Qrow's attempt at being opaque.
"Hey you'll find out when we reach beacon, so technically I'm not hiding anything. It's just not my place to tell." Qrow said honestly.
"Fine." Max accepted that and returned to gazing out at the world of remnant as it passed beneath him.
"On the bright side, at least those kids of yours get a place to stay. Do you now how many parents would give the shirt off their back for something like that?" Qrow retorted.
"All too well." Max said grimly.
"That's right, you mentioned you had a family once." Qrow remembered his earlier talks with Max.
"I did, and now I have one again. I won't fail this time." Max said with fierce determination.
"Hey I know what it's like, I have two nieces I'd go through hell and back for. Their old man, A.K.A. my friend, was never the same after his first girl left him." Qrow told Max of his beloved nieces and their father.
"Your sister." Max remembered the psychotic woman who he had fought against on multiple occasions.
"Yep, she was always cold like that. She left him alone with his first-born daughter, my blood niece, Yang. Summer though, she was something else. What my buddy got out of that marriage was my second and unofficial niece, little Ruby. I miss her so much, Summer, I know she did a better job than my sister ever could have." Qrow remembered and mourned his other fallen team member/friend.
"You know what it's like to lose then?" Max said in a sullen tone.
"If I'm honest, it's really shitty." Qrow replied with his arms crossed.
"All anyone can do is just try to survive until things change, be it for yourself or everyone else." Max gave Qrow his philosophy on the world.
"Maybe so, I guess we'll find out. Anyway, I think you'll like it at Beacon. The place is top notch, Oz and Glynda make sure of that." Qrow said coolly.
"The assistant, what so special about her?" Max raised an eyebrow.
"Well aside from being a bombshell, you've seen the way she acts. Trust me, the last thing you want is to make a woman like her mad. Especially since she can do seriously crazy things with that riding crop of hers." Qrow remarked with his opinion on Ozpins right hand gal.
"Hmph." Max grunted, Glynda had made an impression on him alright.
"That's probably what she said too." Qrow said with a half-smile.
-BEACON TOWER-
"I have no idea what you think makes that thug so special Ozpin!" Glynda expressed her distaste for the brute of a man she and Ozpin had spoken with some time ago.
"He has proven to be quite the asset Glynda, all he needs is to be properly evaluated. Those skills we saw in the tournament displayed by his adopted son means he can teach problem students. If he could pass on those skills to our other students, I can only imagine the possibilities." Ozpin said as put a hand to his chin.
"Teach?! You want him to teach here, that ruthless thug?!" Glynda said angrily.
"He is not ruthless Glynda, Qrow had pointed out to me that the man held Raven's life in his hands a second time and spared her." Ozpin said confidently.
"Hmph, regardless, that man is a bonafide killer. Look at the trail of all the mangled bodies he's left behind! We do not teach our students to extinguish lives like that, even if they are criminals!" Glynda stated her case against Max's brutal and overly violent style of battle.
"I understand that Glynda, but the evidence proves he can train students in non-lethal tactics just as well as, if not better, than some of the best known qualified swat team instructors. I have Qrow's statements on the things Max did at the bar. Also, there is the prospect of what that young man did in the tournament which screams that he had been instructed by the road warrior. I would like to remind you that he did not kill any of his opponents, despite his misguided hatred for huntsmen and huntresses. I stand firm on the decision Glynda, and nothing is going to change my mind." Ozpin reminded Glynda of the actions done by Max to instruct his adopted son in combat as well as several accolades he had displayed during his Vacuo adventures.
"*sigh* Fine." Glynda sighed in defeat and went to get some sleep.
-Back with Max and co.-
Several hours passed and Max's crew were finding ways to pass the time if they were not asleep. From the air the world seemed almost peaceful to Max, save for the few nevermores and griffons that would pass by in the distance. The airborne grimm just seemed to avoid the aerial convoy altogether. It made Max uneasy, he felt as if the few Grimm he saw cautiously avoid them, kept leading him to suspect they were observing.
The unnerved road warrior relaxed when a set of large castle-like towers came into the view, and the dark creatures turned away into the distance. Max breathed to himself a sigh of relief and glanced back at Anya as she slept so peacefully alongside Daniel, and her furiously faithful furry protector. Krel then walked over to max and the two of them nodded in solidarity. Bruz, who been sitting patiently and sleeping often enough, joined them in gazing at their new home.
Slice though simply continued to meditate peacefully to himself, ignoring the marvelous sight of Beacon (or was he really?). The two women though, they were starting to wake up and grinned like very eager young schoolgirls when the fabled academy came into view. Mari was absolutely giddy at the thought of getting her own classes to teach. Amy drooled at the thought of Beacon's top-notch infirmary facility and the idea that she would be the new head nurse. This made the three men collectively groan in annoyance to which women responded by simply grunting and crossing their arms.
The three bullheads released their heavy metal cargo and then set down to let their passengers off. Two people were waiting patiently at the landing pads, one being more accommodating than the other. It was clear Glynda was not exactly overjoyed at the new arrival, except for the two younger children, especially Anya, to whom she had taken a subtle liking. Anya grabbed Max's hand and the two of them walked side by side towards the two waiting school officials. Bruz and the rest of the road crew followed closely behind them. The manic mechanic kept going over in his mind about what Chum had said to him. He glanced at Anya and quickly furrowed his brow in determination to protect her.
"Mister Rockatansky, a pleasure to see you again." Ozpin said cordially as Max approached with his entourage in tow.
"Enough pleasantries, I'm here now Ozpin, and I know you have something else important to talk about with me." The road warrior said in an unamused tone.
"Well straight to the point. Then please follow me to my office, we have much to discuss." Ozpin said to the stoic road warrior. Glynda eyed Max disdainfully and he ignored her harsh scrutiny with his usual attitude. The good witch then looked at the little girl who smiled warmly at her. This softened Glynda's expression and she decided to put up with Max's presence. As they walked through the campus to Ozpin's tower Max was making mental notes of the school's layout. Bruz saw what he was doing and instinctively followed Max's example. Both of them were eyeing key tactical positions all over the place. Glynda noticed this and became even more irritated by Max and Bruz's seemingly rude behavior. They reached the elevator and stairwell, everyone found their way to the right floor and into the office.
"You certainly have a thing for clocks old man." Bruz commented on the décor.
"I'll take that as a compliment." Ozpin said as he sat down at his desk and sipped from his mug.
"Take it however you want, I don't really care." Bruz replied spitefully as he leaned against a wall.
"Show some respect young man, now." Glynda gave him the stink eye.
"Ah sod off." Bruz replied bitterly and flipped her the bird.
"H-how dare you, insolent little-!" Glynda was mad now.
"Bruz, behave, that's an order!" Max ordered to his adopted son/student.
"Fine." Bruz growled while rolling his eyes.
"See Glynda, I told you he can deal with problem students." Ozpin remarked coolly.
"Oh, don't you start." Glynda said in frustration.
"As much as I enjoy the time we're having together, I think we should get started." Qrow interjected.
"Right you are, Qrow. If you'll simply wait a moment, one of our other professors, Emily Gray will arrive promptly to help us in this matter." Ozpin replied coolly.
"I thought you said it was a guy Oz, not her! She's full speed loco, almost like a crazy version of Bart!" Qrow said indignantly.
"I did, but I had to bend the truth slightly. It was for a good reason Qrow." Ozpin said stoic as ever.
"She's threatened to cut me into little pieces on more than one occasion!" The veteran huntsman shouted at the wise headmaster.
"I've gotten her some psychiatric help in recent days so there should be no problem." Ozpin tried to placate Qrow's concerns.
"Seriously? Fine, if something happens it's on you. And what might that reason you mentioned be?" Qrow put a hand to his face in grief.
"I'm afraid I can't really say. I can tell you it involves a wandering shaman." Ozpin replied after taking a sip from his mug again.
"That Griffa guy? What does he have to do with this?" Qrow asked inquisitively.
"He is on our side but he can only do so much. Either way, it's moot at this point to discuss it and our time would be better spent to focus on the task at hand. Wouldn't you agree Qrow?" Ozpin explained and tried to redirect the question.
"Alright Oz I hear ya." Qrow said in defeat.
"Why do I get the feeling I won't like what's coming?" Max said as to no one in particular.
"Don't know that boss, but I do know to be ready for anything." Bruz answered Max's question.
"Right." The road warrior said stoically.
"Hello everyone! This must be the road warrior, I've seen so much about you on T.V.! OOH that car of yours, I certainly must see it when I get the chance! The internal mechanisms on such a wonderous machine must be truly marvelous for it to survive the massive amounts of wear and tear you seem to put it through!" A manic woman in a lab coat, with purple streaks in her brunette hair, rattled off as she burst through the door.
"Professor Gray, I welcome your enthusiasm but please slow down. I trust you remember why I called you here." The wise headmaster tried to calm the hyper active scientist.
"Yes, professor Ozpin, and its Dr. Gray by the way, ooh that rhymed!" The over enthusiastic Dr. Gray tried to slow down. Then she spotted Qrow and narrowed her eyes in displeasure at the sight of Qrow who flinched slightly, with the room temporarily feeling as if it were freezing. "Qrow, do you remember what I told you last time that would happen if we were ever in the same room together again or perhaps within between thirty feet to a mile of each other?"
"Hey I'm only here because of Oz!" Qrow waved his hands in front of himself in a 'not the face' manner.
"Emily!" Ozpin said with slightly more force, snapping the good doctor out of her bloodlust.
"Right, you wanted me to take a little peak inside this man's head." The good doctor said as she gestured to Max, quickly turning her attention away from Qrow, who wiped the sweat from his brow in relief.
"What?" Max said with a confused look on his face.
"I second that what and raise you an, err?" Bruz said as he tilted his head.
"Oh silly, that means I'm going to use my semblance to sift through your memories and find some info for the headmaster." Doctor Gray said in eerily cheerful tone as she put a finger to her cheek cutely. The presence of the overly energetic doctor made Max uncomfortable to say the least. Needless to say, her being there was still very necessary for what was about to happen. Everyone got ready with a chair to sit down on and Qrow mysteriously obtained popcorn. Bruz wanted some of it and so did a few other to which the veteran huntsman reluctantly shared. "Alrighty, let's get started. Now you might feel a slight pinch, or this will really hurt depending on your overall perception of pain. Maybe you should put it on a scale of one to ten, just in case." Emily said in an eerily cheerful voice.
"Pain is something I've learned to live with, I'll be fine." Max said as he tried to get comfortable in the chair.
"You're not the first person to tell me that, and now that person is in a morgue with a little toe tag. But not because of what I'm about to do now, that would be crazy. But then again, I may have driven someone crazy the last time I did this, I don't recall." Doctor Gray said manically with her sunny smile on plastered on her face.
"Just do it!" Max growled impatiently.
"Don't mind if I do!" The good doctor said cheerfully as she started peeling back the layers of Max's mind and projecting them into the room. Everyone was now seeing Max's life from his days in the MFP to the fall society itself. The killing, the destruction, the madness, all of it in plain view for them to see. Amy covered Daniel's eyes, while Glynda did the same since she was standing next to Anya. The first thing they saw was the end of the rampage of the night rider as Max out drove him and he wrecked. After that Max's conflict with the Bikers and their leader toe-cutter came into view.
"Oh my god…" Qrow said as he watched Max's family die. Everyone watched as the bikers ran down Max's wife and son in cold blood. Max's brutal campaign of revenge made them cringe as he abandoned his morals and no longer upheld his duty to the law but a now a duty to himself to exact vengeance.
"This is a nightmare. How did he even live like that? His family gone in an instant." Mari said as she watched Max's ride through hell itself and put a hand to her face in horror.
"He was not living, he was surviving. This is what our world could become if we fail to save it, or perhaps even worse." Ozpin said stoically as he felt sorrow for Max's loss. He knew the stakes, and now he knew Max's bleak existence as a lone wanderer.
"I didn't know, so this is what made him the way he is. The way I treated him…" Glynda said with sorrow as her prejudice melted away and in its place, was shame.
"Now you understand, he is the way he is for a reason, and this is that reason." Ozpin replied as he got up and tried to console his assistant. Next came the time max saved the people trapped in the outback refinery from the ruthless and depraved marauders led by the psychotic warlord Humungous. Eventually they reached the point of Max's troubles in gas town and his war to reclaim what was rightfully his from the forces of Scrotus one of the sons of the immortan joe. That ultimately led to joe's retaliation and Max's capture for use as a blood bag. They saw it all, his losses, from his first family, to deaths of his various allies. Including but not limited to, his first dog, some of the remaining people who fought alongside him on the rig, Chum-bucket, Nux, Angharad, and then the loss of Glory and her Mother hope. They were two people who Max had failed in his refusal to protect them until he felt the need to avenge them. They saw it tear him apart from within as he kneeled down to check on the barely alive Glory. The entire room watched on as he roared in sorrow when the innocent child silently died in his arms. Almost everyone felt true anger in their hearts as the voice of Scrotus's deceased and twisted underling stank-gum echoed in the background with demented joy at the demise of Max's second chance at a family.
The women in the room had tears streaming from their eyes as they watched him lose it all. Qrow was at a loss for words, as he had never seen a man lose so much, and still be willingly alive. Krel broke down in tears as he saw Glory die since he had a soft spot for children. Slice bowed his head in prayer and murmured sacred words in mourning for those his associate had lost. The two children had been told to look away and they did so obediently. Bruz was stunned by it, Max's past. His respect for his adoptive father grew when he saw him take his revenge against Scrotus and rip the blade from his head. Everyone in the room, save for the little ones, rejoiced at the demise of the warlords, and their psychotic servants, who got what they deserved. But within Max's mind, he was in a battle the survive his own inner demons.
"Why didn't you save us? You failed us! We all trusted you and you failed all of us!" The ghosts began to surround him and tried to overtake him. Max gritted his teeth and tried to tell himself it wasn't real, only to face even more opposition from the specters. "You promised to help us Max! Why did you let them kill us?!" They wailed at him as he gripped his head in agony. "Will you fail them like you failed us?! Will you fail her?! Answer us Max!" The wailing ghosts of days past circled max like vultures to pick him apart from within. Max grunted as he tried his hardest to shut them out of his mind with all of his available will power.
The road warrior managed to break free and ran through his mindscape past mental images of his past exploits and all of his failures. At the end of it he witnessed it all over again, deep friah's temple. Hope was dead and rotting on the ceiling, her corpse crucified and cut to pieces. Glory was on the floor, beaten to a bloody pulp and dying slowly. Max watched his memory like a movie and he was left with his legs heavy as stone and unable to move. He watched glory die all over again and cried out in agony at the painful trip down memory lane. The road warrior refused to let this consume him, he had braved it before and it wouldn't conquer him now. He then saw a bright light, a light almost like that of angel's presence. It was Anya, she approached Max and the voices began to fall silent. They faded away and Anya's image reached her hand towards him with a smile on her face.
"I'm here Daddy, there's no need to be sad anymore." Anya sad in her calm and warm voice.
"I can't lose you, not like I lost them." Max said in despair as he kneeled in misery.
"You won't Daddy, I know you're stronger than this. Be strong for me, for all of us, please." Anya urged her adoptive father to fight. The road warrior looked straight into her eyes, and the sorrowful look on his tired face shifted to one of fiery determination. Max had now regained the one thing he sorely lacked once more, hope. He had the will, now that there was hope, he was ready.
"I will, for you, I promise." Max said proudly as he stood up and took Anya's hand. They walked towards a bright light that lead back to reality and Max's sea of tragic memories found itself at peace as they disappeared back to the waking world.
-END CHAPTER-