The rolling sea unceasingly growled at the creaking hull of Blake's ship, slamming into the sides, threatening to collapse the structure and swallow it whole.
The dark clouds that hovered far above shuddered and shook, suddenly unleashing an intense burst of rain that shot like bullets onto the deck, forcing it's crew to run for cover.
Ruby scampered up the dripping steps to the control room, where the other 6 of the team was.
The water had breached her boots, soaked her socks and got everywhere else. It was Hell.
A very watery Hell, but Hell nonetheless. All the while, she considered it to be a fun trip, and it was to help Jaune too, not to mention Weiss really wanted to go.
But now, she doubted the amount of fun she had expected the quest to hold.
As she reached the door, Ruby desperately pushed it with all her might, and it gave way, water sloshing in the carpeted room, but not for long, as she slammed it behind her as fast as she opened it.
She began to apologise hurriedly, feeling the nice pattered carpet soak up the salty liquid beneath her feet, but she was cut off by Jaune's 'it's ok'. She looked up to him smiling, but then she gasped.
His naturally blonde hair was tousled and matted,dripping with water, as if he hadn't ever been bothered to neaten it, and yet, it looked tidy compared to the rest of him.
His clothes were stained and dripping, his sword hung precariously on his belt with out a sheath, one of his gauntlets were missing, and his breastplate was slung over his chest, one of the steps untied.
But his expression, however, was a polar opposite, with a broad grin and shining eyes.
He was standing behind a wide circular table that was bolted to the floor, and had Barney's map on it.
Beside him was the rest of the group.
While everyone mostly shared the same tired and worn look, Cardin had an eager, impatient look, his eyes constantly darting to Yang's breasts, Pyrrha's skirt, and vice versa.
At the corner of the room sat an electric heater whirring exuberantly, and from the room swung a powerful LED bulb that lit up every inch of the cramped room.
Casting a dubious glare at the merrily dangling lamp, Ruby walked her way to Weiss, who was fingering her left pocket tensely.
"What's that Weiss?" Ruby asked quietly, as Jaune began to speak animatedly.
"I'll tell you later." Weiss replied tersely.
"So!" Jaune beamed around the room "We have entered the Vacuo Ocean!"
A loud thunder clap accompanied a great bang, implying a massive wave had crashed against the hull. The ship groaned.
"We had no idea." frowned Yang with her arms crossed.
The room was well insulated from loud noises, but the roars of the outside had easily penetrated the walls.
Jaune sensed Yang's sarcasm, but did not let it falter his grin. "Its OK Yang, no need to worry, the boat can take it, right Blake?"
He waved a hand at the Faunus.
In a brief second, Ruby could see numerous cuts and bruises on his palm. What had he been doing?
Blake gave an affirmative and confident nod. "The boat has walls up to 10 inches thick, comprised of thick, heavy duty steel, more then enough to stop anyone one from escaping from the inside, and to seal their desperate cries, and their souls from the outside world." Her eyes glazed, as if her oddly specific reply had sparked old thoughts. Her right ear twitched. Painful thoughts. "Should be able to stop the storm." Her head drooped, and the swaying lamp cast her in shadow, leaving her yellow eyes to glow ominously like a cat's.
A particularly loud thunderclap caused Yang to grip her right arm. As the noise subsided, her left hand withdrew from her right arm, but Ruby noticed red marks on her sister's arm. Why Yang had gripped her right arm to tightly was foreign to her.
Jaune cleared his throat and continued his announcement. "As we are now in the Ocean," He gave a small, curt nod in Yang's direction. "We must consult Barney's map."
Pyrrha pointed her slender finger to 2 crudely drawn ovals near the illustration of the island. "What are those? Monsters? A clue?"
Jaune waved her suggestion away "That was just his drawing of boobs. What we need to focus on is now GETTING to the island, which means getting across the monsters. So everyone, get rest, and in the morning, be ready for anything." He gestured around the cramped room, where sleeping mats lay, and a door to the toilet stood.
For the past few 2 days, they had been forced to sleep in the top cabin, it being the only room on the entire ship, the remaining space being occupied by the cannons.
Proposals to sleep below in the hull of the ship were instantaneously denied by Blake, who warded anyone away, like a grumpy cat who refused to move.
So far no one had attempted to sneak down to see what Blake was so resiliently guarding, but that night, when the waves had mellowed, Yang's violet eyes could be seen scouring the room.
Loud snoring could be heard above the gentle hum of the heater, and the melody of the sea, but nothing could get Yang to sleep.
She loved Blake, maybe even more than as a friend, but her curiosity triumphed, and she wanted no secrets between to two of them. And also because of that other thing…
Yang suddenly grasped her right arm, feeling the smooth skin under her fingers.
Making up her mind, she raised herself from her bed, and shook her hair, letting it spring into its usual perky appearance. She stretched her back, made sure Cardin was asleep, and slipped out of her pyjamas. Yang dressed in her usual attire and treaded cautiously to the door, and in a flash, she was gone.
Jaune tossed and tumbled in his bed in worry.
He loved Pyrrha, and could not afford to lose her.
Ever since his first year at Beacon, he had told his parents about her, and they seemed to really like her.
And recently, their relationship had gotten a lot more intimate. Like, a lot.
Closer then any male Arc had been to a woman in years. Decades.
Jaune tried to stop himself, not to get a big head and run away in fantasies, but he has been getting more and more dreams of him and Pyrrha. Getting married, getting kids, growing old. And now with how close he was to Barney's island, the dreams have been getting longer and more frequent.
He turned to Pyrrha, and immediately his heart melted. She made him fell loved, cared for, and special.
They shared a shimmering perfect connection. In his eyes, Pyrrha Nikos could do no wrong.
Over the past year, they had spend to much time together, sharing feelings and thoughts.
The each knew each other so well now, almost like they had the same brain.
That's why Jaune knew that Pyrrha would never support him if she knew he was the one to have intercourse with the witch.
But it weighed heavily on his heart.
Keeping this big of a secret from Pyrrha made him feel unbelievably guilty, like he cheated on her.
He couldn't even look her in the eye anymore.
Jaune watched Pyrrha mumble something in her sleep, and her face to grow a smile.
He hoped she hadn't noticed his awkwardness.
And yet, sometimes, he felt that she might actually except it. But could he risk it?
Could he risk telling Pyrrha?
His brain worked furiously, estimating the outcome of every possibility.
And finally, with he sigh, he decided not.
He grunted and turned away from his girlfriend, and feel into a nightmare.
Jaune was so caught up in his thoughts, he hardly noticed Yang sneak out, or Blake mutter in her slumber…
A flash of bright yellow appeared on the deck. With the silverly moonlight at it's back, a shadow was lit up, a mane of the same yellow hair bouncing on it's head.
The figure flipped open a satchel that was hung on it's belt, and retrieved a silver torchlight.
Creeping down to the hatch leading down to the mysterious hull, Yang switched on her torchlight and crept down.
Upon entering, her grip tightened, but not too much as to damage the vintage torch. Yang's fingers fondly held the torch, a present from her adventurous uncle Qrow.
It was her 13th birthday, she reminisced, and her uncle had given her that torch and said in that gravelly voice, 'You're a teenager now, kid. Take care of yourself, and you'll go far.'
He hadn't said much, but it was enough. Yang had held on to those words dearly, and repeated it to herself in times of sadness.
Brushing a single tear from her cheek, Yang ventured further down the seemingly never ending flight of stairs.
When it finally ended, it opened up to a vast U shaped hull. Behind her, darkness swallowed the hatch, as well as all sound.
At first glance, Yang couldn't see what Blake was so protective about. All that was revealed by her beam of light was wooden crates piled up at the front and back of ship.
There were lots of them, hundreds upon hundreds placed on top, beside and under each other in a random pattern, hinting at a hasty deposit.
The haunting silence nagged at her, encouraging her to leave, but something told her to stay behind.
Wandering to the nearest box, she pulled open the nailed cover with ease to peer inside.
It couldn't hurt right?
Wrong.
Yang gasped. Inside the box, on a layer of hay, was a bomb.
She backed away. This couldn't be right. No way. Blake wouldn't do that.
Checking the label on the side of the box, she recoiled. It read : Explosives.
As realisation dawned on her, she flashed light at all the other boxes too, all reading the same thing : Explosives.
Hundreds and hundreds of bombs, ready to blow sky high. Yang ran up the stairs, half not able to believe what she witnessed.
A pair of eyes followed her. A figure walked out from behind a stack of explosives, and held out a long sheath.
His lips thinned as he slowly pulled out a red blade from his sheath.
A few metres away, Yang stumbled on a stair, dropping the torch and grasping her hand in pain.
Nothing had touched it, and yet, severe discomfort shot through her right arm.
Behind her, she heard a soft chuckle.
Turning her head, her eyes widened as it spotted a man with a red blade.
Just like in her dream.
Her dream.
Part of the reason why she couldn't sleep.
Her dream, where a man wielding a red blade cut off her right arm.
( Editor's Note : Hey guys, thanks for the overwhelming support with the previous chapters. I tried something different this episode. Once again, tell me if you like the new writing style, or if you preferred the previous chapter's lighter mood. Cheers! )