Seagulls called as a ship moved over peaceful blue waters. A pan of the boat from bow to stern revealed... Passengers strolling across both the upper and mid decks.
Blake rested her hands on the rail and stared out at the ocean. She blinked and looked over her right shoulder, somewhat startled. Two kids laughed over a joke. Blake almost smiled and turned to look back at the ocean.
Footsteps approached. "Traveling alone?" A voice asked. Blake jumped and gripped the hilt of Gambol Shroud. She halted her action when she saw the captain of the boat. The captain held up his hands in a reassuring manner. "Now, now, no threat here. Just here to chat." He said.
Blake hesitated before relaxing her posture with a roll of her eyes. "And why is that?" She asked.
The Captain lowered his arms and then twisted to lean idly onto the rail. "Well, not many people travel by boat on their own. It can be quite a lonely voyage. But I found those that do tend to have the more... interesting stories." He explained.
Blake turned away from the Captain. "Maybe it's just... better for some people to be alone." She said sadly.
The two kids ran behind Blake laughing and she gasped again, not expecting the noise behind her. She turned and blinked at them, trying to reset her calm.
The captain laughed. "Maybe, but with your paranoia, I think a few friendly faces wouldn't hurt." He offered.
"Who says I'm paranoid?!" Blake snapped.
"It's pretty obvious when you start panicking because of some kids." A voice explained.
The two of them turned to see a figure that quite surprised Blake. "Oh, a friend of yours?" The captain asked.
"You. You're... Mercer, right?" Blake asked.
Indeed, it was the powerhouse of the team that fought Team SCRN in the first round of the tournament, who lasted the longest of his team and gave even Dante a run for his money, Alex Mercer. "That would be me, yes." He said.
"Well, then. I'll leave you two be to chat." The captain said, turning and walking away.
The Captain went on his way and Blake stared after him, before looking at Mercer. "What are you doing here? Are you following me? Are you with the White Fang?!" Blake demanded.
"You really are paranoid, aren't you?" Mercer asked. Blake growled and drew Gambol Shroud in its pistol form aiming at him. Mercer turned his left arm into a shield and held it in front of him, but held his right arm out in a sign of surrender. "Easy, easy. Let's not do anything crazy and make the ride difficult for anyone else." He said. Blake glared, but put away her weapon, so Alex turned his arm back to normal. "I'm not following you. Menagerie is my home, too. After all that excitement at Beacon, I want to make sure things are still good there. And that my family is okay." Alex explained.
"I can understand that." Blake said, looking away, her reason basically being the same.
"It should be good for you. Maybe it will get you to calm down a bit." He said, Blake growling and putting her hand back on her weapon. "I'm just saying. We all were caught off-guard at Beacon, but that fear and panic will destroy you faster than the White Fang ever could." He told her and took his leave.
Once he was gone, she turned and looked at the ground for a few seconds before reaching up and undoing her bow. "Mmm." She hummed and held the ribbon out over the railing. "Won't be needing this." She said as she let go and watched the ribbon swirl in the air once before landing on the water. She turned and walked away.
As she passed inside, a hooded figure was shown to be watching her from a distance.
Beside the ribbon on the ocean, the large scales of a sea creature were seen moving just above the surface. After they passed, the ribbon was gone.
The scene changed to Yang sitting on a green couch in her home on Patch. She looked at the stack of three books on her right and instead picked up the remote control to her left. With a click, the projected scene came on, revealing a news segment from the VBC channel.
Glynda Goodwitch was shown unsuccessfully piecing together a building. Across the bottom of the screen, it read: BEACON INACCESSIBLE. "...with no end in sight. Try as they might, the local Huntsmen and Huntresses can't seem to get a hold of the situation at Beacon Academy." The first reporter began.
"Still just sitting there?" Bayonetta asked.
"Yeah. Not much else to do." Yang said in a bored tone.
Yang clicked the remote. As the next reporter spoke, the large lettering across the screen were slowly revealed backward, from the perspective of someone facing Yang. It read: CCT Repairs "Underway". The subheading read: Atlas officials working on solution, but not optimistic. "...though the fail-safes have supported wireless communication within the kingdom, the loss of the CCT Tower continues to prevent contact with the outside world. Talks with Atlas officials regarding repairs have so far—" The next reporter explained.
"You could always train. Maybe work on your kicks a bit more." Bayonetta suggested.
"There's no point anymore, sis. I can't fight with just one arm. There is no moving on from this." Yang said.
Yang clicked again, cutting off the reporter and bringing up yet another news segment. A horned anchorman spoke above the caption: Sending Citizens Home. The corner caption had the logo for VOX News."...Vale council voted this week to continue to ban any air traffic that does not have a direct correlation with evacuation. The council has made it clear that they feel—" The third reporter relayed the situation.
"I've heard of quite a few warriors who were still successful after losing a limb." Bayonetta said.
Yang sighed. "Bayo... I'm just not ready to get back out there or start training again." Yang said.
Yang clicked again. Her eyes widened and she sat up. "Multiple rumors continue to circulate as to who was behind the attacks at the Vytal Festival Tournament." Lisa Lavender explained as the screen showed her and the VNN logo. The caption below her read: WHITE FANG MEMBER, ADAM TAURUS, PRESENT DURING BEACON GRIMM ATTACK. "While no one knows for sure, officials have confirmed that high-ranking White Fang member, Adam Taurus..." Lisa continued as Adam's image appeared on the screen at his name being spoken. "...was present for the attack. Any and all attempts to bring him into custody have been met with brutal force—" She went on, before Bayonetta took the remote and turned the news off.
"Hey!" Yang snapped.
"They aren't telling you anything you don't already know. You're going to drive yourself insane thinking about what happened that night." Bayonetta told her.
"I'm home!" Taiyang called as he entered the house.
"Good. Someone not totally depressed to talk to." Bayonetta said, setting the remote down.
Yang leaned her head backward on the couch, looking up at the newcomer that way. "Hey, Dad." She greeted.
Taiyang was shown upside-down at first, as he would appear to Yang, but the image promptly righted itself. He was carrying three boxes with two bags hanging from his forearms. "Guess what came in today!" He said excitedly, the door shutting behind him as he walked into the living room.
"Oh?" Bayonetta questioned.
"What?" Yang asked.
"I can't wait for you to try this." Their father said as he walked into another room to unload, while on the couch Yang looked somewhat interested. Taiyang returned, carrying one long white box. He set it on the coffee table in front of Yang, revealing the Kingdom of Atlas symbol on it. She looked at it and didn't move. "Well?" He asked.
Bayonetta was shocked at this, but gained a big smile. "It's incredible! Right, Yang?" She asked excitedly, happy her twin would be able to get back to normal, have two functioning arms and be able to start moving on.
"It's... for me?" Yang asked.
"For you and you only." Taiyang confirmed. Yang lifted the lid off the box to reveal a robotic right arm. Yang looked it over, somewhat wide-eyed while her father gushed. She blinked and her eyes drooped a bit, revealing she was more distressed than pleased. "Brand new, state of the art Atlas tech. You know, I thought I was gonna have to pull some strings, call in a few favors, but you earned this one all on your own, kiddo." He told her.
"Huh?" Yang asked, looking up.
"Before I could even talk to him, General Ironwood already had one of his top scientists working on this, for you. He wanted me to tell you that you fought admirably. You should be proud of yourself." Their father said happily.
"Wow. Congrats, sis." Bayonetta said proudly.
Yang looked up at her father and twin, but said nothing. "Well? You going to try it on?" Taiyang asked.
"I uh... I'm not feeling too great right now. Maybe later?" She said.
"W-what?! Why not?!" Bayonetta asked in shock. If she had lost a limb, she'd take the first chance she got to get a new one.
"I'm just not in the best mood right now. Maybe later, but not now, okay?" Yang asked, her eyes turning red in anger and annoyance Bayonetta was fighting her on this.
Taiyang deflated a bit and put his hand to the back of his neck as he sighed and considered how best to respond. "Well, alright." He said. Bayonetta wanted to argue, but Tai stood up and grabbed her shoulder. "Hey, hey. It's alright. If she doesn't want to, she doesn't have to." He assured his second daughter, although clearly wasn't too thrilled, either.
Yang got up and walked up the stairs, Taiyang giving her an encouraging smile as she passed in front of him while Bayonetta just looked down. Yang paused partway up the steps, turning in their direction. "Thanks, Dad. You too, sis." She said and continued upstairs as a visibly disheartened Tai bowed his head like Bayonetta.
Later, Yang swept the porch, adept at it with one arm. She paused to wipe her brow and sighed. The next scene showed her getting mail out of the mailbox at the end of their driveway. Lastly, she was in the kitchen, rinsing a glass. As she lifted it out of the sink, it slipped out of her fingers and she gasped.
When it hit the floor and broke, it triggered a flashback. Against the blackness there was a gray slash moving from upper left to bottom right and the red markings from Adam's mask glowed while the sound of a sword loudly resonated. In the kitchen, Yang reared back with a cry.
"Yang! Are you alright?" Bayonetta asked, jogging in. She noticed the broken glass on the ground and Yang's shocked expression. "Oh, what happened here? Are you okay?" She asked, walking up and checking on her sister.
Yang clung to the countertop and panted, out of breath due to fright. Her fist came down against the countertop and Yang got herself under control. "I-I don't know... I'm sorry..." She said, looking down at the remains.
"It's alright. It's no big deal." Bayonetta said, cleaning up the glass and throwing it into a trash. She then turned Yang to face her and put a hand on each of her shoulders. "Hey. It will all be alright, okay? Adam can't get you here. And the next time you see him, you'll be ready for him. I promise." She told her sister, hugging her... And shedding a few tears, believing her sister may have completely given up.
From the doorway, Taiyang watched with concern before turning away without saying a word.
It was dusk and the boat continued its journey on the smooth water. There was still peaceful bird cry and Blake was once again on the middle deck looking out at the ocean. A Faunus couple walked behind her and she watched them, slightly less twitchy than before.
It was when she was about to leave that she sensed she was being watched by someone on the upper deck. It was the hooded figure, and she immediately took out Gambol Shroud. "Who's there?!" She demanded.
The hooded figure turned and ran for it, blonde hair somewhat visible beneath the hood. Blake stared up at the deck, no longer watching the ocean. She didn't notice the dorsal fins of a giant sea creature momentarily surfaced. However, she felt the boat rocking on the wake it created and let out a grunt as she tried to keep her balance.
"That can't be good." Mercer said as he made his way over to her.
The creature's long-necked shadow loomed over Blake as she turned around to face the water. Its shadow also fell on a member of the crew on duty in the crow's nest, who was looking up at it in horror. "RED ALERT!" The crew member shouted.
The alert immediately sounded. Two red lights next to a speaker pulsed with the sound. The Captain and his First Mate came running out and looked at the water from the upper deck, just above Blake and Mercer.
"By the gods..." The Captain murmured as the shadow fell over him.
"Nope. REALLY not good." Mercer said.
The long-necked creature was revealed to be a large Sea Feilong. It had a pattern of glowing red lines along the scales of its neck, and its eyes glowed yellow. The Grimm swung its head back and forth, roaring and spreading its short forearms outward.
Captain turn and called out to the ship. "All hands to battle stations!" He ordered.
"Sir, we've never fought a Grimm this big!" The first mate told him.
"We've never seen something this big! But we'll give 'er a fight nonetheless!" The captain countered.
Blake sprang into action, running off the boat and into the air. She created one of her clones to give her added upward momentum, flinging Gambol Shroud forward in its kusari-gama form. Attached to the ribbon on her wrist, it embedded itself into the Grimm's neck.
Mercer drew an assault rifle from his coat and began firing on the Grimm, hitting it several times, but quickly realizing it was doing slim to no damage. Changing his tactics, he followed Blake's lead and shot out his whip fist and stabbed it into the monster's face, reeling himself in and turning his other arm into a blade, which he stabbed into the monster's head, clearly causing it pain, but not doing nearly enough damage to kill it.
Blake swung above the Grimm and shot it in the back of its neck. It roared and Blake landed on the crow's nest while the Captain steered from the bridge. He kept the ship stabilized in the Grimm's wake and stepped outside to get another look at it. Blake still shot it while it arced back into the water. The side of the ship opened up and the cannons came out.
Mercer continued to use his blade and whip fist, swinging around the monster and cutting it in several places. He swung back around in an attempt to attack the head once again, but this time the Grimm was prepared and caught his blade in its mouth as he came in to attack again and flung him back at the ship, firing a beam of lightning at him as well, blasting him and launching him back to the ship even faster, causing him to crash HARD, sending him collapsing to the deck.
Blake continued her assault on the sea creature, once again swinging and shooting. The ship's cannons fired but were mostly ineffective. Blake fell back onto the ship's deck beside Mercer, landed on her back, bounced and quickly got herself back onto her feet. She discovered that her left shoulder was hurt when she moved to stand.
The captain was steering again. "Hold steady men, it's not done with us yet! GET THE HEAVY CANNON LOADED!" He ordered. The first mate changed from being nervous to battle-ready upon hearing this order.
The largest cannon on the ship rose up through a trapdoor on the deck, extended itself and aimed at the Grimm. The Grimm's dorsal fin split apart and extra bone unfolded, revealing two wings. "Oh, great. As if we weren't having enough trouble, now it flies." Alex grumbled. The Sea Feilong let out a roar as it flew, its beating wings sending a gust of air at the ship. Blake cried out as she hung on with her hurt left arm. Mercer held himself in place by stabbing his blade arm into the deck.
"Heavy cannon, OPEN FIRE!" The captain ordered. The heavy cannon shot, but the Grimm easily evaded it. It opened its mouth and an electric ball forms.
Blake readied to launch herself at it, but the hooded figure landed on her head and used her as a launch pad. "Hey!" She yelled out. The figure grunted and the cloak fell back, revealing Sun. Mid-air, he activated his energy clones. "Sun?!" Blake asked, shocked.
"Well, this day is just full of surprises." Alex xaid
Sun and his clones landed on the Grimm's head. The two clones pulled on the topmost tendrils of the head while Sun grabbed its upper lip. "Not today, pal!" He told the grim. When the Sea Feilong released its electric blast, it went harmlessly into the air, rather than at the ship.
"What are you doing?!" Blake demanded.
"Oh, uh, you know, just... hanging out!" Sun answered from atop the enraged Grimm's snout while holding onto the two tendrils his now-disappeared clones had grabbed. The Grimm managed to get a small electrical charge around Sun and he let go. "Whoa-oa!" He cried out as he fell.
"Well, he's dead." Mercer said.
Blake gasped and immediately sprang into action again. She jumped onto and off the railing, using Gambol Shroud's kusari-gama form on the crow's nest to swing herself around and caught Sun mid-air. They land on nearby rocks, with her holding him bridal style. "My hero!" Sun said jokingly, putting his hand to his heart.
"You're not supposed to be here!" She snapped at him.
"Yeah!? Well, it looks like you can use all the help you can get!" Sun countered.
"Hey, happy couple! If you're done flirting, perhaps you can help me save this ship from a giant flying dragon!" Mercer snapped, blocking several electric blasts with his shield to prevent the blasts from hitting the ship.
Blake glared at him and then rolled her eyes. "Ugh." She groaned and dropped him. "Just shut up and fight!" She snapped as she ran toward the ship in the water, where the Grimm was firing electric blasts at it.
Sun was on the ground, striking a pose on his side with his hand propping up his head. "Yes, ma'am!" He complied.
On the ship, the captain was steering while two of his crew were looking at displays. "Starboard defenses are down, sir!" The first mate warned.
"We still got the heavy cannon?" The captain asked.
"Aye, but it's moving too fast! We can't land a hit!" Another crewman said.
"Argh. How about the engines?" The captain asked.
"Fully functional, Captain!" The first mate reported. "Well alright, then!" The captain said. On the deck, Blake was preparing to counter a hit from the Grimm's electric blast, but Sun jumped in between with a laugh of triumph. He used Ruyi Bang and Jingu Bang to deflect it and landed on the heavy cannon, resting his staff on his shoulder with a crooked grin. "Huntsmen! The captain yelled. Sun, Mercer and Blake turned to the man who had come out onto the upper deck calling them. "If you can clip its wings and draw it out towards the bow, we could take it!" He instructed.
Blake turned away from the Captain to look up at Mercer and Sun.
"I mean, you've got like every weapon ever in the palm of your hand. Or... you're arm, I guess." Sun said, looking at Mercer, who growled at this.
"Ugh." Blake sighed at Sun's lack of tact.
"Cover me." Mercer told them, creating a whip with his left arm and blade with his right as the two of them fired at the monster.
Mercer jumped off the deck of the ship, holding his arms and legs out and creating a membrane like a flying squirrel's to drift into the air towards the monster. As it focused on Sun and Blake shooting it, Alex got close enough to latch on with his whip fist and swing above it, before slicing down the membrane of the monster's wing with his blade arm. He then went into his armor state, crashing down onto the rocks below in a 3-point landing. He then ran along more rocks to keep the creature occupied. The Sea Feilong flew after him, knocking rocks down as it went. The Captain watched from the bridge through a spyglass before throwing a handle and increasing the boat's speed. It sailed beside the destructive Grimm, keeping apace.
Mercer continued to leap from rock to rock, avoiding the Grimm's attacks until one more move put him directly in front of its open mouth. However, shots from Blake and Sun's weapons hit it in the eye, causing the beast to miss him, due to pain and lack of depth perception The Grimm turned and prepared a blast to get them both in one shot, but Mercer turned both of his arms into whip fists, pulling back on the Grimm's neck just enough to make it miss, allowing the boat to impale the beast with its bowsprit.
"Fire!" The captain ordered. The heavy cannon fired and hit the Grimm dead on. Its upper half was blasted to pieces and it died immediately. The captain, the first mate and second crew member all cheered. The cheer was upheld by the passengers on the ship who also joined in with applause.
On the rock,Mercer couldn't help but chuckle. "Not bad. If people were more like this in my world, maybe I wouldn't have tried to turn everyone into mutants." He said, jumping high into the air and flying back to the ship.
Sun celebrated while Blake smiled and lowered her head in relief. "Ha-ha!" Sun laughed, lifting his hand for a high five. "Up top!" He said. "Anyone?" He asked, turning to Alex as he landed beside him, only for the shape-shifting faunus to roll his eyes and turn away.
Blake turned and glared at him. "Oh, he's in trouble..." Mercer said cautiously, backing away, creating his armor and shield.
"Eh?" Sun asked, oblivious to Mercer's caution, wiggling his hand with a grin. With a cry of anger, Blake swung her arm around to slap him in the face. He reared back in slow-motion and the screen went black to the sound of her hand making contact with his flesh.
It was night time on the middle deck of the ship. Blake was at the railing again, only this time facing sideways. "Seriously, it was no big deal!" Sun said as he was revealed to be talking to two of the Faunus passengers. "Just enjoy the rest of your trip and everything will be cool! We got this!" He assured them.
The two Faunus, a male with horns and a female with rabbit ears who we saw earlier, waved goodbye and turned away. Sun strutted over to Blake. "You'd think they'd never seen a fight before." He said.
"Most people don't. We signed up to be Huntsman and Huntresses. We expected to see battle just about every day. "These people didn't. The only time they probably see Grimm is traveling between kingdoms or something." Alex explained.
"Well, excuse me! I was used to Vacuo, where the Grimm could get in any time they wanted. So I'm used to them showing up whenever." Sun countered.
"What are you doing here, Sun?" Blake asked.
"Diggin' the new outfit, by the way!" He said, ignoring the question and pointing to her ears. "Never did like the bow." He said.
Blake slapped his hand away, in no mood for his shenanigans. "Sun!" She snapped, wanting the answer for his presence immediately.
"Geez!" He said, surprised by her hostility.
"Can he take anything seriously?" Mercer asked.
"Never. Not once. As long as I've known him." Blake answered.
"Hey! I'm still here, you know!" Sun snapped.
"And you shouldn't be! Have you been following me?!" She demanded.
Sun looked a touch abashed. "I saw you run off. The night Beacon Tower fell. Once we landed in Vale, you made sure everyone was okay. And then you just took off, without saying anything." He explained.
"I did! I talked to Yang and told her I was leaving!" She snapped, before shaking her head and sighing. "You wouldn't understand." She said.
"Does he understand anything?" Alex asked.
"Very rarely. You usually have to spell it out for him." Blake admitted.
"Hey! I'm on your side here, you know!" Sun snapped. "Besides, I get it! The moment you left, I knew exactly what you were doing!" He assured her.
Blake smiled at him, pleased at feeling understood. "Wait for it..." Mercer whispered, knowing for a fact Sun would say something stupid. The monkey boy almost reminded him of Heller. Incredibly straight simple and forward. Only this kid was much friendlier. Annoyingly so. oh, also not pissed off all the time.
"You're going on a one-woman rampage against the White Fang!" He declared.
Blake's happy expression fell. "What?" She asked, a little bit in disbelief.
"You always felt like the Fang was your fight. They show up, trash your school, hurt your friends. It makes perfect sense!" He explained.
"I can't believe you." She said.
"Wow, you really can't read a room, can you?" Mercer asked.
"Hey! I can tell when my friends need help. And if she's doing this, she definitely needs help!" Sun countered.
"You're wrong, Sun." Blake told him, pushing him off. "You're so, so wrong." She said, turning her back on him and walking away.
"What are you..." Sun asked.
"I'm not going anywhere near the White Fang. Not yet." She said.
"Seriously?" He asked.
"I need to sort some things out." She explained.
"Then why not do it with your team? Your friends?" Sun asked.
"Because sometimes you need to figure things out on your own. Take some time to clear your head and get your priorities straight." Mercer said.
"Exactly. Thank you, Alex." She said with a nod.
"So, if you're not going after the White Fang, where are you going?" Sun asked.
"Home, to Menagerie." She explained.
"Well, I'm coming with you. The Grimm are getting worse; you saw it yourself! And just because you're not going after the Fang doesn't mean they won't be coming for you! Besides, I'm... kind of already on the boat." Sun told her.
"There's really no stopping you?" She asked.
"I could arrange for a way off the boat, if you'd like." Alex said, creating his hammerfists.
Sun gulped at this."Uh... No thanks." He said fearfully, before instantly perking up. Nope! This is going to be great! Never been in Menagerie before! It'll be a regular journey to the east! Yeah, I like the sound of that." Sun said.
"Why does that sound familiar?" Mercer wondered.
"So, what about you? Can we expect to see any more of you?" Sun asked.
"Well, I'm not coming along on this happy friendship quest of yours if that's what you're asking." Alex told him, turning away. "But, it's a small town on a small island, so you'll probably see me around. Give me a call if you ever need a hand." He told them, before walking off.
Inside Salem's meeting room, Cinder, Medusa and Salem sat alone at the table. Mercury, Juri and Emerald wait by the door. Cinder was breathing heavily with effort while Salem had her right hand casually held out. "Do you feel it? Don't fight it, girl. It can sense your trepidation. You must make it dread you." She told her Fall Maiden.
A soft clicking sound made Cinder turn toward the door. All was blackness but for a slowly moving forward yellow glow. It was revealed to be inside a jellyfish-based Grimm with long red tentacles and a black and white body.
Emerald, Mercury and Juri reacted fearfully to it and pulled back as it entered. "I hate those things. All those tentacles..." Juri said, shuddering. It glided its way over to Salem at the head of the table. Once the Seer Grimm reached her side, she leaned closer to it. After a moment, she put her hands together.
"Cinder, I am going to ask you this one more time, and I expect a clear answer. Did you kill Ozpin?" Salem asked the girl. Cinder held her arm out, about to call Emerald over to speak for her. Salem slammed both hands onto the table, eyes glowing as she spoke. "No!" She snapped. Cinder lowered her arm. "I want to hear you say it." Salem told her.
Cinder rasped a few times first before speaking hoarsely. "Yes." She finally answered.
"Then we have a nice window of opportunity." Medusa said.
Salem looked at her for a long moment before speaking. "Reinforce our numbers at Beacon. The Relic is there." She told the Seer Grimm, which glided away. At the door, Emerald and Mercury drew away from it just as they did before. Salem turned her head thoughtfully, looking in the direction away from Cinder and bringing her fingers to her chin. "What are you planning?" Salem could only wonder.
A/N: Another chapter done. I hope you are all enjoying the story. This chapter wasn't too different, but there wasn't too much else to work with. Sorry to say, though, from here on out, Blake's story is pretty much unchanged, so we'll be glossing over Team RWBY's faunus ninja pretty much until the attack on her home in Volume 5. On the plus side, though, this will save me huge amounts of time to get these chapters out faster, so look forward to that.