Author's Notes
IMPORTANT ANNOUNCEMENT - NEW STORY
Hi everyone! A new story, my third, has launched. It's called Living The Dream, and it's a comedic/serious tale of Jaune Arc, the first huntsman to attend Beacon without aura - mainly because he's still busy trying to unlock it as he attends! Be sure to check it out!
Happy rats, and don't do crime!
Chapter 30 – ain't that a KicK in the head
Adam hadn't been expecting Weiss Schnee and her entire team to be waiting at the same bullhead that he'd been scheduled to go to, and he was not thrilled to learn this information the hard way. Evidently, Schnee was equally displeased, if the look on her face was any indication. She and her Swords were seated on the ground, leisurely leaning their backs against the bullhead's massive landing wheels. It seemed as though they had been waiting there for a while.
"Schnee. We've been told to report to this airship for our first mission. Please kindly remove your imbecile squadron and step out of the way so that we may board."
Schnee looked away from Team Rabies but said nothing, frowning pointedly. Strangely, though, she didn't seem angry – at least, not at Adam.
Adam rolled his eye and scoffed. In response, Cardin stood up and reached a hand for his mace. "You take one more–"
"Cardin!" Schnee thundered.
The boy glared at Adam, but his face softened when he looked back at Weiss. "I'm sorry, Weiss, I forgot that–"
"Just leave it. Let's just wait for the professor. They'll sort this out for us."
"Sort out what?" asked Blake.
Again, Schnee was silent.
"AhstudentswelcomenowI'msureyourcuriousastowhytwoteamshavebeenassignedtooneairshipinfactImyselfwouldbequitecuriousaswellifnotforthefactthatIwasbriefedinadvanceofthiswholesituation."
"Precisely, dear Bart. Why, this reminds me of a time back in Anima when I was cornered by no less than ten quadrillion million trillion and a half Nevermores."
"Woah!" breathed Ruby. "What did you do?"
"Simple! I merely–"
"Professors," interrupted Blake. "What's going on? We signed up for the Mountain Glenn mission."
"Mountain Glenn, eh?" Dove wriggled a finger in his ear. "Is that where we're going?"
"Yesindeedit'sboundtobearivetingadventureonerifewithdangerknowledgefrienshipandtonsofothercoolshityesindeed."
"Allow me to clarify." Port tweaked his mustache. "Professor Goodwitch, hoping to resolve any lingering resentment held between your two indubitably excellent fighting units, has elected to conjoin your missions and form the first ever joint first mission. Why, it is a first among firsts! Why, this reminds me of a time in Menagerie, when I was surrounded by tens of trillions of Sea Feilong, each armed to the teeth with–"
"AbsolutelydearPetermostabsolutelyholyfuckIdranktoomuchdamncoffeeholyfuckindeed."
"A…team building exercise?" asked Blake. Weiss nodded forlornly.
"We don't like this any more than you do," said Cardin. "But we ranked last in class, so we don't exactly have the luxury of choosing our own mission. It was this or staying back at Beacon for the week."
"TuttutahuntsmenneversitsoutwhentherearebattlestobehadwarstobewagednosirreenowletusdepartalsoIpackedsandiwchesdiginboysandgirls."
Adam accepted a sandwich from the bizarre coffee man as he stepped aboard the bullhead alongside his team and Weiss'. It hadn't been easy for him to convince Blake and Ruby to come along on this mission. Blake had accepted only when Adam explained how Ironwood had deemed it necessary. Even though neither of them agreed, they weren't about to disobey their superior officer. Besides, there was a good chance that Tock wouldn't even be there. Ruby, on the other hand, had been quite ruffled to learn that Ilia had chosen their mission for them without any input. Fortunately, a quick trip to Ozpin's office made by Ruby revealed that first missions, once selected, could not be changed.
"Um, Professor Oobleck?" she asked, poking his shoulder.
"That'sDoctorOoblecktoyounowwhatisityouneedtospeakupdearIcanbarelyhearyou."
"I already had lunch. Can I feed my sandwich to Zwei?"
"AbsolutelynotundernocircumstancessandwichesarenontransferrableactuallyIchangedmymindgorightaheadalsowhoisthisZweifellowanddotheyhaveanycoffee?"
"My doggy, sir. He doesn't have any coffee." Ruby reached into her back pack and pulled out a corgi because the Gods weren't real so why not.
"You brought a dog?" asked Weiss indignantly. "How irresponsible. C-Can I pet it?"
"What would move you to make such a rash and reckless decision?" bellowed Port. "The battlefield is no place for a poochy munchkin such as your Zwei. Why that reminds me of one time back in Solitas: there I was, my back to the wall, facing up against one hundred infinity billion Sphinxes–"
"Where did you even get it?" asked Blake, her ears standing up on end. "You didn't have the dog in our dorm."
"My dad mailed it to my sister, and she's been taking care of this goody good boy," Ruby said, scratching Zwei's ears. "They can't…the Y's can't take care of him right now."
"ExcellentideaMissRosedogshaveheightenedsensesofsightandsmellperfectforourmissionwhymyveryownfatherwasadogandI'msomethingofadogmyselfthismuttofyoursshallserveuswellbutImustaskdoesheatleastmechshiftintoaZweihänder?"
"Into a…no sir. He does have his aura unlocked, though."
"VerywellpleasewelcomeaboardMisterZweiorshouldIsayCorporalZweiforIknownothisrank."
"Thank you, sir," said Ruby. "That really butters my biscuits. Zwei's biscuits are buttered, too. Say thanks, pooch!"
The Zwei barked exactly once as Ruby manhandled it with her hands to make its paw wave at Oobleck.
"Dibs on the mutt if our rations run out," said Cardin, crossing his arms.
Ruby swung the dog away from Cardin, unintentionally dangling it out the open door of the bullhead as it took off. "Noooooooo! You can't eat my puppy."
"Thank the Brothers Ruby didn't bring a pussycat," said Ilia with a roll of her eyes. She looked to Adam to see if he laughed but then must have remembered she was supposed to be angry at him and turned away.
"While we await our arrival, let us discuss our mission parameters!" announced Professor Port. "An anomalous build-up of Grimm creatures has been noted in the former city of Mountain Glenn. Our objective is to eradicate these beasties and discover whatever source of negativity has caused such a congregation. Any questions? Why, this reminds me of–"
"What is Mountain Glenn?"
"Who is in charge, me or Ruby?"
"How long until we get there?"
"What are Grimm?"
"AhgoodquestionsindeedthesearesomeofthefinestdamnquestionsI'veeverbeenaskednodoubtaboutitPeterwouldyouliketoanswer?"
"Certainly, Doctor. I shall only answer the first question, though, as all the others decidedly suck. Mountain Glenn is a failed settlement that was Vale's solution to the population crisis. Why, it reminds…"
Adam knew all about this. The White Fang's Vale branch had once operated out of the shit-city before a 'leaked' document allowed the Valean armed forces to blow the base sky high.
"We shall land our bullhead in one of the safer locations, scout out the terrain, locate our enemies…"
…avoid Tock and Hazel…
"…and return to our ship once are goals are fulfilled."
"WellsaidmydearPetersoverywellsaidindeedthatwassuchastellarmissionbriefingthatIamnowfullyerectwellwe'renotgettinganyyoungeronwardlet'sgo!"
For whatever reason was flying through their professors' coffee-addled or otherwise insane minds, they landed in the ruins of Pumpkin Pete-opia, the cereal mascot based theme park. Blake wasn't scared of anything (don't you dare call her a 'fraidy cat), but even she was unsettled by the morbid scene. The entire park, situated in the center of the city's wreckage, sat completely abandoned save for the odd Grimm head poking up to inspect their airship as it flew overhead. What should have been a bustling center of amusement and joy now had all the appeal of a decaying clown carcass. Blake tried to survey the land and pick out some good hiding spots, but she had to tear her eyes away after a while. It wasn't the Grimm, but the eerie lack of humanity coupled with the themed decorations that disturbed her.
In the 'Pumpkin Grotto,' there should have been a line of children thirty minutes long waiting to meet some underpaid college kid in a sweaty rabbit costume. Instead, there was no one. The stanchions that divided up the queue area into neat rows still stood, as did the photographer's tripod, but various types of foliage were beginning to creep up and curl their tendrils around the equipment. Across from it was a painted plywood wall with a scene of Pumpkin Pete and his woodlands friends lounging about at the beach, with the heads cut out so kids could stick theirs in for a photo-op. Now, the wood was beginning to splinter, and the paint had faded from wear and tear. There weren't skeletons reaching out or limbs strewn about or horrid bloodstains or other macabre visuals that Blake was prepared to face, just…emptiness. Somehow, that was worse.
"The roller coaster," noted Ruby, her voice hollow. "It's stuck midway on the track. Like it was shut down and just…never turned back on."
True enough, the Krispy Koaster and its ten cars were still suspended about one hundred feet in the air by a rotting wooden framework. If it ever ran again, it would probably instantly fall to pieces for how structurally unsound some of the later portions of the track had become, but for now, the lack of movement had been enough to keep it standing on its existing framework.
"Why is it like this?" asked Cardin. For once, he didn't seem to be enjoying the distress of those around him. Maybe it's because it was mostly humans who died here. Not enough Faunus for his tastes.
…or maybe he's just disgusted by death. Maybe I shouldn't be so quick to think every emotion a human sees revolves around hatred for my people.
Port solemnly reached out a hand, pointing to the distant walls of the city. "You see how far we are from the borders in every direction? This area was supposed to be a fortified evacuation point. The idea was sound…rather, as sound as any idea regarding this doomed city could be. This was the center of the city, so they instructed families to fall back here if something went wrong. The barriers around the park were fortified, nonperishable rations and emergency Dust stashes were stockpiled underneath, and the rides were designed to inspire joy, hopefully deterring the Grimm and their negativity-seeking. It was designed to remain upright, and remain upright it has."
Weiss looked at the city as though it had insulted her mother. "If they thought themed rides and character meet-and-greets would comfort people during a Grimm incursion…"
"Not everyone. Just children, the most easily scared group and the greatest source of fear. Anyhoo, it didn't work, as you can plainly see."
"Where're the bodies? If this was the shelter or bunker or whatever and everyone fled here, why aren't there a bunch of dead kids and stuff?"
Doctor Oobleck, down from his caffeine rush, answered. "Tell me, students. If the walls of Vale fell, would you truly retreat to an emergency shelter? Or would you try to flee? If you wish for the remains of the fallen, look to the underground railroad system leading back to Vale."
Dove's teeth began to chatter. "B-Back to–"
"Sealed, of course. With the refugees still inside." Oobleck spat out the bullhead's open door, hitting a bullseye on the Pumpkin Pete statue's right cheek. "We have our wondrous and compassionate council to thank for that. Their decisiveness saved our beloved city of Vale, and all it cost was everything Vale stood for."
"We're going to land here and establish a base camp in this location. The Dust reserves beneath the attractions should still be present, and we can reactivate the lights and heating of any building that remains intact."
"Better than sleeping outside where the Grimm can pick us off in the night, I guess," said Blake.
They touched down just in front of the Pumpkin Pete's Musical Revue. Blake tried her best not to think about how she would probably be going to bed just a stone's throw away from creepy, decrepit animatronic figures.
Blake looked around. Aside from the musical hall, she could see the entrance to four other attractions from this spot.
The Krispy Koaster from before had the entrance to its line visible from their parked bullhead, although the winding stand-by queue seemed to stretch on forever – apparently, they were expecting long wait times for that one. Well, the joke was on them; it was currently walk on.
Also nearby, a large, inactive neon sign advertising the Hall of Mirrors had at least fifty comically oversized green and purple arrows pointing to a narrow door that led into a pyramid shaped building. Blake made a note to not go anywhere near that either, unless she decided she wanted to have night terrors.
It took all of Blake's willpower not to rip out Gambol Shroud and open fire on the third attraction she saw.
"How old is this place?" she asked Oobleck.
"Why, it must be fifty, no sixty years old! Whatever do you – oh. I see."
"Let me guess," said Blake dryly. "It was a different time."
Oobleck nodded. "And a much worse one. Not all history is pleasant to be reminded of."
Flakey Ferret and the Savage Faunus Temple. It was a water boat ride, the first and only one visible past the archway heralding the entrance to Expedition Coast, the wilderness themed subsection of the park. Shaking her head, Blake looked away.
The fourth and final ride she could see from here was the All-Aboard Little Gourds, a kiddie train ride that ran on a Figure-8 track. It was the smallest ride and had no indoor portion or good hiding spots, so Blake ignored it.
"ROAAAAAR!"
"And there's the welcoming committee," Port said nonchalantly. "I hope you children all brought your park tickets."
The sound of four swords, two daggers, a shotgun, a mace, a whip, and a scythe being drawn confirmed that they had.
In order to foster the spirit of teamwork and cooperation or some shit, the professors split the eight students into four groups. It would make their searching go a whole lot faster, explained Port, and it would give the Swords and the Rabies a chance to bond, explained also Port – Dr. Oobleck had crashed, and he wasn't talking a whole lot. Unfortunately, his companion more than made up for it.
"Now, we only have two professors, so I'm going to count on the four of you who we cannot supervise to be vigilant and call us the second you find yourselves in any true dangers. I realize that this may be construed as irresponsible, but I think we all know that Beacon can't be made to give a damn about such things, not after you signed those waivers."
"Waivers? I didn't sign any–"
"Oh, I'm positively sure that defense will hold up in court, Mister Bronzewing, assuming you are still alive and with enough brain activity enough to appear in court. Either way, there is little doubt that I'll be culpable in the eyes of the law. Now, here are the matches we have decided upon. I will take Miss Amitola and Miss Schnee to the north. The good doctor shall head south with Mister Bronzewing and Miss Belladonna. Mister Thrush and young Miss Rose shall go together to the west, leaving our eastern front to be secured by Mister Taurus and Mister Winchester. Any questions?"
Ilia knew better than to raise her hand. Port wasn't going to change up their assignments, and Ilia honestly wasn't sure she wanted to. Weiss may have sworn vengeance upon her entire species, but at least she wasn't a…well, Blake wasn't a bitch, but she was a…no, not that either…and calling her a skank was perhaps too harsh…just, Ilia didn't want to be around Blake right now.
"Let's go, Weiss."
"Way ahead of you."
The two girls jogged ahead of Port, whose eyes lingered on a dusty old turkey-leg stand. With their teacher so far behind, it was just the two of them. Perfect.
A̶n̶d̶ ̶t̶h̶e̶n̶ ̶I̶l̶i̶a̶ ̶r̶e̶a̶l̶i̶z̶e̶d̶ ̶t̶h̶a̶t̶ ̶s̶h̶e̶ ̶h̶a̶d̶ ̶l̶i̶t̶e̶r̶a̶l̶l̶y̶ ̶j̶u̶s̶t̶ ̶c̶o̶u̶n̶t̶e̶d̶ ̶h̶e̶r̶s̶e̶l̶f̶ ̶a̶s̶ ̶g̶l̶a̶d̶ ̶t̶o̶ ̶b̶e̶ ̶a̶r̶o̶u̶n̶d̶ ̶t̶h̶e̶ ̶d̶a̶u̶g̶h̶t̶e̶r̶ ̶o̶f̶ ̶t̶h̶e̶ ̶m̶a̶n̶ ̶w̶h̶o̶ ̶k̶i̶l̶l̶e̶d̶ ̶h̶e̶r̶ ̶p̶a̶r̶e̶n̶t̶s̶ ̶r̶a̶t̶h̶e̶r̶ ̶t̶h̶a̶n̶ ̶h̶e̶r̶ ̶b̶e̶s̶t̶ ̶f̶r̶i̶e̶n̶d̶s̶ ̶o̶f̶ ̶f̶o̶u̶r̶ ̶y̶e̶a̶r̶s̶.̶
She looked back, but the others were already heading off. This is fine. We just need some space for me to figure things out. It's not like Iridium again. It's not.
It's not.
Is it?
"This is folly," said Weiss. "Here we are, two best friends, and they're acting like we don't get along. We could have easily been given our own mission rather than being forced to piggy-back on yours."
"Y-Yeah."
"And what even is this mission of ours? Investigate Grimm? We're huntresses. We kill Grimm, not study their ecology! There's no one but us in these wastelands. What does Beacon expect us to find?"
"I dunno," shrugged Ilia. "Maybe, uh, criminals or something?"
Please don't say the White Fang.
Please don't say the White Fang.
Please don't say the White Fang.
"You mean like the White Fang?" asked Weiss.
"About that, Weiss." Ilia knew it was a lost cause, but she couldn't help herself. She'd dug the hole, and she felt the need to fill it – even if her corrective actions typically tended to only make it deeper. "The White Fang – I think that General Ironwood of Atlas arrested all of them back before school started. I hate them too, but the terrorists ones are in jail already. You don't need to do anything about them because they're already done for."
Weiss flipped her hair. "As long as any innocent is in peril, my work shall never be done. This I swear."
"Y-Yeah. Go you and all, but I'm just saying that, uh, the whole pep talk I gave you about self-improvement needs a goal that's going to last. Maybe there's like, one or two rogue Faunus criminals out there, but not enough."
"There's plenty of Faunus, Ilia. Don't worry – I'll hold off on investigating your teammates until we graduate. I know that it would introduce problems if I did anything to them before then, and the last thing I want is to harm you." Weiss turned around and patted Ilia's shoulder congenially, without a trace of sarcasm or irony. "Besides, there's no lack of sub-human reprobates in this world for me to focus my attentions towards instead."
So, that was it. Weiss was officially beyond redemption. Ilia could push further, but right now, Weiss believed her to be likeminded and xenophobic. If she tried to convince Weiss that not all Faunus were White Fang, she would just out herself as one…as both. Assuming Team Yellowjacket-P hasn't already figured it out after last night and blabbed to the entire school.
Doubt crept into Ilia's mind, and she begin to wonder if the act were even worth keeping up. By pushing her true family away and spending her time with a human who thought she was also one, Ilia had become dangerously close to the trouble little girl she used to be, and 'doing it for the mission' was starting to wear thin. Ilia was fairly certain that Weiss wasn't the assassin they were looking for, and she had no valuable intel about the aura transfer device. Her little pet project of rehabilitating Weiss was failed with no chance of salvage; Weiss was too far gone to be saved from her own bitterness. So why was Ilia still bothering?
Ilia made up her mind. When the mission was over, she would cut things off with Weiss and…do something about Blake. And not 'something' like she'd done for all those years, where she'd actually done nothing. She would really do something this time, even if she didn't know what just yet.
"Ilia? Are you listening to me?"
"What? S-Sorry, Weiss. Uh, late night last night."
"Indeed. I didn't get much rest either. It was difficult to sleep when I could hardly wait in anticipation of morning coming." Weiss scowled. "And then Goodwitch's mission assignment ruined that good mood. But at least we get to be together."
Ilia nodded. Out of the corner of her eye, motion in the colors of black and white caught her attention. She managed to glimpse the tail end of a King Taijitu before it slipped out of sight behind one of the gift shops. Silently, she pointed with her full hand in the direction it had come. Weiss caught the signal and cast a sound-dampening Glyph. She certainly had one for every situation.
Port caught up to them as they trailed the beast. Ilia made a slithering motion with her hand.
The professor scratched his head in bewilderment and shrugged. "A spaghetti stand?"
"Ugh. There was a Grimm."
"Let us trace it, then. Perhaps we shall follow this creature to the rest. Scrolls at the ready to inform our teammates, should we find an adder's lair."
…or a crocodile's nest.
The three of them tailed the snake for a short period of time, taking care to make sure that it didn't notice them. The last thing they needed was an entire city's worth of Grimm converging on their location before they were ready.
The Taijitu eventually led them to a restaurant, Out of the Loop, before disappearing inside. Ilia was about to take charge of the situation and direct her allies how to proceed when Port and Weiss began to argue.
"I'm the team leader. I should make the call. We storm the place and kill the Grimm!"
"Our goal is to uncover the source of the Grimm activity. If we trail it longer–"
"This place is very clearly its den. We could be waiting for hours before it comes out, and I have better things to do with my time."
"Miss Schnee, I am the professor, and what I say goes."
Ilia left the two to their squabbles and scaled the exterior of the building. The whole thing was designed to resemble Pumpkin Pete's Citrus Loops, an offshoot cereal product that was supposed to be healthier than the marshmallow flakes. Ilia vaguely remembered taste testing them both in the dining hall of Iridium; both were shit. Sweet shit, but shit nonetheless. Since it was based on the rough, lumpy surface of a cereal loop, Ilia managed to climb atop using the many deformations as footholds.
She slid in through a shattered window without issue and took in her surroundings. The venue was a large circular arrangement of guest seating shaped like a loop with the entrance to an underground kitchen at the center. The Taijitu wasn't anywhere in the dining area, so Ilia held her breath and slunk through the double doors to the kitchen. A spiral staircase awaited her, promising both Grimm and answers.
If there's anything more than the one Grimm down there, I retreat and call for backup. If it's just the snake, I kill it. Easy as pie.
Ilia wasn't planning to catch it unaware. It knew she was here because it could sense her aura and her fear, if she had any, but she was smarter than it and better at hiding from its eyesight. Ilia turned light brown, allowing her to match the umber of the walls. Lighting Lash at the ready, she got low, crouch-walking past the metalware and kitchen appliances. None of the food was still present, likely having been eaten by animals or rotting away to nothing as the years took their toll. This entire amusement park was devoid of all life, and that made something about it fundamentally wrong.
Movement. There.
Ilia caught sight of a door creak. Dashing behind an oven, she peeked out.
The King Taijitu was sprawled out, one head resting on top of the other as its eyes flickered about the room. Most of its body was inside one of the freezers, with just the tips of its heads poking past the doorway.
Ilia looked around the room. No one and nothing else were present. A dead end. Darn.
Lighting Lash extended, hitting the door instead of the Grimm itself. The monster reacted just a moment too late to prevent the latch from catching as the door slammed shut. Ilia emerged from her hiding spot and approached the freezer. The only view in was a small glass window that revealed the furious Grimm within. It was probably hissing wildly, but the noise was muted by the thick metal wall.
"Sorry, buddy. It's this or dying. Enjoy your beauty sleep."
Ilia kind of wished she could trade places with the Grimm. Not the 'eternally trapped in undying solitude until the end of days' bit; more the 'getting some alone time to rest' part. K was the source of the problem, Ruby probably would just make Ilia jealous, and Weiss was just plain difficult to be around right now.
Something Weiss had said just a few moments ago made Ilia pause.
She said she…sleep…but why would…
Hold on just a second.
Ilia pulled out her scroll.
Oh no.
"…outrank you! I am a huntress-in-training!"
"Young lady, I am a huntsman!"
"How dare you imply that huntresses are outranked by huntsmen!"
"I made no such–"
Ilia coughed.
"Miss Amitola, please tell–"
"Ilia, this man is being obtuse–"
"Guys," interjected Ilia. "I already took care of the Grimm."
Both turned to face her, sputtering out arguments in defense of themselves and their positions on the issue.
"I went in. It lived alone down there. It's dealt with." Ilia smiled. "You were right." Ilia declined to specify who 'you' referred to.
"O-Oh. I suppose that satisfies my–"
"If the Grimm is dead and we can move on–"
"Let's head out."
Port turned about face and marched off, tweaking his mustache proudly. Weiss smiled and followed him. Ilia raced to catch up alongside her.
"Hey, uh, Weiss. You said you couldn't get any sleep last night, because you were so excited for today."
"Correct."
"But your team didn't get to choose their own mission. Even if you hadn't know that, you would have already known you were in last place, because you came last in the Combat Practicals. That doesn't sound like something that would make you very chipper."
Weiss pursed her lips. "It was something else that I looked forward to."
"Funny you would say that, because I checked my scroll and saw the weirdest thing." Ilia held out the device. "Two photos shared. One of our selfie and one of–"
"–Jaune Arc's student file. It was the immediate next photo in your library. I saw it by accident, I promise - I wasn't looking for...o-other photos of you, or anything." Weiss straightened out her bolero. "Ahem. I've no idea how you came by it, but I'm absolutely ecstatic that you did. That buffoon doesn't deserve to attend this school, not after the way he wouldn't take my no for an answer about the prom. That man was such a pig. Good riddance."
"A pig." Ilia clenched her teeth so hard they nearly chipped. "A repulsive odorous wretched pig."
I was so sloppy. I let her see my scroll with mission files on it. She could have…jeez, that was close. I lucked out.
...except Jaune's expulsion really was my fault.
Ilia felt dread gnaw at her heart, but Weiss kept talking.
"Quite so," Weiss said, blissfully oblivious to her 'friend's burning rage. "And it's not only me he wronged. During our initiation trials, there were exactly enough launching pads for the number of students participating. That suggests that there was an excess of applicants and only so many spots to enter the school. Jaune took some else's place, someone else more qualified and more deserving. I'm glad he's gone."
Ilia was sorely tempted to pull a repeat of Iridium. Crippling her arm, putting out her eyes, broken teeth, choking her to within an inch of her life – so many wounds to inflict, so little time.
"Still, I feel bad for his team. Pyrrha Nikos – now that's a huntress. A woman of her caliber, saddled with a fraud? The poor thing. No wonder she cried the way she did. I even hear that he somehow blackmailed her into gracing him with a dance at the prom."
She's crazy!
She's - !
She's...
She's actually crazy.
Suddenly, the hate she felt dissipated as though it were smoke fading away into the air. Weiss' behavior was simply abhorrent, but Ilia couldn't bring herself to feel anything but pity for the petulant girl. Weiss was so out of touch with the real world that she would never break free of the fantasy she'd made for herself, one in which she was always the hero and everything that went wrong was always someone else's fault. If Ilia raged against her or hurt her, it might be gratifying, but Weiss would just take it as proof that life was unfair against her and retreat deeper into her self-inflicted sense of martyrdom.
There was nothing that could save or fix Winter's little sister. Blaming Weiss for what she'd done would be about as meaningful as trying to prosecute the King Taijitu locked in the freezer downstairs in a court of law. Both were lower life forms that couldn't comprehend right or wrong if it went an inch further than what they could see in front of themselves.
Weiss Schnee was lost, and that just made Ilia feel sorry for her.
When they eventually did reconvene, night had already fallen. Oobleck, Dove, and Blake's party had been the first to return to the bullhead, so the task of setting up a base camp fell to them. Oobleck insisted that sleeping outdoors was far too dangerous when they had the structurally sound musical hall right next to them, much to Blake's dismay. Still, he was the huntsman and she was the pretend student, so she held her tongue.
The Pumpkin Pete Musical Revue was a decently sized theater with row upon row of jarringly bright orange seats facing a quaint wooden stage and a red rope curtain. A relic of long gone days, the walls were covered in mock posters for the show, promising 'a magical sing-along for the whole family to enjoy.' The papers were slowly beginning to crumble around the corners, and the wallpaper was peeling, but that appeared to be the only damage. The professors hadn't been lying when they said Pumpkin Pete-opia was built to last. Blake ran a finger along the thick coating of dust and blew it off. In the musty, stale air of the room lit up only by the open doors to the shattered moon outside, it truly felt like she'd accidentally swapped places with the protagonist of a horror movie.
Dove claimed the chairs for his team before Blake was even aware they were calling dibs, and he immediately got to work sawing off the armrests with his sword so that he could fit his team's sleeping bags on the seats. Oobleck had already declared he was going to find the operator's booth and put his and Port's things there, so that left the stage for Team Rabies.
Pulling back the curtain revealed an ever present band of animatronics as well as several trapdoors where Blake assumed costumed character-actors would have joined in. Snapped puppets and their torn strings were littered across the floor like candies spilling out of a piñata. Blake picked a baby Beowolf marionette and tried to see if she could make it work, but the head ripped off under its own weight, followed shortly by the right arm and tail. This place…honestly, sleeping alongside the real Grimm they would find outdoors somehow seemed less sinister.
The animatronics still seemed to be in working order. Blake slowly walked around the dimly lit stage and counted four in total. Just enough for a hunter team. Is that a kid's joke, or a bad omen for us?
At the front of the band was Pumpkin Pete himself, the carob-furred critter holding a guitar with the body of the instrument styled to look like a pumpkin. Blake inspected it; the instrument's strings weren't real. Like this entire park, no, the entire city, it was a comforting illusion with nothing practical behind it to do the work.
Behind Pete was some manner of bear on the banjo, a rat playing the drums and foot pedal cymbal, and a crocodile with a tambourine. None of them were particularly appealing to look at, and Blake certainly didn't relish the idea of going to sleep with some woodland philharmonic nightmare orgy going on behind her, but at least they were actual animals rather than racially insensitive depictions of Faunus.
Something about the crocodile forced her to draw closer. She knew from Adam that Ilia had only chosen this mission because of Time's Up Tock, and the reptilian likeness was kind of foreboding in a cryptic way. Whatever ludicrous reason they had embarked on this suicide side quest was known only to Ilia, and possibly Adam. Neither were feeling very loose-lipped.
Blake didn't think that the crocodile was secretly Tock wearing a mask or something – that would be stupid. Like, why go through all the trouble of hollowing out an animatronic and putting on the plating if it was so obviously related to you outwardly? No, Blake was well aware that it was just an inert croc-bot that was meant to sing silly country music for now-deceased children. The reason she couldn't look away from it was because…
…was it buzzing?
"HUH-HUH-HUH-HIIIIYA KIDS! WELCOME ONE AND ALL TO THE PUMPKIN PETE MUSICAL REVUE! GET READY, CUZ WE'RE 'BOUT TO HAVE SOME FUN! A-ONE, A-TWO, A-THREE-HEE-HEE!"
Gambol Shroud decapitated the crocodile, then swung around to cleave Pumpkin Pete in two even pieces, piloted by sheer adrenaline and reflex rather than conscious thought, but that didn't stop the sudden blast of loud noise and bright buzzing lights that hit Blake like a freight train. The entire show, not just the robots but all the flashing strobe lights, theater lights, blaring music from speakers all around her, turned on at once. The doors to the outside shut as well, trapping Blake and Dove inside.
Blake didn't know who or what had turned the system back on, but she knew that it had to have been a conscious choice on someone's part. This ride had laid dormant for decades, and it couldn't have been coincidence that it re-activated the day their teams arrived. The only other people in the park were the other groups…and Tock.
Blake squinted in one eye, lined up Gambol Shroud at the lights, and started methodically shooting them out. Her initial panic from the startling explosion of hauntingly cheery children's music and multicolored illumination was still there, and every second that she stood out there exposed only cause it to froth up further. It didn't help that the blaring music was still just as loud as when it had torn Blake's heart out of her chest. Tock had laid a trap for her, and she could be anywhere. Hiding behind one of the chairs, lurking beneath a trapdoor – anywhere. Blake would have the advantage in the dark as a ninja, but not as much as usual, given her opponent's night vision.
Another light shattered, and a screaming voice rose out over the music.
"What…think…doing?" Dove tried to call to Blake, but the noise was just too loud to make out whatever he was trying to tell her.
Wait, he's a human. If I put out all the lights, Dove's as good as dead.
But he's a Sword…
No! Dust, I'm not going to sacrifice a kid on the altar of my own survival. How can I even think that?
Blake took her finger off the trigger and hit the floor. Scanning the theater, she saw no one but the bronze haired boy and his team's luggage. The doors were closed, but this attraction had far too many entrances to feasibly secure, or even monitor.
They had to get out of there. Fast.
"Dove! Get to the doors!"
The human cupped a hand to his ears. "What?"
"The doors!" Blake pointed.
"What?"
Blake hopped off the stage and ran over to him. Pressing her lips as close to his ears as she could without touching him, she scream into his ears. "We need to go!"
"But–"
"No time! We need to get out of this place, now!"
"It's just a kiddie show–"
"Someone turned it on! And now the two of us are disoriented, dazed, and vulnerable!"
"Who?"
Damn it, Blake couldn't reveal how she knew of Tock without outing herself. There was no time to make up some rational excuse, so she lied through her teeth and went for the one thing he would accept without question from her.
"White Fang! I knew Faunus who knew Faunus in it, and they said they used to have hideouts in abandoned places like this!"
Dove's squinting eyes shot to Blake's ears, but he nodded and drew his sword. He and Blake abandoned their supplies and hustled to the doors just in time to see the handle turn from the outside.
She's out there…
Blake didn't wait for Tock to enter. Opening fire through the closed door, she retreated several paces backwards and placed her finger on the trigger, keeping it there until the entire magazine was empty. Dove fumbled, but then launched a few shots out of his sword as well.
The hollow click of Gambol Shroud empty clip meant she wasn't filling Tock's golden invulnerability with even more lead, and that just wouldn't do. Discharging the empty clip, she furiously pulled out another one and shoved it into her gun. Her human companion saw what she was doing and fearfully reloaded his own weapon in a rush to copy her actions.
The door flung open.
Doctor Bartholomew Oobleck, his overcoat so generously riddled with holes that he resembled a honeycomb, held a mug of coffee. Raising it, he attempted to take a sip, but the bottom of the mug had been shot out and was empty, allowing Blake to see right through it to the doctor's mouth when it went horizontal. Then, the entire rest of the mug, save for the handle Oobleck held, crumbled into shards and clattered to the floor. Oobleck lowered the destroyed mug.
"I was able to find the power generators."
Dove threw his hands up in annoyance. "White Fang! White Fang my foot…I'll go try and find an off switch for the show, I guess." He jammed his hands into his pockets and trudged off.
"S-Sorry, sir. I didn't mean to shoot you or your coffee."
"The damage is already done, Miss Belladonna. Please, leave me to mourn."
Blake tried her best to tone out the earworm being pumped out of the speakers as she made her way back to the stage and opened up her backpack. Unfurling her sleeping bag, she kicked away some of the puppets and the severed remains of Pumpkin Pete to make a wide enough space to unroll it.
The silliness of her own behavior suddenly struck her, and she laughed at how comical her overreaction had been. All this because she'd gotten spooked by standing too close to a robotic crocodile. Blake giggled at the headless reptile's body as it shifted back and forth, tambourine still in hand. Looking around the platform, she searched the room.
Her smile faded as her eyes scanned the stage from side to side.
The crocodile's head, which she'd lopped off in its initial alarm, was gone.
Omake
My brain, for some reason: Space Mountain Glenn.
Omake 2
Pumpkin Pete: *starts singing*
Adam: Man, you sure did get spooked by that, Blake.
Blake: That was scary enough to make a grown woman shit her pants. Say, Adam, does the–
Adam: No, the budget doesn't cover new pants.
Author's Notes
IMPORTANT ANNOUNCEMENT - NEW STORY
Hi everyone! A new story, my third, has launched. It's called Living The Dream, and it's a comedic/serious tale of Jaune Arc, the first huntsman to attend Beacon without aura - mainly because he's still busy trying to unlock it as he attends! Be sure to check it out!
On a serious note – please keep all personal arguments with other users out of the comment unless it is about this story or the comments themselves. This is not the place for following people from other stories and bringing up external disagreements.
Remember to fill out the poll, if you haven't already! Here's the link (forms dot gle /3EGGEfhxs1cgYrZE7)
Poll results (so far):
Ruby Rose – 3
Marrow Amin (trust no one) – 3
Ozpin – 2
Ilia Amitola – 1
Weiss Schnee – 1
Dove Bronzewing – 1
Pyrrha Nikos – 1
Adam Taurus, Blake Belladonna, Russel Thrush, Glynda Goodwitch, Cardin Winchester, Jaune Arc, Yang Xiao-Long, Sky Lark - 0
I'm honestly surprised by these results for a number of reasons. First of all, Marrow Amin was supposed to be my admin test that no one voted for except me to test that the poll was working. Second of all, so many characters got zero votes! I mean, sure, I did include everyone in the Emerald Forest no matter how important, but none for Goodwitch? None for Yang?
Happy rats, and don't do crime!
