Gamer4 in. Not feeling much better- not much else to do but sit here and try to get the next episode out in a somewhat timely manner. The current plan is to get through Blade 1's first act before moving along, which should take... three more chapters, including this one. Maybe. We'll see what happens.
Episode XXIII
Chronicles of the Crescent Blade
The Sharpshooter
When Ruby first opened her eyes and saw a sheer stone wall, her taunting mind immediately showed her a hoard of spiders descending towards where she and her sister lay. One quick blink, however, was enough to banish the creatures, revealing the bright daylight that obliterated any notion that they were still in the cave. Rather, they were in a small canyon working its way up Bionis's leg from the knee.
"Ah, good... no more cave," Nora heaved a sigh of relief.
"No more spiders," Velvet agreed.
"No more spiders for now," Neo smirked.
Yes, it was coming back to her- after taking in the view of the great titans, she and Yang had agreed to get as far away from the cave's exit as they could. Up the nearby hill they'd gone, then into this very canyon, where they'd progressed until the only light they could make out was a small campfire, which they'd discovered to belong to a caravan of nopon. The small creatures had invited them to share dinner, rest, and breakfast the next day, which... explained where she was right now. And the smell of frying eggs entering her nose. She pulled herself into a sitting position and spotted her sister helping prepare the morning meal.
"Huh, I guess they can be hospitable, too," Torchwick quirked a brow. "That Shambhala world had me thinkin' they were all little crooks."
"Oy, Rubes was one of those," Yang growled.
"I know what I said."
"Mornin!" Yang waved cheerily. "Bet you forgot it was Sunday, huh?"
"Are you saying you kept track of time in the cave?" Ruby raised an eyebrow as she moved over to the fire.
Yang laughed. "Ahahahaha... of course not, the nopon tipped me off."
Ruby grinned as she began to eat. It had been their family tradition to eat fried eggs every Sunday for... as long as she could remember. Lucky indeed that they'd run into this caravan, then- she didn't recall bringing any eggs with her.
"Huh, that's weird- our tradition was pancakes every-" Yang started, before suddenly slapping her hands over her mouth.
"Oh, now you've done it," Blake sighed.
"Pancakes?" Nora perked up. "Pancakes? Pancaaaaaa- OOF!"
"We can hardly afford to allow Ms. Valkyrie to destroy this house," Ozpin explained curtly as he pulled his hand back from the vulcan neck pinch he'd just performed.
"I truly need to learn that technique," Ren sighed.
Once the sisters ate, they began gathering up their things. "You comin' with us out onto the leg?" Yang asked.
"No, we have business in Colony 9!" the leader of the nopon denied.
"Might want to wait a bit," Ruby warned. "We kinda kicked a hornet's nest in there."
"We wait for old tunnel to dig out," the nopon decided. "Wish you luck on your way!"
"You sure you don't want some gold?" Yang offered.
"No, no, only tell friends of traveling nopon generosity!"
Ruby laughed. "There's always something."
The girls waved as the nopon continued in the direction they'd been going, before turning back onto their own path.
"They do seem quite cuddly!" Penny grinned.
"I'd love to hug one..." Ruby agreed wistfully.
It took another couple hours of travel-time to reach the canyon's exit, where the sun at its zenith revealed a great, sprawling plain stretching in every direction as far as the eye could see. Yang grinned as she stepped out, putting her hands on her hips. "Welcome to Gaur Plains, Rubes!"
"So... beautiful..." Pyrrha gaped. "They... should have sent a poet."
"It's just a bunch of weeds," Adam scoffed.
"Someone's got some fragments of the Devil's Mirror in his eyes," Qrow rolled his own eyes.
"I am shocked you know that book," Winter blinked in genuine surprise.
"Eh, I've been known to read a book every now and again."
Yang was on the verge of setting off again when she realized Ruby wasn't with her. "...Ruby?"
She turned to see Ruby fidgeting around at the threshold of the canyon. "...Is something wrong?"
"I... I just realized... this is it. If I take one more step... it'll be the furthest away from home I've ever been."
"How weak," Raven sniffed.
"A moment of hesitation is not a sin," Ozpin raised a hand. "So long as it doesn't happen while they are in imminent danger."
Yang seemed to agree more with Ozpin, offering a small smile and holding out her hand. Ruby slowly met her smile and stepped forward, accepting the hand as they set off back across the field. "Remember what Pops said, Rubes: 'Of course it's dangerous to go out your door! Do you realize where that road goes? This is the same road that goes through Makna Forest on Bionis's back- it fills with holes when you're going through Satorl Marsh, and you'll never see it more pristine than when it takes you up to Eryth Sea. You take one step out, and if you don't keep your feet, there's no telling where you might be swept off to. But then... oh, the places you'll go!'"
"Sounds like somethin' the old kook would say," Qrow chuckled fondly.
"I'm glad to hear he gained some measure of wisdom after leaving Beacon," Ozpin allowed the corner of his mouth to twitch upwards.
Ruby smiled at the memory as well. Another came into her mind- a song that he'd used to sing them to sleep after telling them the latest story. The words came to her lips easily:
"The road goes ever on and on,
Over rock and under tree!
Through caves where never sun has shone,
By streams that never find the sea!
Over snow by winter sown,
And through the merry flowers of June!
Over rock and over stone,
And under mountains in the moon!
The road goes ever on and on,
Down from the door where it began!
The road goes ever on and on,
And I must follow if I can!
And I must follow if I can..."
"Rather pedestrian, compared to the music in the halls of Atlas..." Whitley considered. "But... it is pleasant."
"I thought he was about to plant a kiss on you," Yang teased Ruby with one side of her face while flashing a look of You damn well better not towards Whitley with the other. He gulped discreetly and leaned back into his seat.
As she allowed the song to trail off, she looked ahead, and gasped. "Yang, smoke!"
Yang looked ahead, and saw it as well- a narrow plume of smoke rising to the sky from the field below. "Someone startin' up a barbecue?"
"Not in this grassland," Ruby shook her head. "C'mon, let's go!"
The two took off across the plains towards the smoke, finally locating the source- a small buggy that had crashed into the side of a large stone guidepost. The hood had crumpled, and smoke poured forth from beneath.
"Looks like someone was runnin' away from something," Yang observed.
"Then why did they abandon the buggy?" Ruby wondered. "It's not completely new, but it's in pretty good condition!"
"I don't know, because it's smoking?" Torchwick rolled his eyes.
"A crumpled, smoking hood is 'good condition' to you?" Yang raised her eyebrow.
"...Don't make me agree with Torchwick," Yang frowned.
"It looks worse than it is, it's an easy fix," Ruby assessed.
"An easy fix for the average homs, or an easy fix for you?" Yang pointed out sharply.
Ruby blinked. "Well... when you put it that way..." She looked back towards the engine. "Still, that doesn't explain what happened to the-"
*FLASH!*
There was a young woman sprinting across the plains, dark-skinned with scaly patches that identified her as a chameleon faunus. The cause of her flight was no mystery- two large, enraged ardun were hot on her tail, and only at full sprint could she maintain her distance from them.
"Ilia!" Blake gasped.
"She's caught up in this nonsense, too?" Adam grunted.
"I believe we've only seen her once before- in Childhood's End," Ozpin recalled. "This incarnation of her strikes me as... rather younger."
"She is," Blake agreed. "That Ilia had a few years in the army under her belt. This one seems younger than Ruby."
"Wonder how she got those trikes so pissed at her," Torchwick quirked a brow.
Ruby let out a gasp as her vision returned to normal. Yang immediately picked up on it. "What happened?"
"A girl- she's being chased by ardun!" Ruby explained quickly.
"Where?" Yang asked urgently. "Did you see any landmarks?"
Ruby thought hard and quick. "A... lake. She was on a cliff next to a little lake or river- it was being fed by a waterfall!"
Yang snapped her fingers. "Rho Oasis- let's go!"
"As if it's any of your business," Raven scoffed.
"It's called 'altruism.' Look it up," Ren growled. It caught the others off guard- they hadn't expected even Ren to react poorly to Raven's jibes.
As it turned out, Rho Oasis was a comparatively short distance from the guidepost- at top speed, it only took the sisters a few minutes to make out the waterfall that had appeared in Ruby's vision, and from there, it only took a few seconds for the vision to come to fruition. The girl appeared, cresting the nearest hill, screaming as she sprinted down, the raging ardun behind her.
Before they could so much as call out, the girl stumbled and hit the ground. She turned and attempted to scrabble away, but the ardun were fast...
Until they met the immovable object that was Yang Xiao Long, stepping out and seizing the lead ardun by the horns. With a grunt and a strain of effort, she turned its head and managed to cast it off to the side. "You alright, kid?"
"Who- who are you?" she gasped.
"Here to help!" Ruby explained as she appeared- at her will, the blade of Crescent Rose extended into an arch large enough to kill both attacking ardun at once. On a primal level, this idea seemed to occur to the beasts as well- the one still on its feet pawed nervously at the ground before turning and dashing away. Once it regained its feet, the other followed.
"Guess whatever pissed 'em off, they figured it wasn't worth getting killed over," Yang assessed.
"I'm glad we didn't have to kill them," Ruby admitted.
"They did remarkably well- I am proud of them both," Ozpin nodded simply.
Yang watched them go, and once she was satisfied they didn't plan on coming back, she turned to see Ruby helping the girl to her feet.
"Thanks..." the girl nodded breathlessly.
"No problem," Ruby smiled. "Are you feeling alright? Are you hurt?"
"No... no, they didn't touch me," Iliia shook her head.
"Not for lack of trying," Yang noted. "What'd you do to get them so mad?"
"I think I got too close to their nest," the girl speculated. "I think I saw a couple of young ones, at least."
"I'm really glad we didn't have to kill them," Ruby's eyes widened.
"She's surprisingly open with them," Adam noted. "The Ilia I know would not open so readily to humans."
"Perhaps, with the homs and faunus struggling to survive against the mechon, they have dismissed their racial biases?" Penny assessed.
"Hmm... would that something similar could happen back home..." Ozpin mused over another drink from his mug.
"I was trying to find a nest of tirkin- they've been robbing us blind," Ilia continued to explain. "But-"
"Hold on, hold on, rob who blind?" Yang interjected.
"Oh, right!" the girl remembered herself. "I should take you back to camp and... oh, the buggy!" She pressed her face into her hands. "Blake is gonna kill me..."
"Oh, Blakey's about to pop up!" Yang immediately noticed. "Kinda wish we could have had her with us in the cave."
"I can fix the buggy!" Ruby offered. "Nothing a little spit and elbow grease can't take care of!"
"Are... are you sure?" Ilia asked.
"When she saw it, she wondered why you'd ditch it in the first place," Yang rolled her eyes. "I'm sure she could fix it with her eyes closed." She held out a hand. "Yang Xiao Long, and this is Ruby Rose."
"Ilia... Amitola," Ilia introduced herself before following them across the short distance back to the guidepost.
Once there, it indeed took Ruby only a few minutes to locate the source of the smoke and to repair it. "Unfortunately, all the ether leaked out," she reported as she finally straightened up. "We'll have to walk it back."
"You steer, we push," Yang offered. Ilia agreed as she climbed up into the seat.
"You feel like easing up a bit on us, now?" Yang asked snidely. "We even let the faunus behind the wheel."
"In hopes of reward," Adam scoffed.
"Give it up, Yang, it's not gonna happen," Blake sighed.
It was some effort to push the buggy, but thankfully, the camp Ilia had described wasn't too far away. Ilia first steered them back towards the Oasis- not far from the glistening waters was another guidepost, whereupon Ilia turned them towards a nearby treeline. As they crossed into it, the ground began to slope downwards , revealing a lake surrouned on all sides by rock, except for the narrow path Ilia was leading them down. In the center was a body of water too large to be a pond but too small to call a lake, and near its shore, the entrance to a cave. The clearing was filled with people- homs and nopon alike, young and old. Near the lake, two homs were conversing- an elderly, portly old man with a large moustache, and a younger, black-haired woman with a pair of cat ears. They both turned as the buggy reached the bottom of the small ravine, and the woman immediately started closing the distance between them.
"Oh... I'm... older," Blake observed. "I didn't expect that."
"With Rubes and Yang bein' as old as they are, maybe we should start seein' these things comin'," Sun speculated.
Ilia looked down shamefacedly as the woman drew closer. "Blake..."
Blake slammed her hands on the hood of the buggy. "WHERE HAVE. YOU. BEEN?!" she demanded. "BED EMPTY, NO NOTE, MISSING BUGGY- YOU COULD HAVE DIED, YOU COULD HAVE-"
From Ruby's perspective, she was cut off mid-sentence by another *FLASH!*
The woman, Blake, was rushing onto a small, circular stone platform. A flurry of tentacles erupted from the center- one grabbed her and threw her high into the air. As she struggled to right herself, another tentacle rose up and caught her in its steel, blade-like tips, instantly rendering her asunder.
"Yeesh, none of these visions are ever happy," Sun winced.
"I guess there's no need to warn her about happy futures," Velvet pointed out fairly.
When Ruby's vision returned to normal, Blake was winding down. "Listen, I told you we're not ready to leave the camp yet."
"Sorry, Blake," Ilia apologized. Blake took a deep breath, and placed a hand on her shoulder before turning to their guests. Her eyes immediately focused on their gear.
"Defense force?" she whispered, almost to herself, before rushing to them. "Is Colony 6 okay? Is Adam okay?!"
Yang, at whom these questions were being directed, balked slightly. "Wait, I don't-"
Ruby stepped in on her behalf. "We're from Colony 9, not 6, she explained."
"Colony... 9?" Blake repeated, looking rather crestfallen.
"They saved me from some ardun," Ilia chipped in. "Ruby Rose, and Yang Xiao Long."
"Is Adam okay?" Adam noticed- even he seemed surprised.
"Who knows? In a world where humans and faunus get along, perhaps there would be no need for your... falling out," Ozpin speculated.
Adam glowered, but said nothing more. Blake was left to ponder on her own.
"Did they?" Blake glanced at them- they nodded. "Well, I suppose some hospitality is the least we can offer in return. I'm Blake Belladonna. Ilia here is my adopted sister."
"We were on our way to Colony 6," Yang explained. "Did something happen?"
Blake and Ilia both flinched. "Colony 6... our home..." Blake choked out. "It's been... occupied by mechon."
Ruby gasped, and Yang growled. Blake looked away towards the cave. Up above, the sky was starting to darken. "Come in... I'll explain inside."
Ruby and Yang follwed her. The cave absolutely showed signs of homs and nopon attempting to make it more homey. A tapestry or two had been thrown up on the walls, rudimentary beds had been made on the floors, and the darkness was driven back by lanterns, but it was clearly a sad state of affairs nonetheless.
"The mechon did this..." Yang growled, clenching her fists.
"A fine experience, I think," Raven sniffed. "If you can't survive in conditions like-"
"Silence," Adam hissed, catching everyone by surprise. "You know nothing of true suffering."
Raven looked affronted, but did, indeed, fall silent.
The moustached man moved in as they entered. "Ah, guests? I am afraid we have little in the way of provisions-"
"We have our own food," Ruby immediately cut him off. "We don't... we don't need to take any of yours."
Yang nodded, but the man's eyes had fallen on Ruby's weapon. "By my moustache... is that not Crescent Rose?"
Blake did a double take, spinning around and immediately noticing what she had failed to before.
"Oh, yeah," Ruby chuckled sheepishly. "It's... a long story."
"Tell me not that Qrow Branwen, the hero of Colony 9 has fallen!"
"Eh, not sure I care for titles," Qrow wrinkled his nose. "What's a hero, anyways?"
"No, no, he's okay!" Ruby quickly assured him. "We're his nieces. He was hurt, but... he's recovering."
"Oh, good, good," the man nodded. "I don't know that my heart could handle more bad news."
"This is Peter Port- our elder, so to speak," Blake introduced. "Allow me to tell them the story... I'm sure you could use some rest."
"That, I suppose I could," Port agreed, heading further back into the cave.
"I do not know how to feel about being on first names with Port," Blake muttered- or perhaps shuddered.
Blake turned to the sisters. "If he entrusted Crescent Rose to you, then..."
"Yeah," Yang agreed. "We had our own run-in with the mechon."
Blake nodded grimmly. "Then our story should sound familiar. We thought the mechon were all defeated... we let it make us complacent. They were practically on our doorstep before we even noticed. They... they were eating people... and burning our buildings. I'm a medic- I was charged with leading the evacuation, saving the children and elderly. I... can't give you many details. So much of it is a blur now..."
Ruby nodded. "It sounds like what they did in Colony 9- if we hadn't had Crescent Rose, we'd probably have been driven out, too."
"Looks like you got most of the civies out of there, at least," Yang observed, glancing back out of the cave's mouth.
"That's thanks to Ironwood- our colonel," Blake agreed.
"Colonel... Ironwood." Qrow took a deep breath. "I'm gonna need another drink."
"Did you not hear what she just said?" Winter grimaced. "Ironwood is the reason more people didn't die!"
"Ironwood is a good man!" Penny nodded brightly. "I'm sure he acted to minimize all casualties!"
"If you say so," Qrow grumbled.
"He was the first to take control of the situation... and it was Adam that gave us an opening," Blake recalled, looking downcast.
"Adam?" Yang repeated.
"Adam Taurus... my fiancé," Blake sighed, her eyes closed. "Yesterday was supposed to be our wedding."
Most of the heroes immediately turned to Blake, who was suddenly staring ahead, shell-shocked. "M...m...married?"
Adam's growling was out of control now. "They ruined our wedding?!" He raised a fist to the sky. "I'll never forgive the mechon!"
"Friend Blake seems to be unconscious... but her eyes are still open," Penny observed.
"I think she's fainted," Weiss guessed. She waved a hand in front of Blake's face, but got no response.
"Might be nicer to let her rest for a bit," Sun suggested. After a moment, they agreed and continued.
"Oh... I'm sorry." Ruby and Yang looked to the ground.
Blake shook her head, allowing a small smile to cross her face. "Cheer up, you two. He's still alive- they all are. Still fighting. I can feel it."
"Man, drivin' off a girl like that... I almost feel bad for ya, bud," Torchwick smirked. "Almost."
"Keep your thoughts to yourself, if you're interested in keeping your head when all this is over," Adam growled.
"Um..."
They all turned to see Ilia drawing a circle in the ground with her heel. "You said you're on your way to Colony 6?"
"You bet!" Yang grinned, smashing her fists together. "We're out for some revenge! No reason not to take your colony back while we're at it!"
"Try to contain the brash promises, Yang," Weiss sighed. "I know you have Crescent Rose with you, but you're still looking at the two of you against an army!"
"So what, we should just leave them?" Yang challenged.
"I'm not saying that!" Weiss objected. "Simply be more careful with the promises you make!"
Ruby seemed to agree with her other's partner. "There she goes, showing off again..."
"No, she's right!" Ilia nodded eagerly. "If anyone can do it, it's you two!" She looked back to the ground, kicking sheepishly. "Could... could you take me with you?"
"Well, if it's up to Yang, I think she's got it," Ruby giggled. "She can never say no to the little sister act!"
Unfortunately for Ilia, it was not Yang that answered, but Blake. "Ilia! The people here need us! How many times do I have to tell you?"
"Didn't you hear them?" Ilia objected. "A group of mechon went and attacked Colony 9! That must mean a load of them left Colony 6- now's the time to strike!"
"I can admire the drive, but rushing in half-cocked is a mighty fine way to get yourself killed," Qrow warned.
"Even if that's true- no, especially- we can't risk exposing the camp to more danger!" Blake argued.
Ilia seemed personally wounded. "You mean to say you don't care what happens to the people in the colony?! How could you be so heartless?! Or are you just that scared of the mechon?!"
Ruby took a few tentative steps backwards, not eager to get involved in their dispute. For better or worse, it all suddenly disappeared in a *FLASH!*
Once again, she was on the circle of stone, a pillar winding and twisting up from a deep canyon. A large mechon towered above them- a mechon with a large, bronze face. Impassive as it was, it seemed to be smirking as it held aloft a screaming Ilia in its steel fist.
"It looks like the same place from the last vision," Velvet recalled.
"That wasn't the same faced mechon that killed Jaune, though," Pyrrha noticed. "It was... bulkier."
When Ruby came to, it was to Yang intervening with the fight. "Hey, kid! You oughtta know how Blake feels! Watch your mouth, and have some respect!"
Ilia looked to the ground- it seemed that she had been developing a level of hero-worship with Yang, and being told off by her hero wasn't sitting well. "I... I'll go and make dinner." She sulked off to the back of the cave.
"Big sister Yang is scary..." Ruby shuddered.
Yang seemed to be having similar thoughts. "Rubes... think I was too hard on her?"
Ruby didn't answer, catching Yang's attention- she was looking down at the ground. "Rubes?... Ruby?"
"Actually," Blake spoke up, "you reminded me of Adam."
"Er... I did?" Yang blinked, caught off guard.
"He took care of us from an early age," Blake related. "I think Ilia saw him as something of a father figure. He'd call her 'Kid' whenever he had to tell her off, just like you did."
"Hey, now!" Yang raised her hands. "I don't think I'm old enough to be anyone's mom just yet!"
Adam was gritting his teeth, almost to the point of turning them to dust. Yang rubbed her arm, looking pointedly away from his end of the room. Blake was still unconscious.
Yang turned back to Ruby. "Rubes! Bionis to Rubes! What's going on, sis?"
Ruby looked up, and something in her eyes seemed to get through to Yang immediately. "You saw another one, didn't you?"
Ruby opened her mouth to explain, but before she could actually speak, the roar of an engine came from just outside. Ruby jumped. "No!"
Vision or no, Blake seemed to realize what was happening as well. "No, Ilia!"
"Dumb kid," Torchwick scoffed.
"She's got spirit, but spirit alone doesn't win battles," Qrow reluctantly agreed.
"Oh, dear!" Velvet's ears stood up straight. "You don't suppose Ruby's visions... that they..."
"Hurry!" Ruby squeaked, hopping up from her seat. "Hurry after her!"
Sure enough, when they ran outside, the buggy was gone. "She's gone to Colony 6 alone!" Blake panicked.
"Stupid kid!" Yang grumbled.
"We have to hurry after her! Something bad's going to happen!" Ruby warned.
"Knew it," Yang nodded. "What did you see?"
"A deep valley... a large mechon... one with a face!" Ruby explained breathlessly. "It takes Ilia!"
"The faced mechon?" Yang growled, her fists twitching.
"Not our faced mechon," Ruby denied. "This one's face is bronze."
"Hold on, hold on!" Blake interjected. "What are you talking about?"
"I get that this is a hard sell," Yang admitted in advance, "but Ruby can see the future."
Blake's brow furrowed. "I can tell you a thousand reasons that's not possible."
"I probably wouldn't believe it myself if we hadn't seen it," Jaune admitted.
"I had trouble believing it myself," Ruby came clean. "And I still can't explain it, but... but that vision I had will come true, if we don't do anything to stop it."
"Well, whether you're crazy or not, it doesn't change that Ilia's in danger," Blake considered.
"We're not gonna ask you to believe it," Yang assured her. "Personally, I wouldn't be standing here if it weren't for her visions... but either way, we'll get her back for you."
"Ohhh, something tells me she's not gonna be happy to just sit this one out," Sun smirked.
Sure enough, Yang had only taken a few steps before Blake had caught up. "Hold on, you're not going without me!"
"You sure?" Yang asked, crossing her arms.
"I can hold my own in battle!" Blake adjusted the strap across her front, revealing it was holding a rifle to her back. "It draws on the ether in the air. It's not as effective as Crescent Rose, but it can even damage mechon in a pinch, and I'm trained in medicine."
"Huh, Blake isn't usually our main dust user," Ruby noted. "That's usually more Weiss's thing."
"True... though I have seen her do some remarkable things with dust before," Weiss recalled. "I believe this is the first I've heard of her being trained in medicine, however."
"No foolin?" Yang considered. "Well, you won't hear any objections from me- Bionis knows I'm always gettin' roughed up. Any idea which way she'd have gone?"
"There are plenty of routes to the Colony, but in a buggy... she'd have gone across Raguel Bridge," Blake deduced.
"Alright, then let's get goin'!" Yang decided. "You comin' or what, Rubes?!"
Ruby jolted, and took off after them. "Right, right!" If I don't do anything, Blake will die- but I won't let that happen! I'll save her, the same way I saved Yang!
"Y'know, it seems ta me that the best way to start doin' that would be to tell them about the vision!" Nora suggested.
"Hmm... she's still getting used to the idea of being able to see the future at all," Ren assessed. "Having such power abruptly thrust upon her can be no easy thing. Though... yes, she would likely be better served to share the visions with Yang, at least."
"Eh... sorry..." Ruby poked her index fingers together.
Blake led the rush back up the narrow path and through the trees back onto the Gaur Plains, where she took a right and led them further uphill, onto a cliff overlooking a lake far vaster than the small oasis where they'd met Ilia. The camera panned back to show the majesty as they three women charged across a vast bridge spanning the vast gorge.
"So many beautiful shots..." Velvet was almost drooling.
"If there were no mechon in this world, it would be... quite worth a visit," Whitley admitted shortly.
They were almost at the other end when they found the buggy... crashed into the railing on the side.
"That sis of yours is really not good with buggies," Yang crossed her arms.
"No... this wasn't a normal crash," Ruby shook her head. She pointed to the nearby field, which was torn asunder.
Blake's eyes widened. "Mechon!"
"They've already got her!" Ruby yelped.
"An expected consequence of such foolish actions," Raven scoffed.
"Silence, wench," Adam growled.
"Urgh, don't make me agree with that douche!" Yang grunted.
"Well, there's one upside to that," Yang crossed her arms. "They left us a path to follow. Come on!"
The women took off once more, following the trail of destruction up further and further and across another stretch of plains towards- Ruby's heart leapt- a spiraling pillar perfectly matching what she'd seen in her vision.
"Any time you wanna tip them off..." Jaune was chewing on his nails.
And there, on a circle of rock connected to the plains by a short bridge, were the flailing tentacles of the mechon, playing with Ilia like a toy.
"Ilia!" Blake cried, increasing her pace.
"Blake, no, slow down!" Ruby cried, to no effect- Blake was in an all-out sprint by now, unwittingly sealing her fate.
Abruptly, Crescent Rose began to shine brighter than usual- Ruby looked to the central piece. "A new symbol?" Can I still save her?
And then, another voice spoke, as if directly into her mind: Of course you can.
"It's the same voice from the dream!" Pyrrha recognized.
"Which means it's time for some more deus ex machina bull- yup, there we go," Torchwick sighed.
The blade began to turn red, and with a yell, Ruby spun, sending a wave of light that enveloped both Blake and Yang. Blake didn't seem to notice immediately, but she certainly did when a tentacle emerged from the ground. She knew she wasn't going to be able to dodge, but put her full effort into doing so anyways...
And disappeared in a puff of black petals, reappearing a short distance away. "What the-"
Two more tentacles swung her way, and in two more puffs of petals, she'd dodged them both. Seconds later, they lay on the ground, rent apart by Crescent Rose.
"Never expected to see anyone but Rubes doin' that," Yang tilted her head.
"Huh, I wonder if she has any other semblances she can activate with that thing," Sun considered.
In two more bursts of petals, Yang and Ruby were at Blake's side. "Watch the ground- the tentacles can appear any time!" Ruby warned. "On my mark- right, Yang?"
"Of course- leave it to me!" Yang agreed.
Ruby scanned the ground- her eyes flashed, and just like that, she took off, ducking and weaving through the tentacles. Yang and Blake were able to match her speed, and with another swing of Crescent Rose, to dispatch the tentacles just as effectively.
"Amazing!" Blake gasped. "I didn't know you had such power!"
"Not me- it's Crescent Rose!" Ruby corrected.
"Yeah... you see us start glowing, that's Crescent Rose working its magic!" Yang agreed.
"At least they acknowledge they couldn't do this on their own," Neo rolled her eyes.
"Indeed... I hate to agree with criminals," Winter sighed, "but an uncomfortable amount of these victories are coming down more to luck than anything else. Should they continue to rely on the weapon, things will become very grave should they ever lose it."
"We shall see," Ozpin adjusted his glasses. "We shall see."
As if enraged, the tentacles grasped at the ground and dragged the main unit out of the dirt it had been burrowing under. It swung its tentacles up and climbed to a higher level. The huntresses followed, Ilia's screaming in their ears. Ruby took a deep breath, and renewed her enchantments on Blake and Yang's weapons- each time she used it, she felt a little drained, but was able to press through. "Yang, Ilia!"
"Got it!" Yang agreed. Ruby leapt in the air and managed to sever the tentacle carrying the chameleon faunus, sending her to the ground- but Yang leapt and tackled her out of the air first. Blake opened fire directly at the central unit, which exploded in a rather satisfying manner. With the threat eliminated, she dashed over to Ilia.
"Ilia- are you okay?"
Ilia pulled herself into a sitting position, and found herself unable to meet Blake's eyes. "Blake, I'm... I'm sorry."
For a moment, a look of anger took Blake's face, and she smacked the girl- then the anger was gone, and she pulled her into a bone-crushing hug. "I'm just glad you're okay!"
"God knows I've felt that way about Rubes before," Yang chuckled nostalgically.
"And I'm sure Tai's felt that way about you," Qrow threw in a smirk of his own.
Yang pumped a fist. "Talk about changing the future, eh, Rubes?"
Ruby, however, still looked off-put. Yang's grin quickly turned into a frown. "You alright?"
"Well... this isn't the mechon from my vision."
Yang glanced at the ruined chassis. "Huh... no, I guess not. It was supposed to be one of those faced bastards, wasn't it? Guess we changed the future more than we expected!"
"Or... it hasn't happened yet!" Jaune realized.
Ruby seemed to come to the realization at the same time. "Blake, Ilia, we have to-"
A great roaring filled the air, as a great flying mechon appeared- as it touched down, it unfolded to reveal the exact mechon from Ruby's vision, complete with the bronze face. And then... it spoke.
"Heh, we've been waitin' on you, Monado Girl!"
"Roman?!" Neo gasped.
"Huh... looks like I've got a bit of an upgrade in this world," Torchwick blinked. "Better than a politician, at any rate."
"They... they can talk?!" Pyrrha gasped.
"It doesn't seem like they all can," Penny pointed out. "Perhaps speech is exclusive to the ones with the faces?"
"But the one that attacked Colony 9 didn't talk, either!" Jaune reminded them.
"With one simple line, our entire perception shifts," Ozpin observed. "Clearly, there is more to this than we initially thought."
Bronze Face raised a large hammer and swung it at the ground- it left a crater at the point of impact, sending a shockwave that all the women felt. "Metal Face made you sound like some big, scary monster, but here you are! Just a pathetic little kid!"
"'Metal Face?'" Penny wondered.
"Presumably the one that attacked Colony 9," Weiss guessed.
"Still, that hardly makes sense, does it?" Penny pointed out. "Why would only one of them be called 'Metal Face?' All their faces are metal."
"That... is a fine point, actually," Winter agreed, looking to Jack.
"Well... we're actually filtering the real name he's using," Jack admitted. "The actual term is... well, some people out there are a little sensitive to it." He tapped nervously on the arm of his chair. "Please don't ask me to explain."
The others glanced at each other and shrugged.
Bronze Face swung the hammer again, and found himself looking at Ilia, scrabbling away. "Oh, that'll do nicely..."
He reached out with one hand and caught her effortlessly. Ruby, Yang, and Blake were all attacking with everything they had, but to Ruby's chagrin in particular, even Crescent Rose itself was plinking off of the faced mechon's armor as if she were attacking with a wooden blade.
"Why? Why doesn't Crescent Rose WORK on these things?!"
Her eyes flashed, and she ducked to avoid another swing of the hammer. "But... I can still see what they're going to do..."
"Well... the visions aren't really affecting them directly, I guess?" Neptune shrugged. "Still couldn't tell you why it won't cut them."
"That all the Monado's good for?" Bronze Face taunted. "Lettin' you run around like a fly? A lot of good that'll do ya- you're still flesh and blood, and that limit's coming!"
Ruby felt it as well, her breath hitching, her legs slowing just enough for Bronze Face to get in a good hit- until Blake shot at his hand. It didn't seem to do any damage, but it knocked him off course, giving Yang a chance to strike- for all the good that did.
"Okay, that was fun for a bit, but I'm getting bored." Bronze Face leapt into the air, putting his entire weight into a strike at the ground with his hammer, sending all three fighters scattering. Ruby and Yang managed to dig their heels in, but Blake practically flew off the cliff.
"BLAKE!" Ilia cried.
Ruby and Yang rushed over to see her hanging on to the cliff with one hand. Yang quickly grabbed her other to pull her up, even as Bronze Face wound up another strike- then stopped. It was only Ruby's observant eyes that noticed his pause coincided perfectly with the red lines running across his chassis suddenly dimming.
"Yes... I think their immunity has something to do with that red light, just as Ruby hypothesized," Weiss observed. "He's stopping because the light disappearing means he's vulnerable again... for some reason."
He scoffed. "Rotten timing... but lucky for you, Little Red. If you feel like pressing it, come meet me in Colony 6. And just to make sure you don't forget me..."
He held up a screaming Ilia. "Don't keep me waiting- I'm feeling hungry!"
"Blake- Blake!" Ilia screamed as the ground fell away beneath her.
"Il...Ilia..." Blake feebly reached up to her- there was a mark on her head where it had hit the ground before she went over the cliff. She was barely hanging on, and as she watched her sister fade into the distance, she finally slipped into unconsciousness.
Just as her other, in point of fact, regained consciousness. "Huh? Wait, sorry, what happened?"
"You were out that whole time?" Yang asked, somewhere between exasperated and impressed.
"I... I think I had a big shock," Blake rubbed her head. "How long was I out?"
"Eh, probably half an hour or so," Jaune gauged roughly.
"Hmm... I'm gonna put some more food on," Jack rose to his feet. "Maybe you oughtta fill her in in the meantime."
They watched him go, then Team RWY turned to her. "Okay, so after you passed out..."
XXXX
I estimate one more episode from Blade 1 before we move on to another. I may or may not introduce some new reactors in the meantime- while there are other characters I feel might have some interesting contributions, I also somewhat feel like I'm spreading things thin enough as is. At the forefront of my mind are Tai (as teased earlier,) Ghira, and Kali, and probably a fourth since I'm so obsessed with that number. I don't know, we'll see what happens. If you have any opinion on the matter, or anything to say about the story at large, I'd love to hear it! Feel free to drop a review, and until next time, don't you dare go hollow. Gamer4 out.