Mor Ardain
It was an afternoon in Anangham dock in the lower levels of Mor Ardain. Despite the tension with Uraya, life still went on normally for the most part. The dock still had ships coming in that import goods from Gormott and the Trade Guilds of Alrest.
But then a look out to the Cloud Sea made everyone look surprised. An Urayan passenger ship was approaching. Heavily damaged, by the looks of it.
This was immediately reported to the commanding officer of the area who proceeded to radio the ship.
"Attention, Urayan vessel. This is Captain Percy, commanding officer of Anangham docks. You are approaching the empire's dock. State your purpose," the commanding officer said.
Then a surprising response came from an authoritative female voice "Captain Percy, this is Special Inquisitor Mòrag Ladair. The vessel I am currently in was struck by a sudden storm. The ship's crew request temporary docking for the duration of repairs."
Captain Percy stiffened at hearing this voice, "Special Inquisitor Mòrag disappeared from Indol into an unknown phenomenon." As much as he wanted to believe it, he had to be skeptical.
"Yes, and I have managed to return. But if my word is not enough for you, then I shall move to the deck for you to have a proper view of me." The supposed Special Inquisitor spoke with an understanding tone.
The captain thought about it. On one hand this could be some kind of trap. It's not that he believes Urayans to be this underhanded, but they probably have their share of insubordinates. Still the ship looked damaged, and was a passenger ship. "Tell the ship's captain that they are clear to dock, but you must be outside the ship during the docking alongside Lady Brighid and Sir Aegaeon."
"Understood." Came the response, "I shall be outside. But I might have some…interesting company. Although I can assure you that they aren't hostile."
"Are you referring to the Driver of the Aegis?" the captain asked.
"No, I have become acquainted with new people." Was the reply, "I shall speak more of this after docking, if that is alright with you."
"Understood. Dock three is currently open. Over and out." With that, the captain began preparations.
Inside the ship, Mòrag had also given the captain the good news.
"Thank you so much Special Inquisitor," the captain thanked before addressing his crew, "Alright, prepare for docking."
With the crew now doing what they can, Mòrag moved out of the bridge, seeing that her task was done.
Outside, most of the gang was waiting.
"Did you get a docking permit?" Rex asked in worry.
"Yes I did, Rex," Mòrag replied in almost amusement.
"Oh, thank the Architect," Rex let out in relief, "I seriously thought that this ship would go under when that storm hit."
"Yeah, and it started way too fast," Nia said with a deep frown, "If I didn't know better I'd say we were cursed or something." At the latter part, Nia was glaring at Zeke.
"Hey! My luck isn't that bad," Zeke defended himself.
"True, this kind of thing is unlucky even for my prince," Pandoria chimed in.
"But we were lucky enough to be close to Mor Ardain," Kasandra said happily, all the while Qrow was glaring at her.
"And I thought that engine explosion was bad," Qrow thought as he had witnessed Kasandra's mask rattling moments before the storm started. "She's worse than I ever was." Causing a natural disaster of that magnitude was next level bad luck.
"Well I suppose you're right," Pyra said with a smile, before looking to the front of the bow, "They really didn't realize where we were going."
"Well, Mor Ardain's titan is an impressive sight," Azurda piped up, "I can't really blame them.
That of course referred to team's RWBY and JNR staring at the Ardainian titan, which was a large walking humanoid in shape. With a large city attached to the shoulder where a left arm would be.
And as they got closer, they fully understood the size of the Great Titans. Even after seeing the Urayan titan fully when they exited it, they still couldn't fully comprehend it at the time.
The reactions varied between a slack jaw from Ruby, Nora, Weiss and Oscar. To wide eyes of Blake, Ren and Yang. Penny and Jaune were the only ones who had no outward reaction. Penny, because she was still trying to compute a large being like that moving without disturbing anything living on it. And Jaune was too busy puking over the railing. His motion sickness had not improved and the previous storm didn't help at all.
Which was why Joana was busy tending to her lord Driver. The other Blades were impressed at the sights in their own ways too, but to them this was normal.
When the ship finally docked, they were greeted by a small squad of Ardainian troops. They seemed wary of them at first, until Mòrag stepped off the ship, flanked by Brighid and Aegaeon.
"Special Inquisitor!" The leader of the troops, who was captain Percy himself, said with a salute. Which was followed by the rest of the troops.
"At ease," Mòrag said simply, which made the troops do just that. "Now, as I said on the radio, this ship was badly damaged in the storm. The titan the ship steers is alright, but the damage to the ship itself was extensive enough to compromise it."
"I will have a crew inspect the ship and estimate the needed repairs," captain Percy replied, "But if you don't mind me asking Lady Mòrag, why have you not informed anyone of your return?"
"I have only managed to return very recently and the fact that I appeared in Uraya was beyond my control," Mòrag replied, "But seeing as I'm here, could you send a message to the capital to inform his majesty of my return."
"Yes, ma'am," Percy replied, "I Imagine his majesty will be happy to hear this."
"I suppose," Mòrag said, willing herself not to look forlorn. She wanted to go to the capital herself, but unfortunately the mission comes first.
With those words, Captain Percy sent one of his men to fetch the repair crew to assess the damage to the ship.
As this was happening, the rest of the gang had stepped outside the ship to see the docks.
"Urgh, why is it so hot in here?" Weiss complained at the heat.
"It is kinda warm," Yang said despite feeling herself sweat a little.
"The Ardainian titan is known for being very warm," Dromarch informed the Remnans.
"Although as the titan is nearing the end of its life-span, its body temperature will increase," Azurda added in.
"So Mor Ardain is so hot because it's dying," Yang asked with a raised eyebrow, "That's a bit depressing."
"More like this place was always warm and it's just getting hotter just before…crash," Dragunov piped up with a small smirk.
"A crude example," Brighid, who had moved to them during this conversation, said with a frown, "But not entirely incorrect."
"…Is farming even possible here," Blake then decided to ask.
"Yes, but the crops aren't very…plentiful," Brighid admitted, before smiling a little, "Although the use of geothermal energy is very advanced, so we can produce other goods which we can trade."
"…I see," Blake muttered now finding herself further incapable of judging Mor Ardain for annexing Gormott.
"There doesn't seem to be too many shops around here," Ruby then complained, although she was marveling at the titan warships that were docked here.
"You want shopping? You would have to go to the capital," Nia piped up.
"Is that the only place with more shops?" Ren asked out of curiosity.
Brighid smiled at the question, "No, but the capital is the closest place in regards to our current position."
"Really? How close?" Nora asked eagerly, "I wanna see what kind of place it is."
"Did you see the city attached to the Titan's left shoulder?" Brighid asked with a mysterious smile.
"Yeah, why?" Electra asked.
But it was Weiss who's widened eyes revealed her realization, "That's the capital?!"
"What?!"
"How has it not been shaken off?" Qrow asked with a disbelieving look. The titan was moving constantly, so it should have shaken off the city a long time ago.
"The capital has been standing there since the founding of the empire," Zeke explained, "Pretty sure it was designed with that in mind."
"Besides, are any of you feeling the titan moving right now?" Rex chimed in.
Now that the salvager mentioned it, if they didn't know any better, they would say that Mor Ardain was stationary.
At that moment Ozpin was given control, "Just out of curiosity, how do you travel from titan to titan if they are always moving?"
"Simple really," Pandoria piped up, "Each Titan circles the world tree at a steady speed, although some of them do move faster than others. With that knowledge came schedules on where each titan will be at each time of year, and using that knowledge the ships are able to travel to the location the titan they are traveling to would be at at the estimated arrival time."
"That's…amazing," Blake couldn't help saying in awe.
"Yeah, can't argue with that," Qrow agreed.
"A bit," Yang also admitted, before having an eager look," So do you guys think we have time to visit the capital?"
Rex crossed his arms with a thoughtful look, "That probably depends on how badly the ship was damaged."
At that moment, Mòrag returned to the gang with a small frown.
"How was it, Lady Mòrag?" Brighid asked, despite noting the frown.
"The engines sustained heavy damage, and there is a concerning amount of structural damage, according to the inspection," Mòrag explained, "It will take a few days before they are fixed."
"Perfect," Yang said, earning incredulous looks from others, "Come on, guys. Don't tell me you don't want to look around?"
"She's not wrong," Jaune admitted, now curious about this place since they were stuck here for a while.
"Will you be our guide, Miss Ladair," Weiss asked curtly.
"I would be honored to, but I must go see his majesty as soon as possible," Mòrag then said.
"Right, he might be worried about you," Nia commented with a small smile. Still remembering how the Special Inquisitor was when Bana almost succeeded in his attempt to assassinate the emperor during peace talks.
Mòrag didn't answer, but she then addressed the entire group, "I have sent a courier to inform his majesty of my return. So we shall go to the capital for the time being."
That seemed like welcome news to the group.
"We still got enough spending money?" Roze chose to ask.
"I'm not making more gems," Dragunov said instantly. He might experiment with new rocks if they got any, but he would not be the cash cow again.
"I might do some salvaging if we need anything," Rex offered, "There are some good spots in Mor Ardain."
"Hmmm… Tora hummed in thought before turning to Yang, "Yang, about what Tora and Yang talked."
Yang perked up a little, "Yeah?"
"If Rex-Rex salvage some things, Tora can make necessary modifications," Tora said.
"Really?" Yang asked eagerly before realizing something, "Wait, wouldn't you need a proper workshop or something?"
"Modification like this, easy for Tora," Tora replied, puffing his chest a little.
"He did make Poppi," Dragunov pointed out.
"Okay, fine," Yang conceded before turning to Rex, "Hey, Rex. Would you help me with this?"
"Sure, if it's salvaging, just leave it to me," Rex said with his hands on his hips.
"Great!" Tora exclaimed before taking a piece of paper from his overalls and handed it to Rex. "This list have parts Tora need."
Rex took the paper and looked through it. "Uhh…Tora, Angel Engines don't appear in Mor Ardain," Rex said with an unsure look.
"Meh, meh?" Tora let out, "Tora not know that."
"So where can you get those?" Ruby asked, having peeked over Rex's shoulder to look at the list. With Nora also being curious.
"What the heck is a Rabbit Diode?" Nora asked with a weirded-out look.
However, Rex decided to answer Ruby instead, "From Leftheria. But that's currently not even on our way."
"Maybe we could see if they're sold around town?" Pyra suggested.
"That's a great idea Pyra!" Rex exclaimed happily.
"I'm glad I could help," the red-haired Aegis said with a smile.
Electra was giving Pyra a quizzical look, "Are you sure you're not secretly related to Pyrrha?"
"What?" Pyra was a little flabbergasted at that question.
"You said something that sounded a lot like her," Talos spoke up. When everyone turned to the metallic Blade, some of them could swear he was smiling through his eyes.
"Ahem!" Mòrag interjected. "Shall we go?" As fun as watching everyone's antics is, she had important things to do.
"Of course, Mòrag," Rex replied easily.
"Yeah!" Ruby added in enthusiastically.
With that, the gang moved to Alba Cavanich, which thankfully wasn't far indeed. Of course, Yang had to pick up Bumblebee so that Tora could work on it the moment he got the parts. But to avoid Yang dragging the bike. The rest of the gang went ahead, leaving Brighid with Yang. That way, Brighid could guide Yang to them as the blonde Driver rode the bike.
Although according to Yang, the locals hadn't seen a motorcycle before judging by how some of them looked a bit frightened. And Brighid looked a little…frizzled when they arrived.
"Umm…Are you alright?" Mòrag asked in mild concern as the Blade of blue flames was still desperately trying to get her hair back in proper order again.
"She…is…insane," Brighid said, clearly biting back any harsher words that she was no doubt thinking.
"Wuss," Dragunov complained, still miffed that he wasn't allowed to ride.
"Come on, Drag," Yang shot back, "It was a short trip you wouldn't have gotten any thrills."
"…Fair enough." The draconic Blade shrugged.
"So," Roc piped up, "This vehicle can go fast?"
"Faster," Yang said with a grin, which soon dropped, "If we had proper fuel and a longer road."
"I must ask that you don't drive that thing in the streets," Mòrag then said sternly, "Otherwise…you might end up in prison." She can only imagine the amount of destruction this girl can cause if Brighid's state is anything to go by.
"Aww, don't be boring," Yang almost whined, "I'm sure the streets are big enough for a light stroll."
"We would all appreciate if you did not drive over the people," Otohime said sternly, "We have already had a run in with one nations laws. I believe I speak for everyone when I say that we would not want another." At the latter part, Otohime gave everyone else a pointed look as if to say, "Agree with me or else."
"She's not wrong," Qrow piped up, "It would be nice if we didn't get into another run in with the law."
"Yang, please don't drive over anyone," Roze then said, sounding completely serious.
"Are you serious? I am nowhere near that bad of a driver," Yang stated, now sounding offended.
"Our garage says otherwise," Ruby deadpanned.
"That was an accident!" Yang complained.
"Uhh…what are they talking about?" Zeke asked from Qrow.
"Not exactly sure," Qrow shrugged, "One day I popped in for a visit, their garage had a huge hole in the wall. And her dad didn't want to tell me how that happened."
"She sounds like she was…quite a handful," Said Azurda who had come out of Rex's helmet to join this conversation.
"What do you mean 'was'," Qrow asked in deadpan tone.
"Hey!" Yang complained at hearing that.
"Qrow's right and you know it," Ruby added in with a smug look.
"Oh, betrayed by my own family," Yang said melodramatically, placing her hand over her "broken" heart for the effect.
"We're here," Mòrag then said, already done with this nonsense. And then the elevator doors opened, allowing everyone entry to Alba Cavanich.
As the gang took in the sights, they were…mildly underwhelmed. It's not that Alba Cavanich was small, but the buildings weren't as big as anything in Vale or as…alien looking as the ones at Fonsa Myma were. But there were quite a lot of pipes with steam or smoke coming out.
"I was…kind of expecting something…bigger," Weiss said with a mildly disappointed look. Then again, she was from Atlas, and their buildings are as grand as they come. Within the upper city that is.
This earned a raised eyebrow from Nia, Zeke and their Blades.
"Miss Schnee is from Atlas," Aizen explained, "And the buildings there are much more…grand than these. At least, the ones where all the rich and powerful live."
"Oh, right," Rex muttered.
"We forgot, that Weiss is some kind of princess," Nia said with a small snicker.
"Former heiress," Weiss said with slight bitterness to her voice.
A bitterness that made the rest of RWBY and JNR to wince.
"Now then, I suggest we all meet at the inn at the end of the day," Mòrag then suggested.
"Seconded." Zeke and Pandoria immediately said in unison.
"Sounds nice," Pyra added in with a smile.
"Sure," Rex also agreed with a smile.
"But what do we do in the meantime?" Jaune then asked.
"Are you kidding?!" Nora practically shouted, "SIGHTSEEING!" With those words Nora ran off to who knows where.
"Nora! Wait!" Ren shouted, running after her alongside Electra. All the while the passersby's looked weirded out at the scene.
"…If she does something to land herself in prison, we will leave her behind," Otohime declared with a stony expression.
"I am sorely tempted to agree," Joana muttered, "My apologies, milord."
"But Nora does have the right idea," Yang said with a grin.
"Goldie needs to put Bumblebee in garage," Tora then pointed out.
"Okay, but where can I find one that I can be sure doesn't try to steal it?" Yang asked. It's not that she didn't trust the locals, but there were only two things Yang valued more than her bike's safety, her loved ones and her hair.
Rex perked up at this, "Hey, Tora. Didn't Gyro say that he owns a garage in the Storage District?"
"Who's Gyro?" Yang asked, but she was ignored in the favor of Tora perking up.
"Rex-Rex right!" Then the inventor's jaw dropped, "Gyro also say he use it for tinkering. There could be equipment Tora can use!"
"Well what are waiting for!" Rex then said eagerly, "Gyro lived in the residential district, let's go!"
"Wait, who's this Gyro guy!?" Yang yelled again, but once again, she was ignored.
It didn't take long for Yang, Tora, Poppi and Dragunov to find themselves on the third floor of an apartment complex. Or, Yang, Tora and Poppi were, while Dragunov stayed down to guard Bumblebee. The others decided that not all of them had to go, and instead split up to do their own things. Especially Rex who needed to salvage the necessary materials for Bumblebee's upgrades.
Poppi knocked on the door firmly. Then the gang waited for a moment until the door was answered by a girl.
The girl in question was relatively short and a little…lacking in curves if you ask Yang. She had icy blue hair which was tied to a high bun. The girl had two accessories that looked like horns made of ice, until Yang noticed that they looped behind her ears and then stuck out from either side of her forehead. The right one being longer than the left one. The girl had an eyepatch with an ice spike sticking out of it over her left eye, while the right eye was icy blue.
The eyepatch wearing girl was wearing a black bodysuit with ether lines crossing around it. Around her torso the bodysuit changed to a white centerpiece that covered her small bust. Above the said bust, was a Core Crystal in the shape of a V, identifying her as a Blade. Right beneath the said bust, slightly to the side, were two more small ice spikes jutting out. Around her hips, the Blade had two wide straps going down her thighs with bronze armor on them, and there were two large ice spikes that curve a little over her hips before jutting behind her.
On her arms the Blade had bronze colored shoulder guards and similarly colored armor pieces on the backs of her hands. The handguards also had ice spikes jutting out in an upward angle towards her forearms.
The bottoms of the Blade's bodysuit bagged out around her thighs and down to her knees, where it once again becomes skin tight. On her knees, she has bronze colored guard. Finally, the suit ended in high heels.
"Who are you?" the Blade asked with a bored look.
Yang noted that Tora and Poppi looked surprised and had slight worry when Poppi moved in front of her masterpon.
"Th-Theory?" Tora stuttered.
The Blade, now named Theory, cocked an eyebrow, "You know me?"
Now Yang was getting a little concerned. Tora looked a little scared of this Blade.
"Theory, who is it?" Came the sound of a young man from inside the apartment. Turning to look in the apartment, Theory revealed that on her bun was a large bronze colored arrow-looking thing which was dangling from her bun.
"Some girl and a Nopon with a mechanical looking Blade," Theory called back.
"Wait, Nopon?" Came from the apartment before they heard some scrambling noise. Soon enough a young man, around Yang's age hurried behind Theory. This young man had a dirty blonde hair and green eyes. "Tora? Poppi? What are you guys doing here?" the young man asked with a surprised, but delighted look.
"Gyro awaken Theory?" Tora then asked.
"Yeah," the young man, now named Gyro said, "I figured that Theory wasn't responsible for what that asshole did. Besides…Pierce wouldn't stop bugging me about it." Gyro chuckled at the last part. "So why are you guys here again?"
"Tora need to use Gyro's garage," Tora replied.
"My garage?" Gyro sounded out in confusion, "I don't mind, but why?"
"Tora need to modify Bumblebee," the nopon inventor replied.
"Bumblebee?" Gyro looked more confused.
"My bike," Yang spoke up this time, "Tora promised to modify it for me."
"Oh…Can I help?" Gyro asked with a small glint in his eyes.
"Wait what?" Yang let out.
"Gyro doesn't need to help," Poppi piped up.
"No, no. I insist," Gyro said eagerly, "You guys helped me and Pierce. It's only right I do something in return."
Tora looked thoughtful, "Sure, but Tora need to wait Rex-Rex to get necessary parts."
"Rex is here too?" Gyro asked with a surprised look.
"The whole team is," Tora said with a wide smile.
"Oh, where are they now?" Gyro then asked.
"Hellooo." Yang then said in an overly cheery sing-song voice, earning everyone's attention. Then the gold haired Driver frowned, "My bike."
"Ahh, right," Tora sounded out, "Could Gyro-" "On it," Gyro interrupted before returning further into the apartment to do something.
"…What was Gyro talking about?" Theory asked with a mildly confused look.
"Theory not know?" Poppi asked with a small frown.
"Know what?" Theory now had a small glare.
"…Theory ask Gyro," Tora said quickly in fright, understanding that this wasn't something he should tell.
Although Yang would be lying if she said she wasn't interested.
Meanwhile in the throne room of Hardhaigh Palace, Mòrag had just greeted the Emperor alongside Brighid, Aegaeon and Agate. The Special Inquisitor was happy to hear some of the soldiers and the palace's personnel talking about her return with varying levels of cheer and relief. Although some were more worried about losing the Jewels of Mor Ardain, but Mòrag understood that it would have been a huge blow to the empire.
Regardless, Mòrag had already given her initial report on her time in Remnant. Although she opted to leave a few things out. If only because she felt that Niall alone should hear this.
"Leave us, I would like to speak to the Special Inquisitor privately," Niall then spoke to all in attendance.
"Are you sure about that your majesty?" Asked Robalt, Grand Marshal of the Ardainian military. Of course, he wanted to be here after hearing that the Special Inquisitor had returned.
"Yes," Niall replied simply, "I trust that I will be safe for that duration."
"As you say your majesty," Robalt replied with a bow. "Alright, people, clear the throne room!" With that command, the few guards and Robalt left the room until they would be called in again.
"We shall be outside, Lady Mòrag," Brighid also said with a knowing smile that made the Driver a little confused, "Aegaeon, Agate, follow me."
"Lady Brighid, are you sure we can't-" "I said, follow me," Brighid interrupted Aegaeon in a firmer tone.
The water Blade looked towards Agate who could only shrug as she didn't understand what was going on either. With that, the three Blades made their exit as well.
Mòrag didn't notice but as the door the three exited opened, Niall had gotten up from his throne and was making his way to the Special Inquisitor. "Your majesty, what did you wish to-!" Mòrag interrupted herself with a surprised yelp when she felt a pair of arms wrapping around her midsection. Looking down, Mòrag was shocked to see that Niall was now hugging her like his life depended on it. "Y-Your majesty, this behavior is hardly befitting of an emperor," Mòrag stammered while looking around frantically. Their relation wasn't a secret but it would still be unbecoming of an emperor engaging in a public display of affection such as this.
"I was afraid I lost you, sis," Niall said, now sounding relieved. Finally allowed the privacy of being happy that Mòrag was back.
And then the woman in question understood. Right now, she wasn't being hugged by the emperor of Mor Ardain, the greatest military might in Alrest, but rather, by a little brother who was happy to have his sister returning home safe.
With that realization, Mòrag hugged the much younger boy lightly, patting his head for a good measure. "I have seen more dangers than this…Niall. You know that," Mòrag said softly, reminding the latest Ardanach that she had been to frontlines.
"Yes, but…this time, you were taken by something we knew nothing about. And not knowing your fate was far more terrifying than the thought of you falling in battle," Niall continued, refusing to actually cry. He had to keep at least some of his dignity.
"I'm sorry to make you worry," Mòrag added in, hugging her younger brother just a little harder.
"It's alright now," Niall said before separating himself from Mòrag. Then he wiped his eyes. An action that made the Special Inquisitor shake her head.
"I merely had something in my eye," Niall said almost dismissively, but he still seemed just a little embarrassed.
"I understand," fortunately Mòrag didn't feel like pressing the issue. So instead, "How have you been?"
"Aside from worrying about you, I have managed to keep the tension from rising," Niall replied with a small smile, "Although…now that you are here, I believe I can now organize a small ball to celebrate your return."
"Your majesty, that's not necessary," Mòrag said, "While I see that I have been missed by many, there is no need to throw away money for it."
"But it is," Niall said with a smile, "The ball itself will not be anything extravagant, but I believe the people will need some positivity in their lives. I have gone over the empire's finances and what I have planned will not even put a dent."
Mòrag let out a sigh. At least Niall knew that she didn't like wasting finances unnecessarily. "I suppose it's fine then," Mòrag relented.
"Your companions are also invited," Niall also said with a small smile.
"…I will see if they are willing to come," Mòrag said, but she wasn't sure if any of them were up for a formal event such as that. Except maybe Weiss, who to her understanding was more or less used to these things, given the white-haired Driver's upbringing. Though the rest, especially Nora and Qrow, the Special Inquisitor was almost afraid of telling.
Far beneath Alba Cavanich, was a field called the Fief of Forgetfulness. Some of the pillars that support the city are actually built there. Sometimes this area is covered by the Cloud Sea during high tide, but as of now it was low tide.
And that was why Rex, Penny, Ruby and their Blades were here. Well, more specifically there is a good place to salvage in this place and Rex was planning to shorten the list Tora gave them.
"So, how does salvaging actually work?" Ruby asked Rex as they reached the cliff that was supposed to be the prime spot.
"Well, basically I dive in, attach a cylinder to whatever large crate or object I find, then I get it back up," Rex explained as he was placing the suit's sealings back on. Then he started placing the helmet on before tightening it on so that it would grant him some breathable air once he attaches the air tube.
"Yeah, but how do you even find stuff from there?" Penny then asked, "Where does it all come from?"
"Alrest has been around for a veeeery long time," Azurda, who had taken residence in Ruby's hood for the duration of this explained, "There is much that ancient civilizations have lost to the Cloud Sea. Sometimes, the currents move these lost relics around for salvagers to discover."
"The currents around this cliff apparently bring a lot of good stuff, some of which Tora needs," Rex added in, though his voice was a little muffled through the helmet, "Well, I'm ready now."
"Be careful, Rex," Pyra wished her Driver.
"Don't worry, I've done this for years," Rex said confidently and with a reassuring smile. Not that anyone could see it due to the helmet.
Then Rex also took a cylinder under one arm and then he ran to the edge. "Be right back!" Rex shouted out before jumping off the cliff and into the Cloud Sea.
"Will friend Rex be alright?" Penny asked in mild concern. A concern which was shared by Ruby and Pyra. No one was sure of Mythra.
"Trust me when I say this, " Azurda said, "If there is one thing Rex knows how to do well, it's salvaging."
"I still worry," Pyra said while looking down to where her Driver dropped down to.
"That's okay, "Azurda said with a small smile, "I just hope he won't try to lift anything too big."
"What do you mean?" Roze asked out of curiosity.
"When I was still a fairly large titan, Rex's house was built on my back and there was a winch attached to me where the sun don't shine," Azurda said, half-complaining at the latter part.
"What?!" Ruby exclaimed, getting an unpleasant mental image from that.
"He even kept a brazier on my back," Azurda then said, sounding like he was a victim of terrible torture.
"Didn't Rex say that you used to like it," Pyra then asked with a confused look.
"Oh, that's right, it felt good on my old bones," Azurda said with a chuckle.
"…Azurda is showing signs of mental degradation," Kos-Mos piped up, "I would recommend ignoring him."
"No respect for elders, I see," the tiny titan said in mild amusement.
"I'm pretty sure she's messing with you," Roc piped up, before perking up a little, "Rex is coming back."
"I feel it too," Pyra added in, before bracing herself, "Prepare yourselves, there's no telling what might be following him."
That got everyone to prepare for battle in case something was chasing Rex. Soon enough, they saw a familiar anchor embedding itself on the ledge, which was soon followed by Rex getting up with a large crate.
"Tadaa!" Rex cheered as he dropped the crate on the ground.
Everyone relaxed when Rex looked like he wasn't being chased by a Cloud Sea monster.
"Wulfric, could you open this crate," Rex then asked the beastly Blade.
Wulfric responded with an affirmative grunt before using his Megalance as a makeshift crowbar to pry the thing open.
Soon enough the crate was open and everyone started going through the contents. Few gold coins, some super damaged junk which couldn't be used anymore and most importantly, Tora's list didn't get shorter.
"Aww," Ruby whined, "Nothing."
"Well, guess this isn't gonna be that easy," Rex said easily, having opened his helmet for the moment.
"But…you didn't find what we were looking for," Ruby pointed out, not quite understanding how Rex was still cheerful
Azurda chuckled from Ruby's hood, "You didn't expect us to get everything with one try did you, Ruby?"
"In salvaging, it's always important to keep your expectations reasonably low, so that when you do find something good, the success will feel all the better," Rex said sagely.
"Oh…I guess that makes sense," Ruby nodded in understanding.
"The probability of us finding what we need with a single try is astronomical," Kos-Mos gave her input.
"Well, let's see if I can find anything else," Rex said before putting the helmet back on.
"Be careful, Rex," Pyra then said, despite smiling warmly.
"Don't do anything reckless," Azurda added in.
"I know," Rex replied before doing a few stretches and then running to the cliff. Then he jumped and actually did a flip before diving in.
"…He really is used to this," Ruby said in slight astonishment.
"He must have been working for a long time," Roze commented with a small smile.
With that, Rex continued salvaging, with Ruby and Penny acting as back up.
At another part of Mor Ardain, Blake was wandering around, until she stumbled upon one place where she felt that she could see how things are really in the empire. The slums. To Blake's disappointment, there were quite a few Gormotti here, but there were also Ardainians. And it seemed like they were mostly minding their own business. Although Blake did notice a slightly older Ardainian flirting with a younger Gormotti man.
That was something Blake found a little funny.
"My lady, if I may ask, is there a reason we are here in the slums?" Nox showed on his scroll.
"Not really, I was just wondering how things are here," Blake replied to her Blade as she looked down a railing to the lower levels. She couldn't help smiling at the sight of several children playing around. Part of her would have been worried about them falling until she took note of an adult watching them. Then a slightly darker thought crossed her mind of this man's intentions.
"Hey! What did I say? Stay away from the railing!" The adult man then called loudly to the kids.
"Sorry, Uncle Ferdun." The kids said in unison before moving away from the railing, closer to the walls.
Now Blake felt a little stupid. Of course he was some kind of supervisor that made sure the kids didn't accidentally hurt themselves.
"Are you perhaps searching for signs of Ardainians mistreating Gormotti?" Nox then showed on his scroll. "My lady, may I remind you that we are not in Remnant."
Blake let out a sigh, "Nox, you have to understand, I have seen so much hate for Faunus that I have a hard time believing that the same isn't happening to Gormotti of Mor Ardain."
Judging by the look in the dark Blade's eye, he didn't understand. "If I might suggest, my lady, why not talk to some people?"
"Huh?"
"Ask Ardainians about living with Gormotti and vice versa." Nox then showed on his scroll.
"Well…I guess I could," Blake said, looking to the people living here. Ardainians and Gormotti alike.
In the streets of the Ayvill Shopping Center, Nora was zipping around the shops looking for anything that even remotely caught her interest. All the while poor Ren was trying to control the hyperactive orangette. Sad thing was, the only thing that was controlling Nora right now was Electra who kept calling out whenever she was in danger of being left behind by her Driver.
"...I can't believe I'm saying this, but can't you put Nora on a leash or something," asked Weiss who decided to tag along. Against her better judgement.
"I'm inclined to agree with Weiss," said Nia who looked at Nora like the girl was a rabid Volff.
"That would just make her drag me along," Ren said, sounding too serious for Dromarch's and Nia's comfort.
"…I can imagine that," Dromarch commented with a wary look.
Weiss then looked to a seemingly random direction with a mildly worried look.
"…You wondering about your Blades?" Nia asked, noting where the white-haired girl was looking to.
"…Well Aizen has never dragged Dahlia anywhere before," Weiss replied, still wondering where the heck the nobleman dragged the ice bunny. He even said that he would "borrow" her for a moment. Dahlia herself was too bewildered to even try to struggle before Aizen dragged her out of everyone's sight.
"Any idea why he would do that?" Nia then asked.
"No, I…don't know him very well," Weiss admitted, sounding a little ashamed of it.
"Have you tried?" Nia then asked.
"He's not making it easy," Weiss replied back, "I mean…I'm not sure if he is barely tolerating me."
At that moment, they heard a scoff. Turning to the source, Nia and Weiss were glaring at Dagas who looked like he was questioning their intelligence.
"You got something to say?" Nia asked challengingly.
"…Nothing to a blind fool," Dagas commented before crossing his arms and looking away.
"Excuse me?" Weiss asked with a highly offended look.
"Sir Dagas," Dromarch said, trying to defuse the situation, "If you could perhaps explain your reasoning."
Dagas seemed to ponder the white tiger's request for a moment, before relenting, "Very well, Weiss, was it? Aizen seems quite fond of you."
"…What?" Weiss and Nia were looking at the royal Blade like he was insane.
"But…half the time it feels like he's wasting his time on me," Weiss argued back.
"If he really thought so, then I doubt he would be 'wasting' his time on you at all," Dagas shot back.
"He doesn't look at me during training," Weiss shot back. This was more recent occurrence, but Aizen had seemed far busier with his notebook than her, despite seemingly paying enough attention to correct her.
"Yet he keeps advising you on how to improve yourself," Dagas replied, "To do that he would have to pay close attention to you."
"Well…" Weiss trailed off unable to come up with a new argument without going too personal.
"Just because he isn't as affectionate as Dahlia, doesn't mean he feels nothing to you," Dagas said after waiting few moments for Weiss to argue.
"…Wow," Nia commented, "And I thought you can't pay attention to small details like that."
"It's very important for a king to be able to tell when someone is trying to make a fool of him," Dagas shot back.
"Right," Nia drawled out, resisting a laugh at Dagas still not realizing the tone Otohime uses on him.
"What the heck!?" Came from the front, causing the two Drivers and the two Blades to see what was going on.
Nora had finally stopped in front of an alleyway alongside Ren and their Blades. Staring at whatever they were looking at.
"What are you guys looking at?" Nia called out, earning Otohime's attention.
"Come and see for yourself, you will not believe your eyes," Otohime spoke up, looking like she was questioning reality.
That made the Gormotti and the Atlesian to walk to see what everyone was looking at.
And Otohime was right, Weiss didn't believe her eyes. "Yang, what do you think you're doing?!" the former heiress cried out to Yang who was going through a large garbage container, with Dragunov just standing next to it with an amused look.
Yang didn't seem to hear them and kept shifting through the garbage bags furiously.
But Dragunov did. The fire Blade walked to the gang with an almost pitying look, "Yang is looking for Nox."
The four Drivers and their Blades shared incredulous looks.
"Why is she looking for him there?" Nora asked with a wary look.
"Beats me," Dragunov shrugged, "When I got here, she was already going through it."
"But why would she be looking for Nox?" Ren then decided to ask.
Dragunov smirked at the question, "When Gyro and Tora started doing preliminary check-ups on Bumblebee, Yang and I got bored. So, we moved outside, where we ran into Blake and Nox. Yangie got the bright idea of trying to spook them."
"Uh-huh?" Nia drawled out, giving a questioning look to others. The others shared the Gormotti's look. Except for Weiss who looked apprehensive as she was getting an idea.
The dragon Blade took that as his que to go into more detail, "When she spooked them, Nox lashed out with his scythes and took out a couple strands of her hair."
"Oooh." Nora, Ren, Electra and Otohime let out as if that explained everything. Weiss palmed her face.
"Uhh…what's going on?" Nia asked, not realizing what this was.
"Yang is obsessed with her hair," Weiss explained, "If you damage it, she will beat you to a pulp."
"WHERE THE HELL ARE YOU NOX!?" Yang then screamed before throwing bags out of the container to get deeper and give the dark Blade less cover.
"Why does she think he's there again?" Electra asked with a concerned look.
Dragunov shrugged, "Like I said, she was already going through it when I got here."
Somewhere in Alba Cavanich, Nox was running around the rooftops. Slamming the garbage container's lid did trick Yang into believing he hid there, which would keep the blonde busy. But the dark Blade decided not to take chances and decided to skip the town until nightfall. Surely Yang will have calmed down by then.
AN: Once again, the gang was forced to take a detour. Poor Qrow and Kasandra.
Bumblebee is getting checked on, Ruby and Penny are helping Rex in salvaging, and Ren is trying to keep Nora under control. Although who knows what Aizen is doing with Dahlia. And of course, Yang forgot that you don't spook a Blade that reacts by attacking.
To those of you who are wondering, yes that was Gyro Vermillion's Alrest incarnation. I will not apologize for this. But what I will say is, thanks again Swift for letting me give the Vermillion brothers a cameo.