Chapter 30
"That's highway robbery!"
"Tai, you know how expensive tickets are on short notice. Trust me, this is the best we're going to get. Normally I'd just put this on my mission expense list and send it off to Ozpin but-"
"Yeah, I know…you sure you can't get away with it though? Even with a teacher's salary, this is brutal-"
"Glynda is going to murder both of us for that. You know we'll see her at the class reunion soon, right?"
Having enhanced senses was often a curse. While being able to react to the smallest of changes in sound, temperature and even movement was invaluable during combat, she also heard an unwanted number of unpleasant things. Back in third grade, she heard how her tutor was having an affair with his wife, and she had to keep that to herself for the entire year afterwards. Awkward did not begin to describe the various encounters she had over the years.
Regardless, here at Vale Central Station, she overheard her father and uncle buying tickets at the counter, and being horrified at the scalp prices. Similar to airship tickets, buying tickets before departure was always going to be more expensive, but for their purposes, they needed to be quick. As Qrow said last night, finding the Branwen tribe could potentially take up to a few weeks, and with Beacon starting relatively soon, they decided to leave now rather than later. Her father had vacation days stashed up over the years, and now was a perfectly good time to use them.
"Ruuuubes."
Ruby ignored Yang, they sat at a nearby bench with all of their luggage while tickets were being procured. Thankfully, the bulk stuff was stored on her vessel before they departed Patch, including her motorcycle for some reason. Neither Qrow nor her father could convince her to leave it at home.
"I'm sooo bored…can't you like take me inside to your ship so I can work on Bumblebee? There's some tuning I forgot to do-"
"You know I can't. Didn't I tell you already?"
"You can't take in things that are alive or whatever, yeah…so you can put food inside, but not anything alive? How does that work?"
"If you were a Kansen scientist, perhaps you could tell me. However, if you did try to stay on it, I suppose you would just fall into the water when the ship disappeared…think of it as a swimming lesson."
"One that'll come outta nowhere…hey, is this really the best way there? Not that I'm doubting your sailing skills or whatever you call it…"
Didn't they discuss this last night? After a lengthy briefing and discussion, they planned their route for efficiency and comfort, while also heeding their father's request to make it not so terrible on his savings. For their purposes, an airship route to Mistral City was considered, however, it would have taken them far from where the Branwen tribe was situated currently, not to mention availability and price on short notice. Airships to Mistral weren't fast in comparison to the airliners in her world, and Atlesian propulsion technology had not been made widely available for all airships yet, it was Atlas's exclusive in house development. Though that wasn't their most glaring issue, getting to Anima was relatively easy, finding the Branwen Tribe, however, was trickier. Junior's report only listed probable locations, not an exact one.
Therefore, Ruby proposed to simply just take her hull out and sail to where they needed to go, they were attempting to find the camp in the area roughly between Argus and a quaint small town called Shion. The distance between those two settlements alone equalled the entire length of Ironblood lands from a horizontal view. Not to mention how deep it could go from an inland perspective, thankfully the area also wrapped around Lake Matsu, the largest lake on Remnant, allowing them to sail on both sides.
"It would be easier if Qrow knew where his former tribe hid. However, I do not blame him for cutting off all contact." Again, the record the Branwen tribe racked up was extensive, Ruby could not bear for Yang to see how many settlements her mother destroyed. Instead of quipping back, however, she adopted a still expression, likely processing a few things their father talked to her about last night. Out of respect, Ruby put on her headphones and quietly went to chart their route from the edge of Sanus to Argus.
"Yeah…hey, they seem to have our tickets. I'll go and freshen up in the bathroom, be back quick."
Ruby nodded, and her older sister went to the nearest restroom. In the meantime, her uncle and father returned with four tickets in tow, life seemingly drained from the latter.
"There goes a chunk of my bonus…"
"Hey, it's the best we could have done. Thank the brothers you didn't have to buy first class, though it's going to be a cramped ride to Port Royale. Where'd Yang go?"
"Restroom. When do we depart?"
"In around…half an hour, we're taking the next train out…Qrow, could you get some drinks and snacks for us? If I remember correctly, they cost an arm and a leg if we buy them onboard." Though Qrow hid it well, Ruby could tell when a secret message was being sent.
"Yeah, sure. We'll be sailing afterwards, so I'll get us some motion sickness pills for the trip. The waters between Sanus and Anima aren't gentle, not one bit…" Her uncle then wandered off, probably to the nearest pharmacy. She was now alone with her father, in these situations, she felt like he had something to say, another 'Dad lecture' as Yang put it.
"I have braved the North Sea, I do not fear anything that Remnant has to offer." Ruby stated first, Qrow and Yang had the audacity to doubt her ship being able to handle aquatic Grimm out there last night. Insult to her pride aside, she did study up on sea charts for the route, especially on how they could avoid being seen in the busy shipping lanes present in that stretch of water.
"I…don't know where that is, but listen, Ruby, last night I had a talk with Yang about this impromptu family trip. After some discussion with Qrow…it's best if we also had this talk." Her father turned his whole body around, this was another one of those serious talks, reminiscent of when he taught her how reproduction worked using a rabbit analogy. That was an agonizing thirty minutes Ruby did not wish to repeat, however, this felt…different.
"When we get to Anima…it won't be like our past trips there. We're not going to the big cities where it's relatively safe, yes, Mistral included…" She had been to Mistral before to visit her Grandmother on her father's side, along with all the drama such a visit entailed. This trip wasn't going anywhere near Mistral City, which was halfway across Anima.
"Look, this is kinda hard for me since you haven't really trained for combat as Yang has. I know you can fight, and believe me, can fight very well…but neither of you know what's out there. It's the kind of thing that would keep a Veteran huntsman up at night, I almost wanted to leave you at home because of it…"
She wanted to scoff in response but refrained from doing so. "You don't need to worry about me. I've handled the Grimm and gangsters before-"
Her father stared at her with a steely gaze. "No, Ruby. Listen to me. The kind of gangsters you fight in Vale can't compare to the Branwen tribe or the bandits there. Nor can the types of Grimm out there in Anima, trust Qrow and me, we've seen nearly everything at this point. Now, I don't know how tough you really are…or how much punishment you can take, but when we get out there, and find them? If things go bad, they won't hesitate to kill you."
Again, she wanted to scoff at the notion that something could kill her. Looking at the expression her father had, however, Ruby could see what his concerns were. Whether she was injured or killed, or if she did that to someone else. An uncomfortable truth in all armies, or for every soldier, was that ultimately their purpose was to be willing to take another human being's life for their cause. Whether that be their nation or otherwise, they were expected to pick up a rifle and end another's life when it came.
Kansen were no different.
"In…Ulrich's memories, she fought in a war. An ever-present war. I suppose being a huntress is not so different from that after all…"
"Ruby…I didn't mean it like that. While I'm still not quite used to your newfound…semblance, yes I know, just call it that while we're in public. At the end of the day, you're still a fifteen-year-old, my fifteen-year-old. And there are some things no one is ever ready for, I was going to give Yang the same talk the night before Beacon…but guess you two just keep surprising me, huh?" He smiled weakly at his own joke, not that humour was helping the atmosphere at all.
"I…" Ruby struggled to form words, and instead, her father finished for her.
"I just want you to promise that whatever happens when we get there…you'll place safety first. Your memories might have fought in a war before, but you, Ruby Rose, have not. I want you to promise me, okay kiddo?"
Ruby sighed, of all conversations, she was being told this truth she knew from her memories. Though in truth, the idea still…unsettled her quite a bit. Kansen were meant to protect humanity, but all too often, it was the humanity to who they pledged allegiance who wanted to war against each other.
"I promise…to an extent. If my, or your safety is at any point in jeopardy, I will not hesitate to ensure we all make it back to Patch unscathed. That is what my promise will be, are they acceptable?"
It was her father's turn to sigh, but ultimately, he nodded with acceptance. "I guess that's the best I'll get from you…better not jinx our luck when we get there. Tian might look at us and decide to sneeze at our fortune otherwise. Alright, but give me a heads-up if you do use your…more destructive attacks. I don't want Anima to suddenly gain a few new craters without good reason."
If Ruby found a target that warranted the use of her main batteries, something was seriously wrong with the continent as a whole. Leaning back, she looked at the station again. The style was reminiscent of many similar types of stations in Europa, though the one in Vale had a distinctly Iris feel to the overall aesthetic. Perhaps something closer to the stations in Paris, the closest frame of reference she had. Ruby did not need to take a lot of trains in Remnant, she was much more familiar with the happenings at sea.
"I…haven't been in a station like this in a long time…"
"Hm? I guess you're right, whenever we go on trips, it's usually always by sea or to the airship terminals."
"No, I mean I haven't been in something like this beyond Ulrich's memories. Sometimes when we transferred bases, we rode there through land due to its speed. There was an old bakery in Kiel's station that sold some very good pastries…shame I have not found one equally as good on Remnant yet."
"Is that right…it sounds like you miss that world a lot more than Remnant. Was it really that much more advanced?"
Ruby thinned her lips. Advanced was not the right term for it, while it was true that her world had more people and larger civilizations, there were a few things Remnant had over her own, namely political stability and the obvious, relative peace. This world had seen war of course, but not to the scale Ulrich's one waged.
"In some ways…yes, and no. However, it is not healthy to dwell so much on the past. Keep doing so and you may start to have a rose-tinted view of the past that never was. We have all the time to talk about Ulrich's old world later, someone is approaching us."
"Huh? Oh, that's the clerk at the ticket counter, ah crap, is something wrong with our tickets?"
Approaching them at a brisk pace, a uniformed ticket clerk had a calm expression on his face, but the way he walked was obviously showing how nervous he actually was. By the time he reached them, Ruby noticed the four extra tickets in his hands.
"Excuse me, sir, there is a slight issue with your train bound for Port Royale…"
"Oh boy, lemme guess, it got delayed or cancelled? I'll have you know I can report you to the chamber of commerce for refusing to issue a refund-"
The clerk quickly shook his head, making her father pause in confusion.
"Non, sir! It is regarding your seating arrangements. Due to a…prior arrangement, your reserved seats have actually been booked for a larger group, and due to a different reservation system, our system was unable to see that they were unavailable…"
"O…kay, just put us somewhere else then?" To her father, it seemed to be a trivial issue, therefore, something else was the issue at play.
"That is not possible either, sir, this route is fully booked on the standard cabins." Something about this stirred deep in her memories, about the Ironblood train service, despite the stereotype of that nation as being rigid and orderly…their passenger trains were somehow the exact opposite of that. With frequent delays and outright cancellations for the most trivial of reasons, something like that should have been given to another country such as the Sardegna with their flippant stereotype…
"Therefore, we have decided to offer you a free upgrade to First Class! However, due to a lack of available seating as well, I am afraid you will all have to sit apart from each other. Is this acceptable, or will you be requesting a full refund-"
"We'll take it!" Before the tickets could be moved away, her father had 'accepted' the newly offered ones, verifying that they were indeed, for First Class.
"Ruby, you wouldn't mind sitting apart from us, right? It's only for a few hours!"
"No…I won't…"
"Excellent, due to our meal service, please ensure that you are sitting at the seat listed on your ticket. Bon voyage, and thank you for riding SNCV."
Their prior tickets were given back, and in replacement, they were all given real tickets for First Class. Upon further inspection, they were in fact real and not a fake copy as she had initially suspected. Not long afterwards, Qrow and Yang both returned together with their respective goods and rations for the journey.
"Why are you so happy? Something good happen while we were away?"
Instead of answering Qrow, her father simply held out his ticket for him to read. Judging by his wide-eyed expression, her uncle was similarly having a hard time believing it.
"Free upgrade, Qrow! I told you we weren't skimping out by getting a train instead of an airship-"
"Ain't no way good luck like that happens, this is weird as hell. SNCV is notorious for being stingy with their free upgrades, hang on, I'm going to go ask where this came-" Qrow was interrupted by the large speaker above them.
"Passengers bound for: Port Royale. Please board on Platform Four, thank you. Passengers bound for: Port Royale. Please-"
"Oh no, guess we're outta time. Come on, I've never ridden First Class before, you can't always have bad luck, Qrow."
"You know why I take missions solo, Tai." Her uncle said sternly, Ruby knew he only went alone on missions unlike other Huntsmen, though she never got a reason as to why.
"Maybe it might have been bad luck for the clerk, as you say, they're normally that stingy. We already have them anyways, and if we want to get to Port Royale before dusk…" Her father's point made Qrow sigh in response, before waving off his concerns.
"Fine. I do get a few freebies from bad luck every once in a while…let's go. If anything happens on the ride there, both of us can handle it."
Getting up from the bench, Ruby and Yang looked at each other in confusion, neither of them quite getting what they were talking about. Shrugging, they followed them to the boarding gate. Really, how many surprises could a train hold? It was one of the safest modes of transportation on Remnant, driving was statistically more dangerous if she remembered correctly.
Vale's national rail service had kept its promise of grandeur it seemed. Ruby did not know much about its history, but she remembered hearing that when the King abdicated, and the nobles of Vale had much of their privileges rescinded, the rail service had kept a majority of the luxury cars for use. Instead of being reserved for nobility or official use only, anyone with enough money to buy a ticket could use those privileges for the duration of the journey.
The times may have changed, and the trains updated with them, but the same system remained in place albeit slightly altered. Heading into her train car, it turned out that their four tickets had them spread out on the first and second floors. On average, trains on Remnant were larger than their counterparts in Ironblood or anywhere else in her old world for that matter. Probably due to the Grimm if she was just guessing, trains legally had to be protected by defences of some kind, whether it be Huntsmen or automated turrets.
"Aaaand that's my room…there doesn't seem to be anyone else here. I'll meet up with you after they scan our tickets, hopefully, there isn't anyone in your room either." Qrow said, Ruby peered into his cabin, the decoration was right out of the grandeur of past trains, kept on due to popular demand most likely. Nodding, Ruby went down the carriage and to the last room in her car. There weren't that many First Class rooms available on this train overall, though she should be glad her journey would be comfortable.
Sliding open the door, she was greeted with a comfortable and luxurious room.
AN:(The FF-net version does not allow for images to be posted on this site. Please imagine a luxurious train cabin instead. Use the version o to see the image posted here.)
Such things were normally reserved for higher-ranking officers, while the common enlisted or conscripted did not have anything near this level of luxury. There was even a complimentary bottle of Champagne ready for her…
Thinking nothing of it, Ruby went to place her luggage in the storage area above her seat, only for the sliding doors to open again. It was probably the other passenger in her cabin, unlike other First Classes, the system in this train ran on the old style where unless specified, rooms could be given to another person if available. With a desire to limit her social interactions, she decided to play it cool and only greeted the other person coming in with a simple nod.
In the brief moment she looked back, Ruby could not see past her Cattleman's hat, and she wore clothing as if straight out of some Eagle Union 'Western' film. She expected someone who could afford First Class to dress similarly to a socialite, not a ranch worker complete with a jean jacket. Instead of responding, Ruby heard the other passenger put her luggage up on the opposite seat and sat down. If she didn't want to talk, the Kansen was more than happy to return the-
"Howdy. Hope you don't mind having company for this journey."
"Not at all."
Ruby said quickly and began to sit down herself…not before realising she just replied in the Royal Navy's language. Because the person across from her asked in said language, albeit with a different accent.
There was only one person on Remnant who spoke it, and there was no way in Helheim she was here on coincidence.
The other person realised it too, and as it turned out, she was much more familiar with Ruby than initially thought. In fact, they were practically the same, the only difference being that Ruby was a battleship, while she was an aircraft carrier.
"Hey there, partner~beautiful day for a train ride across the continent, right?"
"Why…"Ruby strained her voice as she said that, more at disbelief over what she was seeing.
Ruby had half a mind to draw her scythe but remembered that she was in a somewhat cramped train car. Opposite her was Weiss Schnee, wearing jeans, a t-shirt and a jean jacket. All topped with a white Cattleman's hat that made her resemble the stereotypical Eagle Union cowboy her country was so famous for. This was worse than a Grimm attack, or their train de-railing…and they hadn't even left the station yet.
"Well…if you're asking why I'm here…did you know that the SDC owns a 20% stake in SNCV, primarily for its freight capabilities? That is how Vale's dust supplies get transported from the mines in Solitas to the humble shop in your home city. It wasn't difficult for me to make a call or two, and arrange for five First Class tickets easily."
"Five." Uncle Qrow was right after all…
"Yes…I may have extreme privilege but don't ever accuse me of being stingy. All that Lien should not be hogged if they can be used." She shot her a grin with finger guns, her former free-flowing hairstyle had instead been tied to twin tails as a crude disguise. That prompted Ruby to ask another question, one she annoyingly also had an answer for.
"How did you find-"
"...a secret." Weiss unfortunately looked at Ruby's bag for a split second, but that was enough for her to realise what gave her away. Digging into her backpack, she found the cause and held it out like a lawyer would when presenting evidence to a court.
"So much for gifts." She held the Hellcat that was supposed to be a 'good luck' charm out in a grip, with just the slightest application of strength, Ruby could have crushed it into scrap metal. Holding up both hands at her Weiss frantically signalled for her to stop.
"Wait, now hold on there! It ain't the little fella's fault! I just felt a signal in Vale, realised it was you back in the city…so I took a quick trip down from my hotel and was planning to surprise you…" How could Ruby forget? Eagle Union fighters had a built-in radio in them, their radar technology was the best in comparison to the other factions…
"One thing led to another and I saw you entering Vale Central Station…I'm actually surprised you didn't see me before. Guess my disguise really did work, huh?"
"Don't even begin…now then, what am I going to do with you?" There was a large window in their room and Ruby was willing to use it, not like a Kansen could be hurt by something as trivial as that. Battleships usually overpowered aircraft carriers in strength contests…
"We…could have a fun trip together? Of course, your family is outside but we can think of a suitable excuse."
"We? There is no 'we' here. I am going to Port Royale for a personal matter, I do not need someone like you to come along. A single battleship is enough-" Ruby stopped herself, she had revealed too much already…unfortunately for her, Weiss was sharp enough to pick up on that.
"Ooh? That means you're planning to take your hull out…are you sure you don't need my help? I have dozens of planes at my beck and call, all of which can help you with…whatever you need to do. You aren't seriously expecting to make do with just your floatplanes, are you?" To emphasise her point, the Hellcat on Ruby's hands took off and hovered around her in a circle. Loathe as she was to admit…finding the Branwen tribe was definitely going to be easier with her around. The amount of ground a squadron could cover was more than ten mass-produced versions of her.
However, Ruby was not going to give in so easily, especially considering how there were other factors at play here. "...and you're willing to just follow me, to Anima I might add, where we may be there for weeks. That isn't even counting how this was supposed to be a personal matter…but don't you have people in Vale who will miss you? Your annoyingly persistent sister for example."
"Funny you should mention that…she got recalled to Atlas for a week or two…General Ironwood's orders apparently. My Aunt is the only one in Vale, but she is busy working with the council…I could just mention I am taking sightseeing tours and will be away for a week or two. Unlike my sister, she does trust me to be alone, if anything does happen I do have my semblance and aura, as well as the entire arsenal of an Essex-class carrier but she doesn't know that."
"How convenient…" Ruby did not make any attempt to mask her suspicions.
"You know…if you really don't want me to come, I won't force the issue. I have been meaning to visit Port Royale anyways…" Left unsaid was that Ruby would lose her help in the search for the Branwen tribe. They probably would have been fine without it, but at the same time, there was Yang's entry into Beacon to consider, so ideally they finished this as fast as possible.
The fact that Ruby was seriously considering it said a lot about her lack of resources. Gone were the days when she had a full fleet for backup if needed.
"Now, I don't exactly know what you're on Anima, but I am offering you my help, which comes with the resources of Remnant's largest conglomerate. There are few things the SDC cannot reach, in some way, shape or form." Weiss said it with conviction, and Ruby knew she was probably telling the truth. Dust was part of everyday life for everyone on Remnant, there were no exceptions.
Though it pained Ruby to say the next few words, she could suck up asking for help from a Yankee if it was for family. Taking a deep breath, Ruby levelled a steely glare at the innocent-appearing aircraft carrier, she was much craftier than she expected.
"I have conditions. First, you do not reveal yourself to my family. You will tail me when we are underway, at sea or the lake, however, your existence must be kept secret. I do not want them to realize there are more Kansen on Remnant."
"Aw, didn't I meet your uncle and sister already? What's the big deal?"
Ruby hated that she was correct, but the issue was something else entirely. The problem with secrets was that the more people that knew them, the easier they 'slipped out'. Taking secrets to the grave only worked if said person was the only one who knew it.
"I explained that I am the only Kansen on Remnant, and you make the truth I have told them… complicated. I also cannot bring you along as Weiss Schnee, because quite frankly that would be weird and irresponsible-"
"I have some blonde hair dye with me, and I can do a very good impression of Hornet, my little sister. If that makes you feel any better, I can also just meet you in Anima as some travelling farmhand-"
"Please don't. Actually, the idea can be revisited, however, that is not the problem. The issue is…" How was Ruby going to describe it? She was visiting a family member? Technically, that was the case, not that calling a bandit tribe leader a family member was something she wanted to do, but she found herself quite unable to think of anything else so far.
"My family and I will be visiting a…relative. You should not be present when that happens, any other time however is fine." Ruby thought of something else to add, and quickly remembered something very important. "I will be the flagship for this…operation, so you will accept any orders and fulfil them to the letter, understood?"
"Yes, Commander Rose!" Weiss gave her an Eagle Union salute, though her expression was anything but serious. Ruby had no guarantee she was going to accept, but the allure of having multiple squadrons of planes helping their search was too tempting to pass up. Just this once, perhaps in some nostalgic past that never was, she could sail alongside someone who was an enemy in the past. That was the original mission of Azur Lane, to be an organisation that could fight for the common good of humanity, regardless of their respective nations.
Hearing the horn outside blare, it signalled their train's departure, and the start of their hopefully quick journey.
Now with an additional member…
"Which hair dye do you think is more Eagle-like? Honey blonde, or golden blonde?"
"Neither…do you need help? Dying hair alone is annoying."
"Oh?! Are you offering to help?!"
"Yes, I want your disguise to be ready as soon as possible."
Weiss smiled wryly as if knowing something she didn't. "Suuuure …alright then, I've got some instructions here, we may need a bucket of water to do this…"
AN:
The Ironblood train joke comes from a friend's experiences with Deutsche Bahn, Germany's national railway company. Long story short, experiences on it are horrible, with delays frequent alongside straight-up cancellations. You'd think Germany would have better rail, but apparently not.
Also, in Volume 6 there showed a direct train route from Mistral to Vale…but none of the maps ever show a bridge of any kind from Anima to Sanus. How the hell does that work then?
For FFnet users only: This is a notice that the version on Ao3 has images posted in the chapter itself and will have them moving forward. FFnet doesn't allow me to do the same so you get a placeholder text instead. I am not bothered to fix this, I do most of my work on Ao3 anyway, and I consider the version on that site the superior one.
Be civil in the comments below.