Chapter 28: The Island of Dr. Merlot

Ozpin's eyes slip across page after page, his mind taking in every piece of information. All of it regards the Vytal Festival and the "aid" Atlas will be sending in. Whether Ozpin agrees with this assistance or not matters little at this point – he has no choice in the matter.

Thankfully something happens to distract him from the endless pages. More specifically, Dr. Oobleck exits the elevator and slams his hands on Ozpin's desk. Oobleck may be an erratic individual, but never before has he appeared in Ozpin's office with such a presence. In that moment its clear to the headmaster that something is awry.

"Yes, Doctor?" He starts with his regular calm demeanor.

"Well, yes, remember my report on the current situation involving Port's security nodes?"

"The ones with Merlot technology on them? I do."

"Well our students have been investigating further and, well, contact with them has been unattainable for some time."

Ozpin's brow raises.

"They've disappeared?" Ozpin repeats in simpler terms. "Who has gone missing?"

"Dior Aurik, Ruby Rose, Dylan Brine, and-"

"(Y/N) Slater?" Ozpin guesses with an inner chuckle.

Oobleck quickly nods.

"Correct. They were investigating an active Merlot ship when I lost contact with them."

Ozpin taps his desk as he decides his next course of action.

"Very well... keep trying to regain contact with them. The moment you do I want to know."

"Yes, sir!"

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You let out a soft moan as your senses slowly come back to you. Eyes still closed, you lift your hand to your head and rub it, messing with the hair that's in between. Lucky for you there's no pain to feel. You can't quite remember if they knocked out your aura or not, but feeling absolutely nothing means enough time has passed for your aura to completely recover. You open your eyes and see... absolute darkness. Wherever you are is so dark that you can't see the tip of your nose. Thus you start doing a check. You raise your hand and call your sword to you... and it comes from beside you. Since it was nearly instantaneous, your sword was also in this location. Next, you bang your fist on the wall behind you. It's a hollow, metal sound.

"Hm..."

You turn to face the wall while placing your right hand on the hilt. You slice the air and quickly sheath your blade in one fell swoop. The entire top half of your container flies to the side and splashes into the water. The sudden introduction of light forces you to cover your eyes.

"Sheesh, even the sun's out to get me," you remark.

Under the shadow of your hand, you observe your surroundings. There's water as far as the eye can see, which you already gathered when you heard the splash of water before. You turn around and check the other side but something catches your eye. In the same container, on the other side, is Dylan, Ruby, and Dior. They're all sleeping, weapons beside them, unharmed. You can't help but feel an overwhelming sense of relief that your friends are okay. You let your hand fall to your side and jog to them. You place a hand on Dylan and Dior's shoulders, as they're against adjacent walls while Ruby is in the corner, and shake them.

"Guys, come on! Dior, Dylan, wake up!" You say as you shake them a bit harder.

Thankfully they begin to stir as their senses return to them as they did for you. Knowing they're getting up, you move to Ruby and kneel in front of her. You place a hand on her shoulder like you did the others and shake her.

"Hey, Little Red. Wakey Wakey, cookies and... um..." You totally blank out as you attempt to find a rhyme. "Milkshakey..? Hm... I suck."

Ruby stirs as her body returns to the realm of the conscious. You retract your hands, just barely grazing over hers as she goes to rub her eyes. She lets out a cute yawn that somehow hits you hard. It was so soft, so innocent and so adorable that your mind can barely comprehend it. For a moment you nearly forget you were just abducted and aboard a ship in the middle of nowhere.

Her eyes flicker open to view you staring back at her with concern.

"(Y/N)?" She whispers.

"Heya," you warmly smile. "Hate to wake you but we got some work to do."

Ruby's eyes drift to the side as she recollects recent events.

"Where are we?" She asks with a more serious tone.

You stand up straight and offer your hand to the young woman, which she takes and copies your standing stature.

"I'm hoping Dylan can answer that," you look over your shoulder at your Faunus friend.

"I'm working on that. The Ocean is large, you know."

"Charming as ever," you say under your breath, returning your gaze to Ruby. "Well, this isn't the worst thing that could happen."

"I-I-Indeed. This boat w-will likely bring us to th-the source," Dior speaks.

"Or to a trap," Dylan interjects, eyes closed.

You turn away from Ruby and take a few steps towards your friends.

"I'm pretty sure if they wanted us dead it would have happened. Curious why Merlot, I guess, would store us on his ship," you cross your arms and think on this.

Dior scratches his head as his mind goes through the possible answers. He doesn't quite have enough information to make a reliable response thus he remains silent. Instead, Dior takes some time to himself to search the ship. He hops off the container and lands between two other closed containers. This ship is clearly transporting something, likely Grimm considering what was discovered in the temple. He tightens his grip on the briefcase before cautiously proceeding to scour the ship for any details that might be useful in the future.

"Well, I know one thing," Dylan says after a minute of silence. "We're approaching an island. Can you see it, Slater? To the south-west."

You close your eyes and see past your physical form. A fair distance away is an island, the closest side having a port. Taking almost a minute to find this island, you finally open your eyes and nod your head.

"Yeah, I saw it. Might as well just wait on the boat. No need to leap us all there," you decide, taking a seat against the lower half of the container. "Besides, Dior's probably searching the ship as we speak. We can just relax until then."

Dylan turns around and faces both you and Ruby.

"I don't like this. Like you said, whoever's behind this could have killed us. They made us look like fools, took us down without even a fight."

"Well, that's not entirely accurate," you point out. "But they definitely knew we were coming. There were way too many of them for me to consider it a simple escort or guards."

Dylan taps his pants while he ponders this. You lightly smack the container to derail Dylan's train of thought.

"Don't worry about it, Dylan. Worst comes to worst I can leap us out of there or you can just scoop us out. I mean, it's an island in the middle of the ocean. It's literally your element."

"That's... true, I suppose," Dylan hesitantly accepts.

"H-Hey, we're still Huntsmen! We can handle anything they throw at us!" Ruby cheerfully motivates.

"Exactly, Little Red. We won't get caught off guard again, Dylan. We'll stick together from here on out, watch each other's backs. I won't let anything happen to you guys," you give both of them a reassuring smile. "I promise. Now, let's get ready for this island. We have no idea what we'll encounter."

"Right," both Ruby and Dylan reply.

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You leap the four of you onto the beachhead before the ship can dock. It would have only taken a minute or two, but there was no point in delaying your arrival. Dior immediately looks towards the sky for a relay. While on the ship he found a signal being broadcast over miles. Not only does it command the ship remotely, but it also blocks off any form of communication to the outside world. Finding these relays would both sabotage the operation and allow you to contact Dr. Oobleck once more to report in.

"Are you okay from that?" Dylan inquires, not bothering to face you.

"No, it was a short distance. No need for concern," you respond. "But... do you guys hear that?"

Like before, a very high pitch ringing echoes in your ears, refusing to stop.

The three look at each other, then shake their heads.

"No. Are you sure you're okay?" Ruby asks with concern.

You wave her off.

"Yeah, I'm fine. Come on, let's get moving."

You take the time to observe your current surroundings. Most of it consists of natural stone walls blocking off the inner sections of the island. This isn't a problem for a Huntsmen as three of you could easily scale the wall, though only three of you could do it without mechanical assistance. Sand decorates the space with small rocks littered about the water's edge. Surprisingly there are patches of grass or lone bushes spread about awkwardly. None of this indicates any nefarious beings, however – just an odd landscape.

The four of you start following the path that leads around the island. This leads you through a makeshift gate and towards a larger beach. Ruby takes a few steps away from the ground to take a gander at a wooden dock that, at first glance, seems to have been here for quite some time. It's definitely not for Merlot, that's for sure.

"Think people live on this island?" She brings up.

Dior scratches his head.

"P-P-Perhaps. If the agriculture is s-sustainable then it's plausible."

"Hey, up there!" Dylan points to what appears to be a satellite dish in the next area.

Instead of following Dylan's finger you instead swing your head towards Ruby's location as she stares at the dock. Your mind sparks the moment you spot an android materializing at Ruby's blind spot. Its halberd is already in mid-swing for the young woman's body. Before she even knows what's happened you step between her and the android. Your sheath is already in your hand, allowing you to redirect the attack towards the air beside her, then you slam your fist into its chest to make breathing room.

The android's feet grind it to a halt along the sand, finally halting in a patch of grass. Ruby turns around at the commotion and tenses when she sees the android. Her mindset changes to battle mode. She grabs her weapon off her belt and activates the scythe.

"You okay?"

"Mhm," she nods. "Thank you."

"Anytime. Now..." Your take note of the two that appear beside the original. "Let's deal with these ones. Dylan!" You look over to your friend who's also ready to battle. "Take Dior to the tower! Ruby and I will deal with these!"

Dylan's body shakes as he moves back and forth, hesitant to follow through with either decision. In the end, he follows your order and runs with Dior down the path and into the cave. You and Ruby stand side by side against the single android who paces around you both.

"Let's show this bucket of bolts who's boss!" Ruby says with a confident smile.

Ruby covers herself in her cloak and speeds around the android to reach its flank. She unravels herself and dashes forward, firing her weapon to get even more speed. As she does this you dash off your back leg and glide across the ground at the android. You stay low, Ruby goes high, and you both damage the android. You slide to a halt and repeat the process three times, damaging key locations on the enemy. After the third strike Ruby pins the tip of Crescent Rose to the ground and fires at the android's chest. It breaks to pieces then dematerializes.

You sheathe your weapon with one hand and scratch your head with the other.

"Hm, they did the same thing when they took you three. I guess this Merlot guy doesn't want his androids examined."

Ruby moves her sniper up and fires at you. Your eyes widen before you duck.

"HAAAAAAAA, Ruby why?" You whine.

You hear the bullet hit metal followed by something falling on the ground. You blink twice before slowly extending your legs and looking behind you. An android is down but not out. You jump forward and land beside Ruby, facing the enemy. Ruby, however, is killing herself laughing.

"You actually screamed! Oh my gosh!" She manages to say though it's hard to understand because of the constant laughter.

You cross your arms and pout.

"You can't just... shoot me..."

Ruby places a hand on your shoulder, desperately attempting to hold in her laughter.

"There... the-" She breaks down once again.

"It's not funny! Your bullets can be scary! I've seen them blow Grimm in half!"

During your conversation, the android gets to its feet and runs at you. Its metal feet smashing against the ground. You turn your head towards the android with a clear mind. It's not going to hit you no matter how hard it tried. However, Ruby swings her weapon around and catches the incoming halberd. She swings the scythe over her hand and pins it into the ground once more, jumping and firing so the handle spins her towards the android for a heavy kick with both feet. She follows through with her spin until the barrel is aiming at the stumbling android. She loads it with electric dust and fires, effectively stunning the robotic warrior. She frees her scythe from the ground and jumps towards the robot. Once close enough she curls up and activates her semblance, spinning like a wheel as her scythe repeatedly cuts down the android as if it was tissue paper. Once it's destroyed she lands and inevitably stumbles a bit.

"Oh, that makes me dizzy," she comments as she rubs her head. "But hey, we did it!" She cheers, happy as can be.

"Well, I mean you did it. I barely touched the thing."

Ruby smiles cheerfully as she returns to your side. Neither of you see or hear anymore androids so you assume the coast is clear.

"We better meet up with Dior and Dylan. Come on," you say, jogging towards the cave entrance.

Ruby follows suit and the two of you enter the cave. You can see the exit almost immediately which is a relief. You'd rather not have the worry of a diverging cave that could separate you and Ruby, or lead you down a different path than Dylan and Dior. In fact, walking through it you find that this is likely a man-made cave. There are wooden supports along both sides and electrical wires dangling above. One other thing that catches your eye are glowing blue rocks in the ceiling. An odd detail but one you can't help but notice.

You both reach the end of the tunnel and come across a locked gate. To the right is another path leading elsewhere, but paying attention to the environment makes you think that path will lead to the same location.

"Did they go around?" You rub your jawline. "Why not just break the gate? Or even jump over it?"

"Um... common courtesy?" Ruby perfunctorily answers, shrugging slightly.

"Hm, more polite than me, I suppose," you say before unleashing a single slash from your blade and sheathing it immediately.

The entire gate falls diagonally allowing easy access for both you and the young Huntress-in-Training.

"After you, oh beautiful one," you bow, one hand gesturing towards the broken gate.

"I... you're weird," Ruby blushes, unprepared for the sudden compliment.

"But not a liar," you smile.

Ruby nervously chuckles at your responses. Sure you are in a relationship, you've kissed, and you flirt with her at times, but that doesn't mean she's used to it yet. Perhaps it's situational. She can remember times where she feels so comfortable and so giddy that she initiates most of the kisses, yet other times she can be so shy about anything romantic. Yang always describes it as an age thing which makes Ruby mad. Just because she's young doesn't mean this is any less legitimate, or that she's taking it less serious than someone like Yang or Weiss. In fact, one of her many goals is to be able to put you in such a situation – flustered and speechless, but being who she is and being who you are... well, that scenario is unlikely. The only girl who gives you pause is Glynda... and Rogue... and Yang, and Weiss, and...

"Wait a second..." She taps her chin thinking on this.

"What?"

"Oh, oh nothing, hehe, nothing. Come on!"

Ruby hops over the broken gate and lands on the lower plain. You shake your head and cross your arms.

"Women. I'll never understand."

You casually follow Ruby's movements and land beside her. In front of you lies a giant makeshift wall that blocks access. It's immediately clear to you both that your allies didn't pass by or go through it, thus another path must be around somewhere. The path becomes clear when a Beowolf rolls down an incline and stops on its belly, disintegrating shortly after.

"Guessing they're that way," you say, strolling to the left.

Your pair heads to the left and up a minor incline leading to the radio tower. Dior is at the controls while Dylan guards the walkway. He sees you coming and lowers his guard.

"Those androids didn't give you trouble?"

"No more than the Grimm gave you," you scoff. "Dior! Got anything?"

Dior shakes his head while he types away on his keyboard.

"D-Disabling the network is e-e-easy. But there are more in the a-area."

"So there are more to take down," you sigh. "Alright, fine. Can you at least contact Oobleck to any extent?"

Dior closes his briefcase and faces you.

"Anything I-I receive is too distorted. Here."

Dior sends the feed into your scroll for you to listen.

"You must... and then... perhaps some tape."

Everything you hear is unintelligible or broken up. You shut your scroll down and slip it in your pocket.

"Got it. Let's find the rest of them."

"There was a door back there," Dylan points behind you. "That's probably our best bet."

"There was?" You look back, perplexed. "Huh, thought it was just a wall. Alright, we got a plan."

Back together, the four of you jog down the incline and reach the wall. Oddly enough the once closed door is now opened. You look back at Dior.

"You do that already?"

Dior shakes his head. You return your gaze to the door and shrug.

"Alright, definitely nothing suspicious about that."

"You're joking, right?" Dylan moans.

"Psh, no, when do I joke?" You hop through the door and spread your arms. "See, no proble-"

You're knocked away by an androids fist, slamming you into the far wall. It follows quickly, moving out of sight.

"(Y/N)!" Ruby screams, grabbing her scythe and rushing through the door.

The three pass the door and look for wherever you landed. Instead of you in trouble, the three find you on the android, halbert stuck in its arm, delivering punch after punch to its mechanical head.

"I'm trying! To look! Cool! And you! Ruined it!" You say between punches.

The android disappears before you can destroy it. You mumble to yourself as you get back on your feet and walk towards the door. You spot your friends, worry across their faces, and assume your previous stance.

"See? Nothing to worry about." The three stare you down. "Okay, that maaaaay have been my fault," you huff.

"You think?" Dylan snarkily remarks.

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With little trouble, the four of you find the two remaining towers. There were half a dozen Grimm in the way but nothing your combined prowess couldn't handle. Dior approaches the final console while you make sure nothing sneaks up on him.

"So we'll be able to contact Oobleck after this?"

"I believe s-so."

Dior opens his briefcase and connects to the command console with little effort. In mere seconds he disables the relay and frees up the network.

"Done."

"Perfect," you take out your scroll and open it. "Now to..."

"Ahhh, that's better," a new voice speaks from your scroll, the ID completely blocked out. "Sorry, but the reception is always so bad all the way out here. I hope you're enjoying your stay on the island. You're the first visitors I've had in, well, hm... you are the first!"

The voice has a certain sophistication and pride in it. By the way he's speaking it's clear this isn't another Huntsman at Beacon. You look towards Dior for an answer but he has none.

"I-I can try and find his location."

"Do it. Let's not stick around here, though. We keep moving."

The four of you leap over the railing and land on the plain below. Ahead is a gate leading deeper into the island. You all walk that way, letting Dior work as his one hand dances across the keys.

"Well, you're not who I expected. Who are you?" You speak into the scroll, your eyes looking for any signs of an attack.

"Oh, where are my manners? Allow me to introduce myself. My name's Dr. Merlot. You don't know me, but I most certainly know you four."

"It's him! Dr. Merlot!" Ruby exclaims. "He was behind all this."

"Seems like it. Well, Merlot, I'm sure you know we're Huntsmen and-"

"Not just students, of course. But you, young Slater... I know who you are. Well, your father and uncle, more specifically."

You stop in the middle of a small clearing. There are some crates and boulders along the sides with a path at the other end. Ruby and Dylan stop ahead of you, looking back when they hear Merlot's words. Both know that's a touchy subject for you, one being dead and the other nearly making you the same.

"Maybe it wasn't an accident that we ended up here," Dylan whispers.

"Does that mean he wants (Y/N)?" She asks the Faunus.

"I don't know."

You snicker, holding the scroll with a light grip.

"Well, you're not the first, pal. If you're trying to shake me you'll have to try a lot harder," you end with a smile.

"I see. Perhaps you're not as easily agitated as I thought. Shall we take a journey to see how long your smile will last?" Merlot responds, amused with himself. "We shall start with a little, hm... experiment. Four promising students like yourselves should provide excellent data." The various containers around the area unlock, allowing Grimm to pour out of them. "Now, why don't you show me that Slater spirit?"

"Dior, corner!" You shout, slipping your scroll into your pocket up keeping the connection active. "Keep searching for his signal! Don't bother fighting!"

Dior runs to the safest place and locks down. He lies his briefcase down and activates its combat mode. Small tendrils stick into the ground from the outer layer of the case. His nerves calm when he's assured nothing will get him. He stretches his fingers and gets back to work.

Meanwhile, you three are already combatting the Grimm released by Merlot. None of them are Mutated, thankfully, so this group of Grimm poses little threat to your group. Dylan runs from two Beowolves towards the rock face. They dash at him in the corner, but he runs up the wall and jumps off, landing behind them both. Before they can react he proceeds to throw punch after punch, condensed air tearing the Grimm apart. They splat against the wall like pancakes until they inevitably melt away. He dodges a claw just in time and leaps farther away for some distance.

"So we meet again, Dr. Merlot," Ozpin's voice speaks through your scroll.

"Ozpin?" Merlot answers in a semi-cheery tone. "Or shall I call you 'Oz' like old times, chum?"

Ruby slips past a Beowolf, catching it against her blade and firing to chop it in half. She immediately swings her scythe around to hit a rushing Boarbatusk, then slams the tip on a Creep, killing it instantly. With her weapon locked down, she fires at a few Grimm that are farther away.

"I thought you perished in the Mountain Glenn disaster, a tragedy you played no small part in."

"Twas a mere speed bump on the superhighway of scientific progress. You couldn't possibly imagine the ramifications of my latest research."

"The world was a much safer place without you, Merlot," he collectedly scolds.

You flip over a Boarbatusk, throwing your blade into its spine to effectively kill it. You land a meter from your blade, staring ahead as a Beowolf and three Creeps approach.

"You're calling me the reckless one?" He chuckles. "Sending your students out on an excursion like this?'

"They're more than a match for your mindless robots," Ozpin counters. "What you're doing here is wrong Merlot."

You ready yourself for a quick counter until another metallic fist buries into your jaw. You bounce across the sandy floor twice before grinding yourself to a halt. You rub your cheek and pout.

"Man, they really just wanna make me look bad... or maybe I'm actually bad. Huh, never thought of that," you say, your stare becoming blank at this revelation. The android rushes you and attacks with its halberd. You step a few inches forward and catch the handle, smiling at the robot. "Nah."

You yank the halberd out of its grip, spin it around your back, and drive it through the android's stomach. Stepping to your sword and back, you slice the head off, push it out of the way, and attack the remaining Grimm.

"Trying to make the world a better place is wrong? Say what you will about me. It won't change the fact that you're powerless to stop me."

"You'll botch this somehow. You always do."

"Well, let's agree to disagree," Merlot responds. "I tell you Oz, it has been truly a pleasure catching up, but unfortunately it's time for me to run. Farewell, old chum."

You finish off the last of the Grimm as Merlot finishes his sentence. Only you and Dior have kept an ear on what was being said, though Dior heard everything while you were distracted here and there by the fighting. You take your scroll out to speak with Ozpin.

"Charming fellow," you sarcastically comment.

"He's gotten no better," Ozpin bluntly states. "But you'll have to stop him. We've been attempting to locate Merlot's island but we've yet to obtain its coordinates, thus you'll have no reinforcements. I need you to continue exploring the island and contact me when you find any evidence of his whereabouts."

Ozpin disconnects the line so you can get to work. You put your scroll back in your pocket and look to Dior in his corner.

"You heard the man, Dior. You find anything?"

Dior sighs, closing his briefcase and standing up.

"I-I-I'm unable to lock o-on to him. I'm s-sorry."

"That means we'll have to search the island," Dylan says as he taps his leg. "We best start now. It'll be getting dark soon."

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Merlot walks away from his communications console and sighs with content. He was able to capture all of you and force you to his island with little difficulty at all. From what he's heard and studied, it wouldn't be hard to get you focused on capturing him, to begin with. He looks to another screen in his room where it's replaying the battle on the docks. You, alone, fighting off his Mutated Grimm and Androids with such fury and skill. If not for your rage blinding you it's possible you could have defeated that force, at least when considering the other battles Merlot has recorded.

He switches between fights, one moment being the one in the village, another showing the unwinnable fight between you, Harrier, Adam, and Neo. Such promise, just as Harrier said. Merlot looks to his prized possession on the wall.

"Quite the specimen, huh? I wonder if his properties will be as useful as yours," he finishes with a devious smile.

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Hours go by yet no clues come up. It's the same boring scenery of rocks, grass, and Grimm. The amount of times you've all split up and reconvened only to find nothing is agitating. This endless cycle has repeated while night creeps upon you.

"Ew," Ruby complains, holding her nose. "What's that awful smell?"

"I've been smelling it for some time now. It's why I suggested this path."

"Let's hope this leads to something and not... like, a Grimm dumping ground or something."

"I d-don't think tha-"

"Well if they have mating cycles why can't they have a place to poop!?" You counter, too proud of your response.

The entire team stops and stares at you with confusion.

"Slater... Grimm don't have mating cycles," Dylan corrects.

"Where did you hear that," Ruby giggles, eager for the answer.

"Ozpin! He said he knew more about..." You squint your eyes for a moment. "Goddamnit, that went right over my head."

"You actually thought the Grimm had mating cycles," Ruby bursts into laughter, holding her stomach.

"Well, Ozpin said it! I had no reason not to believe him!"

"W-Was he using it as a c-c-comparison?" Dior inquires.

You cross your hands, look away, and pout.

"...maybe."

"You're an idiot," Dylan shakes his head, walking ahead.

Ruby bursts into more laughter, completely forgetting the terrible smell polluting the air around you. Dior shakes his head, chuckling at your gullibility.

"You know what? I'm gonna ask Ozpin right now about it!" You shout, grabbing your scroll. "Ozpin!"

"(Y/N)? You're shouting! Did something happen?" He asks with concern.

"Grimm mating cycles!"

There's a short pause that heightens the suspense while you stare at his icon.

"What?"

"Grimm mating cycles! Explain it to them! Remember how you mentioned that you knew more about them then-"

"It was for comparison's sake, (Y/N). I wasn't being serious," Ozpin clarifies. "Did you actually believe there were Grimm mating cycles?" He asks with a slight chuckle.

"Grimm mating cycles? Who would believe that?" You hear Glynda's voice through the scroll.

"(Y/N)," Ozpin answers.

"Of course he would think that's a thing. Next he'll think they have a pre-determined place to defecate."

The sound of your palm hitting your head is audible through the scroll, as well as Ruby's ever-growing laughter.

"Even Ms. Goodwitch thinks you're an idiot," Dylan says, his amusement now bubbling.

Ruby's laughter rises to greater heights as she rolls around on the stone floor.

"Does he actually think they have one?" Glynda asks.

"Considering the responses I believe he does," Ozpin speaks.

"Why do I even speak to you people?" You throw your hands in the air. "Thanks for having my back, Ozpin!" You sarcastically shout before hanging up on him.

"I don't believe I ever said I would support your incorrect ideas, (Y/N)," he says through the scroll.

You stare at the scroll with disbelief.

"What the? I hung up on you!"

"I-I-I have Ozpin on the l-line. I patched him to a-all our scrolls."

You beat your head against the scroll in frustration.

"God. Damn. It." Ruby's laughter fills your ears as it becomes the most prominent thing in the area. "Ruby you're supposed to have my back too!"

Ruby tries her best to respond but the laughter is too powerful for her. He just keeps thinking on it and ends up falling deeper and deeper into its clutches. It becomes so contagious that Dylan and Dior start chuckling too.

"Mmmmmmmmmmm," you moan into your scroll.

"I request that you don't do that directly into the scroll," Ozpin says.

You frustratedly stare at the scroll, doing your best to keep yourself from yelling. Eventually you just sigh in defeat.

"They don't appreciate your unique way of thinking," Merlot speaks.

"I know rig- wait, no! Don't try speaking to me!" You shout into the scroll.

"Now team, do you have any news?" Ozpin speaks, seemingly ignoring Merlot's words to you.

Dylan stands atop an incline, focusing on what's ahead.

"Some sort of machinery, almost like an oil rig. I believe that's where the smell's coming from. It might even be a green substance I'm seeing."

"I believe we have found the reason Merlot is on this island. If he is harvesting the substance... well whatever he's using it for can't be good. Continue on your path, I believe your close. Just... try not to fall into their defecating grounds," Ozpin chuckles.

"I swear," you threaten. "Whatever, let's g- Ruby! Get off the floor," you say, jogging to her and kneeling down beside her laughing form.

She's calmed down, now just chuckling as she stares at the stars in the sky. You offer her a hand.

"Come on, can't laugh all night."

She grabs your hand and lets you pull her to her feet. The moment she's up she pulls on your hand even more and quickly pecks you on the cheek without anyone noticing. She doesn't explain it, she doesn't even say a word. She just continues to giggle as she walks away, leaving you confused and blushing.

The group approaches a pathway with large pipes on either side. One has a hole that's constantly releasing steam to block the way. Dylan looks back and spots a valve.

"Simple solution. Hey, Slater! Come on!" He shouts as he approaches the valve.

"Yeah... yeah, coming!"

You step beside your friends and wait for Dylan to stop the steam. After one turn of the valve, the steam is stopped and passage is attained. In truth, you could have just stepped to the other side with everyone, but what's done is done.

"Hey now. I wouldn't do that if I were you," Merlot's voice speaks through your scrolls.

"DO IT MORE!" Ruby cheers.

"Good. That definitely got his attention. I want you to follow the pipeline. With any luck, it will lead us right to Dr. Merlot," Ozpin instructs.

"Simple enough," you reply.

You all jog down the makeshift corridor and take a left. This exposes more of the refinery than just hallways of pipes. Walkways, stairs, everything one would expect.

Strange how there are no guards anymore. No Grimm, no Androids... Does Merlot want us to keep going?

You reach another point where the path is blocked with steam. It's barely a nuisance since there are ways around it, but considering Merlot's response last time you decide to stop this one too. You look around the small area, eyes following the pipes on the left, then on the right. You spot the valve and quickly rush to it. With a strong turn, you stop the steam and agitate Merlot at the same time. You return to your friends, wiping your hands on each other.

"Alright, let's kick it up. Stay with me, we're going across the pipes!"

You bend your knees and launch yourself forward, landing on a pipe hugging the wall. Below is a giant pool of green goo that would you prefer not to fall into. Your friends follow close behind, Dior being in the back and the least enthusiastic about having to get around like this. Luckily he has a protocol in his briefcase that helps him with his agility. Without it, he'd be left behind.

"Oh Oz, your puny protégés have proven to be quite annoying."

"I can remember the other professors at Beacon saying the same about you, Merlot, though the word they chose was less than kind. Ever since you got it in your head that experimenting on Grimm was a good idea... your obsession has and will continue to be your downfall."

"The Grimm are a superior species, fascinating in their biology, their unbridled, raw aggression and lack of sentience makes them a perfect vessel!" Merlot argues his point.

You reach the end of the pipe and jump diagonally, going over the green pool, and land on another, smaller pipe. You immediately jump again towards a tower that stands proudly in the middle of the pool, then, the moment your feet touch the metal, you spring off and slide across a pathway on the right. You grind to a halt and turn around, waiting for your friends to join you. Dylan and Dior follow your movements exactly while Ruby takes some liberties with her semblance, simply turning into a spinning red cloak and crossing the entire lake at once.

"That line of thought illustrates exactly why you could never be trusted, Merlot," Ozpin responds with scorn.

Ahead of you is a cave with, to no surprise, steam blocking the way. This time Ruby does the honours of spinning the wheel and stopping the steam. You four follow a catwalk going over another pool of green goo that's being drained by a plethora of pipes. Your steps echo in the small cave as you follow the path straight and to the right. Though you haven't mentioned it to anyone else, the ringing is getting stronger and stronger the closer into the island you get.

"I-I-If Dr. Merlot is h-harvesting this substance, I b-b-believe this is what's making those G-Grimm," Dior comments, looking over the railing to the goo below.

"They are both green," Ruby adds.

"To think something like this could naturally exist. It makes those Grimm so strong," Dylan states.

You shake your head.

"Doesn't matter. We still kick butt anyway. But it's best if we stop this entire operation here. We don't need more dangerous Grimm wandering Remnant."

"Of course," Dylan nods. "I still wonder how Merlot found this substance. Was it by accident or did he know prior to coming here?"

"We'll ask when we find him," she says with confidence.

"T-That might be sooner than w-we thought," Dior says as you approach the end of the walkway.

Ahead is an open area much like what you've seen before – pipes and rocks. However at the other end is a large, open door that's definitely an entrance to Merlot's hideout.

"So it would seem," you smirk.

You jump ahead of everyone, flipping midair and landing valiantly in the middle of this fairly large area. Almost like they were waiting, a dozen Androids and a small hoard of Grimm come barreling out of the door. Once they're all out, the door closes. You roll your eyes as you grab Crimson Blaze.

"Guess I should have expected that."

You carefully mark all the noteworthy enemies in the group, but somebody has different plans. You hear a gunshot from behind, a Mutated Grimm fall and explode, killing a few other Grimm and a single Android.

"Haha," Ruby smugly chuckles, reloading her sniper. "I'll keep an eye out from here. You two go ahead," she tells the boys.

Dylan activates Zephyr Shale and charges into battle. Dior sits down and sets up his briefcase beside Ruby.

"I-I'll stay here."

You parry an Ursa's paw by cutting it off then cut the beast clean in half with a swift slash. Ruby fires at a leaping Beowolf, blowing its head clean off. You look back at the girl and nod. You step behind an Android and cut it in half with a more powerful swing. Dylan joins the fray, landing at your back and pushing against you.

"No rest for the weary, huh?" You tease.

"Please, you love this."

"Heh, damn right!"

You and Dylan dash ahead, colliding with the foes in your path.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Merlot watches with excitement as your group comes closer and closer. Androids and Grimm are disposable, but the research he's getting and will get from this is well worth the sacrifices. Just a little further... all you have to do is make it a little further.

Yep, it's been a while since my last update. I did tell you it would be a while, but to be fair I'm updating nearly a month after I intended to. But what can you do? My other story is done and now Crimson Shadow is my only story! I'll be starting up one or two new ones in October and November, but until then you can expect a ton of Crimson Shadow!

As for this mini-arc, there are only two more chapters. I'm not exactly sure what I'm going to do next. I have a more fluffy chapter planned, so I'm not sure if I'm just gonna do one slice of life chapter then go to Volume 3, or have maybe two or three calm chapters. We'll see. Anyway, I hope you enjoyed! It's good to be back, and just in time for Volume 5! That's coming soon and I'm super stoked!

This isn't really a fact, but that whole Grimm mating cycles and "Pooping grounds" skit went on longer than I intended. I just kinda got caught up in the conversation and thought it was too amusing to remove. Even adding Merlot in there made me laugh, though I only did that cause he was shown to be listening the whole time during the actual game. Thought it was worth throwing a line his way. It was a dumb skit, but I liked it. I mean, if I didn't I would have deleted it.

Want to keep up with me? Know what chapter's coming out next and the progress of them? Follow me on Twitter! Twitter . com (slash) Chinsangan

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