Re: Megaman Z(x) RWBY

Thu Nov 21, 2019 2:38 am

Grey breathed a sigh of relief that Ozpin agreed. Sure, he could fight off plenty of baddies, but if entire nations would want to dissect him at all... yeah, it'd be best to keep his identity under wraps. And quite literally too. Thankfully, Ruby had thought ahead, so there'd be cover for that, at least. "Thanks, Ruby," he said with a nod. "And thank you, Headmaster. It doesn't feel too out of place where I'm from, but now that we're in Remnant..." here, he grasped one of his cables, a somewhat bemused chuckle escaping. "Heh, I'm... just now realizing how odd I must look."

Walking up to the Reploid, Penny placed a hand on his shoulder, turning him to face her. "You are not odd, Grey! You are unique and special! I actually like your cables!"

Ashe chuckled at the show of support, while Model A's thankfully silent voice was heard to be sniggering. About as subtle as Vent on April Fools Day. Rolling her eyes, Ashe gestured to their red-headed companion. "She kinda just tagged along while looking for Ruby, but this here is Penny."

Here, Penny turned to Ozpin, smiling with a warm salute. "Salutations, Headmaster! It's wonderful to meet you!"

Thu Nov 21, 2019 2:52 am

"Penny Polendina?" Ozpin asked. "You came from Atlas for the festival, did you not? I am glad to see that you're making friends here."

Returning the salute, the headmaster chuckled a little. "Salutations to you as well. It seems that James has rubbed off on you a little. That, or your father picked up some of his habits. It's hard not to fall in line with him. ...Oh! Ah, I'm referring to General James Ironwoods. He's a friend of mine, and he recently came to Vale with his security force. You may have seen him at one of his product demonstrations."

He seems to enjoy expositing about people the general public would already know about. Perhaps it's because he just got through an abridged version of Earth's part 500-odd years of history, and is eager to share.

Thu Nov 21, 2019 11:23 am

Penny beamed at the mentioning of her last name, and she nodded at Ozpin's observation. "I have made so many good friends here! I am liking the kingdom of Vale very much!" The smile did diminish a tad, however, as the mentioning of a demonstration was brought up.

"We really haven't seen too much of this place, really," Grey responded. Maybe this Ironwood's security force was one of the groups that showed up at the end of that crazy train fight? Model A suggested. His chosen one mused it over and shrugged. "Could've been, Model A. Granted, Ashe might've gotten a better view."

The aforementioned Mega Man chuckled nervously, shifting her weight from one foot to the other awkwardly. "Heh, yeah, uh... I wasn't exactly paying much attention to anything outside the fight either, if I'm gonna be honest." Shaking her head, Ashe quickly changed the subject. "But that's besides the point! We've got some kinda plan now. If not a plan of action, then at least a base of operations! When should we move out, Headmaster? ...er, move in, that is."

Thu Nov 21, 2019 3:11 pm

"Immediately." He said. "Well, as soon as you're ready, anyway. I can have the paperwork filled out and submitted in a few minutes. While I determine which room you will be staying in, why don't you have one of Team RWBY's members escort you to the dorms? I'll send a message so you know where to go. ...Ah, come to think of it, you won't have any form of cellular communication, would you?"

Ozpin held up one of those tiny Scroll things. "Perhaps we should invest in a pair for you two, just so you can keep in touch more easily."

Fri Nov 22, 2019 2:23 am

"Does this mean you will be staying in Vale for a while?" Penny inquired of the A-Team, her eyes practically alight with excitement. "That's amazing! We can explore the city together, go learn about things in the library together, and-"

This is gonna be a regular thing with her, isn't it? Model A said, no small amount of annoyance in his voice. Ashe lightly bopped the Biometal with the back of her hand, shaking her head. "She's just excited, Model A. I'm sure she'll calm down eventually." At Ozpin's question, the female bounty hunter tapped one of her ear covers. "These things are our short range comms. Our tech is a bit more advanced than cellular stuff though, so I dunno if it'd work with it." His suggestion was sound enough, although Ashe didn't like the idea of just taking some for free. Granted, energy crystals would probably not pass as currency here. In fact, introducing them might just make things worse. "Well, if you say so. But don't let us just get off scott free! I'm a bounty hunter - I'll make sure to pay the Academy back at some point!"

"-and have sparring sessions and go on shopping trips! We are going to be best friends!" Penny's declaration was emphasized with a wide hug, each one of her arms going about Grey and Ashe's shoulders. Turning her head to the side, she looked back at Ruby and her team. "You're such a good friend-finder, Ruby!"

Grey was just a smidgen uncomfortable by the absolute lack of subtlety that their new friend was displaying, but he figured that it'd be better to avoid any awkwardness, so he remained where he was. Looking up to Ozpin, he tried to focus on the plan of action. "Right, thank you again, Headmaster. We'll, uh... we'll get going now."

Fri Nov 22, 2019 1:51 pm

"Penny's just... very excited about new friends!" Ruby explained. ""I guess I would be, too."

Professor Ozpin nodded to Grey. "Please don't hesitate to contact me if you need anything."

...Come to think of it, there was a network that the A-Team had been picking up since they arrived in the city, but they hadn't noticed it on account of the circumstances.

Fri Nov 22, 2019 2:06 pm

Shrugging off Penny's arm, Ashe gave the Headmaster a wave as she turned towards the elevator. "Don't sweat it, Ozzy - we'll be in touch!"

As the group re-entered the elevator, the general atmosphere was one of ponderment. There were quite a few questions left unanswered, but there was also a broad plan of action. Really, it seemed to be in Ozpin's hands at the moment, and therefore all they could do was wait. "Well, at least we won't have to stay in a hotel the whole time we're here," Grey observed. He was a bit disappointed that they hadn't found any answers.

"This is true!" Penny concurred, raising a finger in emphasis. "This also gives you three access to Vale's library. Perhaps you can find information on how to get back home there!"

Yeah, somehow I doubt that there's just a book about... portals and stuff lying around here. I mean, this is a school about fighting things!

"You've got a point there, Model A," Ashe said, arms crossed. "Still, no harm in trying, right? ...anyway, where are you girls headed off next?" she asked, looking over team RWBY.

Fri Nov 22, 2019 3:24 pm

Weiss answered first. "Back to class, of course! Our mission ended early, so we should spend all the extra time catching up on schoolwork and learning as much as we can."

"Pff, nerd." Yang rolled her eyes. "I'm gonna show you to the dorms and make sure you get your present from Li'l Sis right away."

"You don't really need all of us for that, so you may as well just take Yang." Blake said, shrugging. "We'll be in classes for a while, but we'll try and find you afterwards."

Sat Nov 23, 2019 2:21 pm

"Shouldn't be too hard. Grey and I don't exactly blend in here," she replied with a chuckle. "Besides, I've got some work to do on my gear, so I won't be going anywhere for a while."

Penny spoke up as well. "I would still like to spend this afternoon with Ruby, if I can. With the festival tournament coming up, things will be very busy until it is over, and any free time I have I want to spend with my friends, here in Vale!"

Thinking about going to the library, Grey? Model A inquired. The Mega Man tilted his head up to his companion. "Yeah, actually. You want to come along, Model A?" The Biometal's tone was one of resignation. It might just be our situation, but the way back might not be one my powers can help with. And I don't like just sitting around. Nerd work or not, learning more about this place is the only forward-aiming stuff I can think to do.

The Mega Man cracked a small grin, before turning to Blake. "Model A and I were actually gonna head to the library after settling in. If you wanna find us, try looking there. Something tells me we're gonna be there a while."

A moment later, the elevator chimed as it reached the ground floor.. Stepping out, the A-Team waved to the remainder of Team RWBY, as well as Penny, as they went their separate ways. Turning to Yang, Ashe grinned. "Alright, where to, Yangster?"

Sat Nov 23, 2019 8:48 pm

"Dorms are this way." She said, pointing up the hallway to a door. "It's another building, so we'll have to walk outside for a bit."

Yang led them out into the courtyard, around a few other buildings. She pointed each one out as they went; there was a cafeteria, the library, workshop, and one building she referred to as the "locker room". Despite clearly being an entire building the size of the other ones.

Finally, they reached a sizable building, one almost as big as the main school: the dormitories. "So, on the right side is where all the transfers are staying, left is for Beacon students, and a lot of the staff sleep in the section further back." Yang explained. "You usually stay in the same room the entire time you're at Beacon, apparently, so there's not a ton of organization about where students sleep. People from different years are all jumbled up between floors, and people are moved in depending on availability. On our first day here, though, we had to stay the night in the main hall. See, all members of a team get put into the same room, and they only put us together on teams on the second day."

Sat Nov 23, 2019 9:01 pm

With Model A back in his satchel, Grey followed alongside Ashe as Yang led them out. The courtyard was very sparsely populated, and the individuals present were so distant that they hardly paid any attention to the trio exiting the school.

"Well, thankfully we don't have that problem," Ashe said, giving Grey a sidelong grin with a hand on her hip. "Not that I mind camping out indoors, but-" She gasped, before grabbing Grey's wrist. "Wha- Hey Ashe, what the-?!"

There was a loud rustle as Grey was flung into the bushes, one of his cables clocking him on top of his head and eliciting a pained yell. Turning to Yang, Ashe's face was almost pale white. "We forgot his cover! What if someone saw him?!"

You couldn't have handled that a bit more gracefully?! Model A shouted. I might be tough, but Grey's heavy! Duratanium isn't light, y'know!

Sat Nov 23, 2019 9:09 pm

Yang scratched her head, genuinely flabbergasted that they'd forgotten something that simple. She'd kind of forgotten he even needed anything to cover up with once he gave back Ruby's cape. "Ah, uh... well..."

Thinking carefully, she looked around. "...How about this? You wait out here, I'll go get it for him."

Dashing off, she hurried in the direction of Team RWBY's room, rushing to grab something for Grey...

Sat Nov 23, 2019 9:27 pm

Watching as Yang ran off, Ashe groaned. They came who knows how close to screwing up their cover, and within ten minutes of talking to the Headmaster! "Thank goodness for otherwise-useless bushes," she said with a head shake.

Groaning from where he was laying, Grey rubbed his head where the thicker end of one of his cables had smacked him. "Next time, just... gimme a heads up before you go flinging me like that, Ashe."

"Sorry, sorry," she said aloud, following up with a sigh. Shoulders slumped, the female Mega Man leaned against a nearby lamppost before crossing her arms. Her mind momentarily drifted back to Innerpeace, wondering how her guild, the ZX twins, Prairie and the others were doing. Sure hope they're not panicking. It's not like we're in danger. ...then again, I definitely wouldn't mind the help.

Meanwhile, back on Earth, Area N...

"Any word from Flueve about... well, anything, Aile?" Sitting next to his sister, the Mega Man passed her a flavored energy drink, cracking open the lid on his own. The research team, led by Flueve, had made its way down to that being Omega's lair, and were hard at work. Studying subspace and cyberspace signals, as well as the residual data echoes left behind by those vortexes, their work had been frustratingly slow for the ZX Chosen Ones. "We've been down here for almost three days now, they've got to have a lead on something at this point, right?"

Sat Nov 23, 2019 10:50 pm

Aile sighed, accepting the drink but not opening it. “They’ve set up their devices to try and gauge the phenomena, but it doesn’t seem to have flared up at all, so there’s nothing to read. I don’t know if we can count on that. As for our friends…”

Leaning back, she kicked a loose bit of debris across the ground. "Wherever they are, they're out of range of any of our communications or scanners. And with the Grand Nuage's equipment, that range is pretty much planet-wide. Either they're off in space or even further below ground, and either possibility has its own set of problems."

At that moment, a group of the researchers ran past the alcove they’d been sitting. They looked like they were in a hurry. Running over to catch one of them, Aile grabbed them by the shoulder. “Hey, what’s the rush? Did you find something?”

“The sensors in the room where the Maverick was found haven’t picked up anything, but Maquereau knocked one over. Then we noticed that when it was pointed down, we picked up a ton of activity. So we’ve been checking around, and it seems like whatever’s below us is swimming in anomalous readings!”

Sat Nov 23, 2019 11:11 pm

That sounds promising, Model X said, his tone one of hope. We should get moving, in case those readings start to fade.

"No kidding!" Vent said, recapping his drink and shoving it into a pouch as he ran alongside Aile, the two of them following the researcher group. They came to a halting stop at a gaping shaft that led further underground. It looked artificial in nature, but very worn, as if unused for centuries. "Well, that's at least one problem eliminated. ...sorta." Standing by the edge was the ever irrepressible Flueve, who was guiding the efforts to get something underway. Approaching, Vent waved him over. "Flueve, we heard your team found something!"

"Indeed, and quite by accident, too. For once, that doddering Maquereau's incompetence actually proved useful, hmph." Turning around where he was standing, he gestured to the shaft. "This was clearly an elevator shaft at some point in the distant past. Electron dating suggests at least a full century, if not more. Initially we thought about restoring power to its systems, but further inspection showed just how dangerous would be." Here he paused, pointing to one of the guide rails. A grappling mechanism, likely something to assist in lifting and lowering the ride car, had exploded in a shower of electricity, marking the entire area on the wall around it with black markings.

Vent winced at the sight. "Yeah, no kidding. Aile and I could survive the drop if we Megamerged, but do you have a plan to get down there?"

"I was getting to that, young sir!" Flueve replied indignantly, grumbling a tad before continuing. "My staff are preparing the mobile grav-lift for use. We'll have to make a few trips up and down to shuttle our equipment and staff, so could you and Aile head down first? We need that area secure before we can set up shop."

Sat Nov 23, 2019 11:18 pm

"Aye-aye!" Aile said, immediately transforming into Model HX, jumping off the edge and catching the side of the elevator shaft.

Watching to make sure Vent followed, she let go, opening the armor's wings and thrusters, but waiting until they'd dropped down into the pitch-blackness before firing them, slowing her descent.

Sat Nov 23, 2019 11:24 pm

Donning the Model PX form, Vent hopped into the shaft as well. The form offered very little control over his aerial descent speed, but utilizing the claws enabled him to slide down the wall at a roughly equal speed as his sister. Soon, the shadows enveloped them, the only light coming from their own suits of armor.

"...weird. The Radar Scope is picking up a surface down below, so we're approaching the bottom, but everything around it is... jumbled. Like the scope can't make any sense of it."

Sun Nov 24, 2019 10:17 pm

When, finally, their feet met solid ground, what they saw took their breath away.

Outside the elevator shaft, in the darkness, faint green light radiated from every edge of every surface of the hall ahead, giving them just enough illumination to make out the space they were in, Looking at her hands, Aile noticed that she looked the same as the scenery - no, she could see through her armor and her own body. The individual components of her gauntlets were visible through the metal shielding, and she could see the floor behind her gloved hands.

Wildly looking around, she caught sight of Vent, looking much the same as her own self. But what caught her attention were the two balls of light orbiting him. They were purple and blue, respectively, and while she couldn't make out their shapes, they reminded her of something they'd seen a lot of during the incident with Serpent. The blue light, she noticed, was actually alternating its orbit between the duo; there was a green one that hung around Aile, which she only just caught sight of.

"What in the world is this place...?!"

Sun Nov 24, 2019 10:58 pm

Vent's own eyes were looking his twin up and down, expression one of confusion. "I have no idea, but this is crazy!" He patted himself up and down, and while the tangible sense of feeling was still there, the sounds of contact were altered, almost electronic. "Model X, do you know what's going on here?"

...it would seem that this anomaly is a merging between the physical world and the digital one, the Biometal said after a moment's thought. Do you remember one of your first missions that Prairie assigned you to, around seven years ago? The one in the abandoned power facility? As both twins nodded, he continued. The beings that were being used to generate power - Cyber-Elves - they dwell in this world. It's as natural to them as dwelling on Earth is to either one of you. As beings with digital consciousnesses, Models H, P and myself are being represented by these very same entities while we reside in here. As if to demonstrate, the blue spheres danced over Aile and Vent's shoulders.

"Huh. So this is their home?" Looking to Aile, the male Mega Man raised an eyebrow. "Think the kids could've gotten lost in here?"

Sun Nov 24, 2019 11:10 pm

Without hesitation, she cupped her hands around her mouth and took a deep breath. "GREEEEEY! AAAAASHE! MODEL AAAAA! CAN YOU HEAR US!?" The sound echoed, becoming distorted as it bounced though the blending of the digital world and real-space.

Pondering this, Aile looked at this 'Cyber-Space' area, trying to acclimate and calm her nerves a little. "...It's possible that they fell and got injured, and have been looking for a way out. But you'd think they'd answer if they were down here... unless there's more to it than we think."

It was true that there was a hallway ahead, with a door at the end, and they hadn't taken a single step into the area, but their instincts told them not to rush. There was something very dangerous about this place.

Sun Nov 24, 2019 11:27 pm

Placing a semi-digitalized hand on her shoulder, Vent offered his twin a smile. "Hey, those kids are more resourceful than they appear. We'll find 'em right as rain, Aile, but not standing here like we are." While not in a combat stance, Vent nevertheless gripped his ZX-Saber's handle tightly as he took point, slowly beginning to make his way down the eerie hall.

The entire area grew more and more digital as they progressed, and soon enough they could even feel their bodies changing. Vent paused as he noticed this effect, seemingly a bit worried. Do not worry, Model P spoke, voice as calm as a lake in winter. Your cybernetics and armor will let you retain yourselves - from the data I'm seeing, matter and energy are completely transferable in this space. You should revert back to normal upon exiting.

Vent's face tightened somewhat. "This place is still freaking me out." Even as he spoke, he could feel the words traveling through his body in an entirely different fashion, as if they were being broadcast from his entire form, rather than just his mouth. "How you holding up, sis?"

Sun Nov 24, 2019 11:41 pm

"I feel really strange. And you're starting to sound like a fax machine." She said, shrugging. "I'm not sure what we're expecting to see further in, but what else can we do?"

They came upon a door that led them to another open space; it felt similar to the path of spikes leading to Omega's arena. Or, well, it would if there were spikes. Instead, there was just nothing. An endless black void. Just seeing it filled Aile with the kind of dread that a fall from high up couldn't match. If they dropped into it, there was no telling where they'd end up, or if they'd survive. And for that matter, whether anyone would ever find them.

Platforms blinked into and out of existence, leading the way across the gap. "...They wouldn't have gone this way if they were injured. Let's try a different route."

Sun Nov 24, 2019 11:58 pm

"Yeah, smart idea."

Turning back around, the duo exited the room and glanced about, spotting a few other doorways. A quizzical expression formed on Vent's face. Were those doors there before? "...I'm gonna check out this one here on the left," he said before ducking inside. Within, there was a cacophony of pillar-like structures, rotating about their axes as they slowly spun about the space around the door. Numerous crystal-like entities surrounded each pillar, transmitting and receiving some kind of data from them, but as far as Vent could tell there was no way to progress. Shrugging, the Mega Man stepped back through the door... only to find that he had stepped into a vast, empty room, where the floor was more akin to small, rolling hills.

"Wait... what? But didn't I just-" Turning around, Vent looked behind him at the door he had just exited, only to see that there was just a plain wall there. Rubbing his eyes, he shook his head before trying to reach Aile via his comms system. "Aile, the entire place just changed around me! I've got no idea where I am here!"

Mon Nov 25, 2019 12:06 am

"What?" She responded. "I can see you, you just exited this weird crystal-pillar room on the other side. How did you get over there?" She waved to him. "...Well, I can't exactly get over to where you are, so I'll look for another path. You look around, too!"

Mon Nov 25, 2019 12:13 am

Vent looked around, positively confounded. "I exited the room we first entered and took the door to the left, but the door I entered is... it's gone!" Holding his head with both hands, Vent shook it. "Argh, this doesn't make any sense!"

Vent, calm yourself, Model X said. I can sense both Aile and your general position, seeing as I am also merged with you both. I know it's overwhelming, but there is some sense to the apparent chaos in here.

Taking deep breaths in an attempt to do as Model X said, Vent nodded. "...right. Sorry, Model X. I'll remain here Aile, see if you can't make it to me."