the Turning Point
Once everything is settled, I release everyone from the vaults, restrain Watts with his top left tentacle like back at the bridge, and call Yang over with a F.E.A.S.T. truck to carry everyone over to the condo where I can get to work. Once we get there and up to condo, I make sure everyone gets in but I noticed something a little troubling.
Ruby: "Where's Merlot?"
Yang: "He said he wants to stay in the truck?" He must still be unconvinced that I can actually do this without any consequences. But aside from that...
Ruby: "Um, Sis? I know Mr. Sieben practically gave it to us, but this is still technically his place and I feel kinda bad using it like this."
Yang: "Hey, it's okay. He'll understand." Mercury's powers trigger the TV and turn it on, showing a news report that has actually been going on for a while now, being that they plan to add Captain Vale's shield to the statue of Vale's first king from many centuries ago but the vast majority of the public are protesting against it. Not like it matters to us though, as after Mercury turns on the TV, Hazel takes a seat on the couch... which results in getting sand all over it. Go figure. And his attempts to wipe it off are completely futile, so we just ignore that and focus more on the reason we're here. But not without more complaints from Watts, while Cinder checks out the robo arm by the table.
Watts: "This is your plan? Seriously? No labs or proper facilities, just preforming miracles in some random condominium? Planning on just making some cures and with a side of instant ramen in a microwave oven?"
Cinder: "I could go for some ramen, as bad as it may be for my figure." Well, it's easy for me since I do a lot of physical movement as a super hero to burn off the extra calories, but obviously not every girl has the same kind of metabolism, and thus must be more careful about their physique.
Watts: "She's gonna kill us all!"
Ruby: "Well, let's hope not. You're up first, Doc." As I walk by Watts and tap his shoulder on my way to the back room behind the kitchen.
Watts: "What? I thought I told you I don't need fixing." I just ignore and enter the room. "I don't need fixing! Especially from a teenager using scraps from a bachelor's broom closet!"
Mercury: "Now, hold on a minute... I'm sensing something back there. Something powerful!" Yang, Cinder and Mercury follow me in the back as I remove the sheet from the Schnee tech box I found in here that first night.
Cinder: "What on Remnant is that?"
Ruby: "It's a fabricator." I press a button on top to open it up. It basically becomes a household engineering lab. "It can analyze, design and construct basically anything." And of course, this whole thing is powered by a Dust Core, typically used to power Ms. Schnee's White Knight suits, that shows itself during the transformation, and doesn't go unnoticed my Mercury. His eyes spark for a split second as he connects the dots on the core and his sense from earlier.
Mercury: "Would you look at that..." The device finishes unfolding itself. Upon the Dust Cores activation, a sudden outburst of energy destroys one of the kitchen closets, causing Watts to flinch in fear. Then just looks on in deep concern.
Watts: "She's gonna kill us all..." Meanwhile, outside, the FEAST truck abruptly shakes, startling two random passerbies. Merlot is definitely having a great time. Back in the apartment, Cinder and I are standing at the fabricator, analyzing the intricacies of Watts' tentacles, with it displaying a hologram of the arms on a male humanoid figure.
Ruby: "So, Watts built this chip into the back of his neck to protect his mind from the advanced AI that runs through these tentacles and keep himself in control of them. But looking at this schematic, I found that..." I grab the chip piece from the hologram and it grows to life size in my hand. "...the chips been fried. Which means it's now the other way around in where the tentacles are basically now in control of him. Which most likely explains why he's always so... grumpy all the time." Just to put it nicely. Over in the kitchen, Yang is prepping some water in a cup, while my nano unit sits on the counter still displaying the status of Watts arms still infected by my nanites, showing how he's still restrained by one of the arms. Yang heads over to Watts and gets his attention with a quick tap to the shoulder.
Yang: "Thirsty?" He stays quiet for a minute before giving in.
Watts: "Well, yes. I am thirsty." She helps him take a drink.
Yang: "Now, normally, I would make a salt water joke with the tentacles, as if comparing them to an octopus, but I realize how everyone keeps comparing it to a Centinel. So I won't."
Watts: "Much appreciated. I've had enough of the jokes on my arms. Their supposed to be a technological marvel, not a comedy act."
Yang: "You know, psycho villain thing aside, I think you might fit in around here. Tons of brilliant scientist all over the place."
Watts: "Seems like it." That conversation seems to be going nicely, but then we have Mercury and Hazel by themselves.
Mercury: "Just look at this place. And all the possibilities." As he's observing the city from the window. Hazel is over to the side looking at pictures we put around the place.
Hazel: "What? This condo?"
Mercury: "Oh yeah, totally, the open floor thing is awesome." Completely sarcastic before getting serious. "No, dude! Of course I'm not talking about the condo. I'm talking about the city. If not the whole world." Hazel puts down a framed photo before walking over a few steps. "I'm starting to like who I am here. And with that power I'm sensing... I could be so much more." That doesn't sound too pleasant. "So why did you come along?" That is actually a good question. He didn't seem all that interested in getting treated for his powers.
Hazel: "I have a sister. A sick one. And I want to see her again. And hopefully help her. But it's clear she's not gonna send anyone home until she's done with her little experiment back there." Mercury gives a nod in agreement.
Mercury: "Do you trust her?"
Hazel: "I don't trust anyone." As he crosses his arms. "How'd you get your powers anyway?"
Mercury: "Well... Back when I worked for Fall Industries, they were experimenting with electricity within living organisms. And then, on my birthday of all days, I was fixing a loose cable in the lab and ended up falling into a vat of baby Sea Feilong's."
Hazel: "You're kidding? I was running from the police when I fell into a super collider."
Mercury: "Damn. Gotta be careful where you fall." Back with me and Dr. Fall, I'm finishing up with creating a replacement chip for Watts. This is the more sensible way to cure rather than try to remove the arms completely, since the spine they connect to on his back have injected needles into his nervous system to establish the connection between the AI and his mind. To remove them would require the delicate skills of a professional surgeon, which I do not have. And even then, if I remove the arms BEFORE I fix his mind, it might remove the AI's influence on him afterwards. It's best that I fix that and let him take care of that after I send him home. As I'm working, Cinder is admiring the tech.
Cinder: "Truly fascinating... Both the technology and your work with it." I proceed to place the needles in the new chip. "When this is all over... if your looking for a job... and you're willing to commute to another world entirely." Once I place the last needle and have the program uploaded, a beep in the system tells me that the construction was a success.
Ruby: "It worked... That totally worked!" I grab the chip and run off into the other room. "Sis! I did it! Can you send him up?"
Yang: "Yep. Here we go." She inputs a few taps into the hologram from the nano unit to control the arms and lift him up to the mezzanine to put his neck up to my level as I head up there myself. "Hold on, Doc!"
Watts: "Gah! Will these humiliations never cease!? You! Keep your science fair project away from me!" Cinder stays on the bottom floor and looks up to him.
Cinder: "Come now, have a little faith. Alright? I'm sure it will work."
Watts: "Says the reckless bitch who turned herself into a monster!" Cinder then looks a little offended, not that I can blame her after that comment, as everyone else looks up to us while I work.
Ruby: "Please hold still for a minute." I have to loosen his overcoat to get the collar out of the way of his neck.
Watts: "Don't you dare!" Now I have to keep his head still with one hand while I try to install the chip with the other. "I swear... when I get out of this, we're going to rip you to-" I finally get the chip installed and he hangs his heads as if he's a robot who just shut down.
Ruby: "...Doc?" He doesn't respond, which leaves everyone concerned for a minute. "Doc? Doc? Dr. Watts-" Then he finally wakes up with a gasp, followed by some heavy breathes. He looks as though he's finally woken up from a horrible dream.
Watts: "My word... My mind, it's... It's now quiet... All those voices... And my memory... I had almost forgotten!"
Cinder: "Arthur..." Sounding relieved. He looks down at Cinder as if finally seeing a friendly face after so long.
Watts: "Yes! Cinder!" Yang controls the arms to let him down. "It's me!" I jump down in front of him.
Hazel: "Well, what do you know. It worked." With admiration. I control the nanites in his arms to place one of his claws on my chest to release his arms and return my nanites to me. I form the nanites around to form a silver colored version of the logo from the Rose Knight suit, and then he calls his arm back himself. Everyone stands in awe of my fixing Watts and my new suit integration.
Watts: "I'm grateful... my child. Truly." He shakes my hand.
Ruby: "Ah, it was nothing."
Watts: "How can I help?" Meanwhile, Klein is driving through town trying to call my phone but I'm too busy to pick up so he just gets my voicemail.
Klein: "Yes. Hello, Ms. Rose? I took a look at the doorbell camera a grew concerned when I saw your, uh... house guests. So I'm coming over to check up on things, alright?" Back in the apartment, the fabricator is currently creating the injector for an antiserum to Cinders affliction, and the sprayer for Merlot's cure, but right now, I can't make an actual cure for him until I can get a blood sample to analyze. Meanwhile, I've already created a cure for Mercury, and I have it with me in the main room. Cinder is in the back with the fabricator recording the process on the white boards with Watts back there with her.
Watts: "How does it feel, Cinder? You're about to become whole again... No more darker half... Just you." Cinder keeps her back turned to him.
Cinder: "Just me." But there was something a bit... off about how she said that. But then she turns to him and they smile at each other. Meanwhile, over in the main room, Mercury and I are sitting at the dining table, which is covered in the Legos from my destroyed Death Star set, and I'm setting up the diagnostics program for the device to cure him.
Ruby: "And we're up and running. Now we just put this, right... here." I attach to circular device to his chest. "And with that, it should now be drawing out your power. I'm gonna come back in a minute to check on it, but be sure to keep an eye out on the lights on the device, cause when their all green, it'll mean that it's drawn out all of the... I guess bad electricity in your body giving you all your powers, while still leaving the necessary electricity required for the body to actually. Which I'm sure your already aware of, so I shouldn't even bother with explaining electricity to you."
Mercury: "Okay... But I have a quick question."
Ruby: "What?"
Mercury: "Are these your Legos?" Before I can answer, I hear a beep from the back, signifying the completion of the anti-collider schematic for Hazel.
Ruby: "Uh... I gotta go. I'll be right back." Now that's he alone at the table, the first light beeps, and he starts looking a little uncomfortable.
Mercury: "Something feels off..."
Hazel: "What do you mean?"
Mercury: "I don't like this..."
Hazel: "Leave it alone. The sooner we all get through this, the sooner we can go home." Another light beeps as we cut outside to Lisa arriving out front to meet with her informant.
Lisa: "So? Where is she?"
Informant: "Uh, she's inside."
Lisa: "And yet, here we are, outside. Did you not hear me say 'don't lose her'!?"
Informant: "Yes, Ma'am. I-"
Lisa: "I want incriminating footage of Scarlet Spider! I already called damage control, they're on their way here. And the whole place is about to be swarming with cops!" Unbeknownst to them, Merlot is listening in, knowing that this might be the 'consequences' he was expecting, and proceeds to sinisterly smile and whisper to himself.
Merlot: "And so it begins..." Back in the apartment, I'm tinkering with the finishing touches on the anti-collider when my Spider Sense starts tingling, and my face shows an expression of concern.
Watts: "Ruby?"
Cinder: "What's wrong?" I stand up.
Ruby: "I don't know... Yang!" I walk into the main area where Yang comes down from the second floor.
Yang: "Yeah, Sis?" I stand in silence for a moment and look around for any sign of trouble.
Hazel: "What's happening?" As things escalate, Cinder makes her way towards the dining table, with Watts looking at her curiously. My gaze lands on Mercury for a second.
Mercury: "Why are you looking at me like that?" I look around a little more before closing my eyes for more focus... And then... I web Cinder's hand to the robo arm. She looks on in amusement, and her tone sounds a little off again.
Cinder?: "Hehehe. I've always been impressed with that little trick... That sense of yours."
Watts: "Cinder?"
Cinder?: "Sorry, good sir, but I'm afraid Cinder is a little... Hmm... unavailable at the moment."
Mercury: "The hell?" I think it's plenty obvious what's happening here.
Ruby: "The Succubus..." Cinder's dark side known as the Red Succubus must've taken control again!
Red S.: "'No more darker half'?" Yang slowly moves into the back room as she gives her speech. "Did you honestly think that I'd let that happen? That I'd let you take away my power, just because you're blind to what true power can bring you?"
Ruby: "You don't know me."
Red S.: "Don't I?" Yang grabs the anti-collider, the sprayer and Cinders anti-serum and puts them all into a bag. "I saw how she trapped you. Fighting her holy moral mission." Yang returns into view. "We don't need you to save us. We don't need to be fixed! She looks over to Mercury. "These are not curses." Another light on Mercury's device beeps, leaving two lights left. "They're gifts."
Watts: "Cinder, no-"
Red S.: "Quiet, you sellout!"
Ruby: "You don't know what your talking about."
Red S.: "I've been watching you from deep behind Cinder's cowardly eyes. Struggling, to have everything you want, while the world tries to make you choose." The second to last light on Mercury's device beeps. "God's don't have to choose..." Mercury looks on in content. "We take!"
Ruby: "Yang... Run!" Yang turns around and runs towards the door. Mercury removes the device from his chest while Succubus maliciously tears the webbing, freeing herself. Mercury steps forward, and uses his powers to rip the Dust Core from the fabricator, through the wall and pull it to him through it through electromagnetism, frying the fabricator in the process, much to Watts' and my own shock. The Succubus takes advantage of this, and slams me against the stairs. Hazel takes the third option and turns into sand, flying out of the window. Mercury's newly enhanced power causes a momentary blackout in the building, freezing the elevators which Yang is unable to use right now. Watts looks at his former companion with dread.
Watts: "Dear Lord... What have you done?"
Mercury: "I liked you better before..." He fires a stream of electricity towards Watts, sending him flying through the apartment wall. Watts starts to fall to his death, but he's able to grab the side of the building with his mechanical tentacles, which are still intact due to their anti-magnetic properties. Lisa notices the commotion and has her cameraman look up.
Lisa: "Up there! Look, it's the guy from the bridge!" Using his claws, Watts scurries away along several nearby buildings. Meanwhile, Yang takes the fire escape, quickly descending to the groundfloor. Mercury ignites, lightning and electricity exuding from every inch of his fiber. Mercury and Hazel create a thunder-sandstorm, which traps the newly arrived policemen, reporters and Lisa inside. The side of the F.E.A.S.T. van rips open, preceded by two claw marks, and Merlot breaks through and runs away, confusing Lisa. "Did you see that?" Mercury and Hazel split in opposite directions, a cloud of sand and a deadly lightning tearing through the night sky of Patch. Meanwhile Yang continues her descent as the Succubus and I continue to beat on each other. Unfortunately, I'm unable to gain the upper hand, being thrown through windscreens constantly. Even when I manage to lift the Succubus in the air and slam her down through a story to a lower one with my feet, my opponent quickly regains advantage.
Red S.: "Get off of me!" She smashes me through another window, all while this is all being recorded by the Lance of Liberty helicopter. The fight moves to a hallway. And it starts with her throwing and smashing me through a wall, while the Succubus simply busts another wall and walks in like a boss. "Strong enough to have it all..." I get up, grab a piece of the wall and hurl it at the Succubus, to no avail. The maniac grabs and holds me in place. "Yet too weak to take it!" She hits me and throws me a few meters away. I get back up, leap and perform a flying triangle choke on her, pinning her to a nearby wall and hitting her repeatedly BUT the Succubus just takes it, smiling more and more with each hit. I just freeze, unable to comprehend the creature I'm trying to fight as she cackles maniacally in my face. I try to hit her a few more times, but she simply unpins herself and performs a stunning powerbomb, sending me crashing through another floor. After looking down on me, lying in quiet pain, she simply walks the other way. I get back up and start hobbling, holding my ribs as I web a window, yank it open and go outside, sticking to the side of the building to catch a break. Realizing I'm being lit by the Lance of Liberty helicopter, I look down to see Lisa and her camera crew there, and she just smiles.
Lisa: "Now I've gotcha!" Completely confused by the ordeal, I don't even realize that Merlot is there until after he grabs me from... above, and yells in my face.
Merlot: "I TOLD YOU THERE'D BE CONSEQUENCES!" To which he proceeds to throw me into a lower hallway, shattering yet ANOTHER glass pane, refusing to elaborate and leaves. The Succubus takes over the fight again. She tosses me against the hallway's ceiling and grabs me, performing yet another masterful powerbomb with such force that we both fall down, crashing through multiple stories. Yang reaches the end of the fire escape and exits the building, making it to the lobby just as the Succubus and I arrive there, crashing next to the lobby's front door, carving a huge crater in the pavement. When the dust vanishes and the smoke clears, the Succubus is leaning over me, half-conscious, pieces of debris everywhere around us, all while she places her hands on my neck and squeezes.
Red S.: "Your weakness, Ruby, is morality... It's choking you!" I can feel my consciousness fading as she speaks. "Can you feel it?!" That's when Yang quickly runs towards the Succubus and stabs her in the neck with the injector meant to cure her. After acknowledging what's happened and letting me go, she just looks at Yang as she rips it out and throws it to the ground in disgust. "It didn't work. Cinder was right. She got it from you. That pathetic... "As she proceeds to stomp on my chest and keep me pinned go the ground. "...sickness!" She then pulls my helpless body up by my head, forcing me to look at Yang as she grabs a pieces of rebar from the broken entrance ceiling. "You tried to fix me..."
Ruby: "Yang... Go..." I can barely speak as I try to catch my breath in this monsters hand.
Red S.: "But now, I'm going to fix you..." The Succubus' glider descends upon the lobby, positioning itself right behind Yang.
Ruby: "Yang, run, please..." Yang goes to swing the rebar, but glider accelerates, flying through the front doors with a devastating smash, and hits her, sending her to the ground. "YANG!" The glider circles through the destroyed lobby and plaza, and the Red Succubus jumps on its top. And to top it off, crashing through all these floors has been ripping off the clothes covering her armor, all that left is the hood of her black hoodie and she cover her head with it as she boards her glider.
Red S.: "Ruby, Ruby, Ruby... No good deed goes unpunished. You can thank me later." The Succubus spares a glance towards where Yang lies, nearly motionless, on the ground, without any signs of life. I realize what's about to happen just as she sets the timer on one of her grenades, and throws it towards Yang.
Ruby: "NO!" The Succubus then takes off as I leap towards the explosive and manage to barely deflect it before it detonates, which knocks me away. Flying away, the Succubus throws another projectile towards the remaining cops. The bomb goes off and while nobody dies, it absolutely razes the plaza, pulverizes and sets the lobby on fire through a series of orange and red explosions. At the end, the broken entrance ceiling collapses to the ground in flames. Yang and I slowly get back up on our feet, still recovering and coughing. "Yang?"
Yang: "Ruby..."
Ruby: "Oh, thank goodness!" As we proceed to a hug. "Are you okay?"
Yang: "Yeah, just... knocked on my ass... And you?"
Ruby: "Gah! I think I broke my ribs..." We just look around the wreckage... and I start realizing my mistake. "This is all my fault, Sis..."
Yang: "Hey, don't you start that-"
Ruby: "I should have just listened to Ozpin and sent them back immediately..."
Yang: "No! Okay? You did the right thing! They would've been killed otherwise." I just have to face facts now... I can't deny it anymore.
Ruby: "This isn't my responsibility, Sis..." She just looks at me a little... angry.
Yang: "What? You mean what Cinder said? 'My moral mission'? No."
Ruby: "No, Sis, you don't-"
Yang: "No! Ruby, just listen! These powers you have? Their a gift. You have an incredible power... But with all great powers also comes a great responsibility." Once again, I find it hard to argue with her logic... because I know she's absolutely right. "Now let's get out of here. I just... need to... catch... my..." She then collapses to the floor, and I catch and hold her. Ignoring the fact that SWAT teams are forming outside.
Ruby: "Whoa, hey! What happened?" She just repeats what she just said.
Yang: "I just need to... catch my breath..."
Ruby: "Okay. Yeah. We'll catch our breath, get out of here, and get you to a doctor. Okay?" But my fears rise when I look at my hand after touching her back... to find blood all over it! I start looking at her in tears... "Somebody help! I need an ambulance! Please!"
Yang: "Ruby, what happened?"
Ruby: "Nothing. Okay? You're okay. You have to be."
Yang: "I'll just... catch my breath..."
Ruby: "It's okay! We're okay! I'm right here. It's just you and me." But then... Yang just... stops breathing entirely. "Yang...? Yang...? Yang! Please, talk to me! Okay? This isn't funny!" Klein arrives in his car. He looks on to see Yang in my arms and he... just knows. The SWAT members make him step out of the car and pin him to the bonnet. They start closing in on us too, with their weapons ready to fire.
Klein: "Ruby! Run!" I just keep crying over Yang lifeless body as the SWAT captain yells.
SWAT: "Alright, Rose! Come out with your hands up, or we will open fire!"
Klein: "RUN!" Then the officers start shooting. Forcing me to leave as I grab the bag of cures and the empty injector along the way, even managing to snag Mercury's discarded cure without them noticing and I make my way over the rooftops. A little bit later, I stop at a rooftop with a perfect view of a build board screen, showing Lisa's live broadcast from the scene I just fled.
Lisa: "Tragedy. What else can I call it? What more need be said? The damage... The destruction... You saw it with your own eyes. When will people wake up, and realize that everywhere Scarlet Spider goes... chaos and calamity ensue. Everything Scarlet Spider touches comes to ruin. And we, the innocents, are left to pick up the pieces. Lisa Lavender, reporting. Good night. And God help us all." That's where the broadcast ends... leaving me to my thoughts as I process what just happened... And of course among those things I start thinking... Did I really do the right thing?