King Kong: A RWBY Story

Chapter IV

The ocean glowed underneath the night sky.

Yang was impressed with the sight. She had never been to a dock at night, but it was quite beautiful to look at.

But Yang had to turn her attention elsewhere. Dr. Oobleck was leading them to the ship they would be setting sail upon. Yang took a good look at each ship as Oobleck moved with them. She had never been impressed with ships, but when she laid eyes on one in particular, called the Venture, she was in awe.

But Oobleck kept walking, and led them to an old, rusty tramp steamer called the Wanderer. It was much smaller than the other ship, and Yang could see most of the crew. There were so many sailors, she didn't see how they'd have room to sleep.

Weiss shared her discomfort. "This isn't the ship, is it?"

"Don't let appearances deceive you," Oobleck reassured. "It's much more spacious on board."

Team RWBY all exchanged glances with one another, for the first time since they had laid eyes on the Wanderer. Already, the four of them regretted their decision. Blake was wincing. She could smell the ship from here, and it wasn't the pleasant smell of sushi that she, the cat faunus, loved so much.

"No turning back now," Yang said, and she kept following Oobleck.

The other three shared one more worried glance, and followed Yang. They made their way for the gangway.

Oobleck stopped in front of a young sailor, and Team RWBY stood at a distance. They couldn't hear what they were talking about, but they saw Oobleck point to them for a second. The sailor nodded, and Oobleck turned back to the girls.

"I need to speak with Captain Englehorn," he said. "Jimmy here will take you three to your cabin."

The girls nodded. Oobleck walked further along the deck to find the captain in the mob of sailors preparing to cast off. Meanwhile, Jimmy stepped up to the girls.

"Jimmy," he said simply.

"I'm Ruby."

"Blake."

"Weiss Schnee."

"I'm Yang."

Jimmy took a quick look at Yang. Then he gestured to the ship.

"Follow me," he said.

He made his way up the gangway, onto the ship. Team RWBY looked at each other.

"Are you guys sure you wanna do this?" she said. "Because now there's really no turning back."

Yang didn't take her eyes off the ship. "Positive."

Without another word, she climbed up the gangway, onto the deck.

Ruby looked at Weiss and Blake. All three knew they would not go anywhere without Yang. They knew the feeling of a teammate running away, and they wanted to be there for Yang, whatever the circumstances.

They made their way up the gangway . . .

Oobleck finally spotted Captain Englehorn.

He was supervising a few sailors, who were loading a crate onto the ship. He approached Englehorn, and stopped right beside him.

"How much longer until we cast off?" he asked.

If he were any other person, Englehorn would have jumped. But this was no ordinary person. This was the skipper of the Wanderer. He was one of the toughest captains in the sea. It was said that nothing could frighten Captain Englehorn. It was the reason Oobleck had chosen him for this job.

The skipper turned around to look at Oobleck.

"The Marshal will be aboard in the morning," he said. "We need to be gone as soon as possible."

Oobleck nodded. "We cast off as soon as everything is loaded. How much longer until we're ready?"

"If we are to set sail as soon as everything is loaded, I'd say an hour or so."

"Then that's when we leave. Get all the equipment into the ship immediately."

Before Englehorn could respond, a sailor stumbled, and the crate in his hands were nearly dropped. Englehorn dashed forward, helped the man to his feet, and checked the box carefully.

"Be careful!" he said.

He opened the box, and pulled something out. Oobleck quickly recognized it as a gas bomb. He had specifically ordered to have these prepared, an extra precaution.

"Just one of these gas bombs could knock out a Goliath!" Englehorn said, putting the bomb back into the case and shutting it.

Oobleck felt slightly tense at the situation he'd just witnessed. He knew he could trust Englehorn with this job, but he knew nothing of the sailors. The captain had reassured him they were the best of the best, but if that were true he was at least glad he didn't get anybody worse.

He supposed it didn't matter either way. He'd brought Team RWBY with him for a reason.

He just hoped they'd live up to his expectations . . .

Jimmy opened the cabin door.

Team RWBY stepped into the cabin. It was small, and it had two bunk beds on either side. There was just enough room for the four of them, but not for them to have any fun activities. Not that Weiss cared. But Yang certainly did. She may have been searching for answers, but who said she couldn't have fun while she was at it?

"I know," Jimmy said, "the smell is foul, isn't it?"

The smell was certainly awful. Blake had lifted her scarf over her nose. Out of all of them, she was regretting this the most.

"You'll get used to it," Jimmy said. "Eventually."

Ruby opened her mouth to speak, but Jimmy had already shut the door, leaving Team RWBY alone in their small, smelly room. They could feel the Wanderer beginning to depart from the docks.

"Well," Weiss said, cringing with disgust, "this is . . . repulsive."

"I hate this already," Blake said in a monotone voice.

"It's just a few days, guys," Yang said, with a smirk. "Just . . . Yang in there."

The other three stared at her. To Yang's surprise, Weiss chuckled for a brief second. This was such an uncomfortable situation, and even if her puns were awful, they did lighten up the mood just a little bit.

Ruby turned away from Yang, and looked out the porthole. She could see Vale slowly drifting away. This was it. They had left, and were on their way for whatever mysteries lay ahead.

There was really no going back now . . .