Nanosuit and Soul Magic: A Crysis/RWBY crossover

chapter 30

Nothing much happened on the trip back. Everyone was thinking about stuff. Me, I was thinking about the problem of how to replicate a billion-to-one malfunction of a chunk of alien machinery that I don’t even have access to anymore.

We rode the same airship back that we’d taken out, but this time there were a few extra passengers. They gave Ruby and Taiyang just-under-pitying looks, gave me curious looks, and generally sat where they could gawk their fill. 

Right, the broadcast. They must recognize Little Red Riding Hood here.

Excited muttering filled the air, people yakking about the upcoming festival. I didn’t bother following most of the conversation, and after an hour or so of background noise and relaxed silence we coasted into home port. The sun had gone down in between Patch and here, but the night was lit up with the lights from the city. Significantly more reassuring to me, though, were the running lights of all the military air vehicles hovering around Vale. Ordnance is my security blankie. 

Taiyang had to ride the airship back into the city, so he and Ruby said their goodbyes. Well, not really. Taiyang started to say his goodbyes, before he turned and noticed that Ruby had fallen asleep on his shoulder. 

He looks down with this little fond smile, and stays there until the pilot gives the final warning for anyone who’s planning to get off. I clear my throat. “Uh, dude?”

He blinked. “Right.” He gently shifted around until Ruby was lying across his arms, before standing up with his daughter in his arms. “I don’t want to wake her up. Do you mind?”

Ruby twitches, mumbles something incoherent, and nestles herself into her cloak. I take hold of her, fighting down the powerful urge to let out an extremely emasculating ‘D’aaawww.’

I even remember to hold her in front of me, instead of slinging her over my shoulders in a fireman’s carry. Who says I’m too militaristic?

“You’ll look after her and Yang, right?” Taiyang’s voice is soft, worried. I look at him and chuckle. “All they need is a heads up, and they’ll be the one pulling my ass out of the fire half the time. I’ve got their back when they need it, though, but I don’t think you need to be too worried. Ruby kicks enough ass to keep half the proctologists in Vale busy, and Yang hits like cruise missile.”

Taiyang smiles, relieved. “I’m a dad. It’s my job to be worried about my little girls.”

The doors of the airship start to close. One annoyed glance and half a second of attention to the onboard computer, and they open right back up, probably confusing the hell out of the pilot.

This doesn’t go unnoticed by Taiyang, though. “You should get going. I’ll see all of you tomorrow. If the girls are the first match and I can’t catch them before it starts, wish them luck for me, okay?”

“Gotcha. See ya, man.”

As I walk out the exit door, I can see into the cockpit, where the pilot is scratching his head and looking at a system diagnostic screen. As soon as I walk out, I let the door slide shut. I catch the beginning of an announcement over the intercom before I make it all the way out. “Due to an unknown computer error, the flight will be delayed…”

Whoops.

Ruby’s really light. I’m pretty sure that the folded up sniper-scythe is doubling her weight, at least, which still makes her lighter than most adults. The cloak is pretty well wrapped around her now, making her a little bundle of sleepy ass-whooping.

I head back to the dorms, careful not to jostle her too much.

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