The treasure hunter's wife, Elsa,
Even with all her active efforts at gathering information, she admitted to knowing little about what went on inside either of the Marblemen's Prison or Mines. The both made up separate sections of the enemy's stronghold. Both prison and the old, abandoned Mines existed even before Marblemen came – however they revamped and amalgamated both locations into one fortress. Elsa had been making plans how to break in. she even paid off one of the few released prisoners enough for him to draw a blueprint of the whole place from memory. Her plan highlighted areas in the walls of both the Prison and Mines, which they could use bombs to break in. However, no one brave enough to execute her plans.
"Is he in the prison or Mines?" Asked Adonna.
Elsa didn't know. And that left Davy kissing his teeth. "It's one concern figuring how to avoid the enemy when we break in. We'll need a diversion to lure them away. But it's a whole other issue not knowing where to even find who we're looking for." He explained "I can't think of any way to distract the enemy long enough for us to search both places since they're sealed away from each other. Won't work."
"Then we figure something out." Came Adonna.
Little Bear was playing around with Elsa's two kittens.
Rwby left studying the blueprint still.
"We could improvise." Said Davy. "Instead of blindly breaking in, all we need is someone inside to locate the person we're looking for and get him close as possible to where we plan to break in from at the exact time we will break in. I could easily get myself captured."
"Absolutely not. That's a bad plan!" Adonna blurted out.
The kittens' fur tickled a sneeze out of Bear. His growth spooked them both away. Elsa gazed up with a wowed gasp.
Rwby asked about the wildling Thunderhoof they sighted earlier.
Elsa confirmed sightings of it in the forest since before Marblemen came to Ana. It escaped from the train stables some time back.
"Say we capture it…" Rwby began.
"And tame it!" Klein grew excited.
"Create a gear to ride it!"
"With two Astrids, Marblemen won't know what hit them!"
Davy couldn't emphasise enough how that idea wouldn't work. "You're weaving a pipe dream. Even if – even IF we're somehow able to capture it, no one's ever been able to ride a Thunderhoof. Ever! Their charge eats away any form of gear placed on it and kills the rider. Why do you think the speed train stopped every often? To replace destroyed gears over and over. Riding a Thunderhoof is outright impossible!"
"Most inventions were considered impossible 'til someone made them possible." Said Rwby.
"You said whatever I wanted to do." Adonna reminded him, glint of determination in her unblinking stare.
He sighed.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
To capture the Thunderhoof, they'd do so with a net of spider silk found in the treasure hunter's ship.
It took the whole rest of that day for the girls to sew and stuff scarecrows that resembled big Bear, while the boys tracked the wild Thunderhoof's whereabouts 'til 6th December.
Klein and Davy roved through the woods. Dry leaves rustled under their steps. Sure enough, there were Thunderhoof tracks, but what had kept this Astrid elusive to capture was just how many tracks it printed upon nature's canvass. There's barely an inch of the soil not scribbled with its erratic tracks, so much so that you wouldn't know which to follow or even the direction of most.
Frustration apparent in Klein's voice. "These tracks… at this point we're just wandering. It's like chasing your own tail."
"Tell me about it." Davy grunted.
Klein seized the opportunity to steer the conversation towards another thing.
"Captain Pebbleton, I've been meaning to ask you something."
"What is it?" An irritated glance accompanied this grunt.
Klein hesitated for a moment, as if choosing his words carefully. "Well… you're a skilled shooter. Your aim is really like none. Meanwhile, I'm the opposite. So I was wondering if you could teach me, you know, how to shoot a gun."
Davy's jaw clenched slightly, voice laced with an unusual edge. "Why, Klein? So you could shoot me in the back?"
"What? What are you talking about?" His steps halted.
Davy also stopped few paces ahead. "I seem to remember you agreed to help me discourage Adonna from coming along. But instead you pushed for all of us to go together. Though you're right, things fell in place being together with you three. Maybe we are meant to do this together, who knows? But you gave your word then went back on it. Deron once told me that a group becomes a crew only once they find the rarest treasure together. And that's Trust."
Before Klein could respond, thundering sound of hooves interrupted their conversation. There, in the dappled light of the forest, the Thunderhoof streaked across.
They raced down that direction of its dust. As luck would side with them, they discovered its den.
By nightfall,
When all preparations were complete, they set up their traps and lightings outside the small cave.
Then,
They sent big Bear in to spook the Thunderhoof.
Scarecrows all resembling big Bear were stationed around under lamps to manipulate the path it took in fleeing.
As planned, it ran into the hung silk net.
Their smiles erased when the Thunderhoof's antlers charged with electricity. The Spider silk held it but the trees it was tethered to couldn't. It smashed free and fled again dragging a large log behind itself.
7th December.
They couldn't find it however far they followed its tracks, only that log which it lost around a creek.
8th December.
With only two weeks left to the end of Sagittarius season, Davy was fed up of fruitless searches. "We'll do it my way." He asserted.
If he was going to get himself captured, Elsa directed them to two of her contacts in Ana. One, an engineer where they could get most items needed to execute their plan. The other would be same person who drew the blueprint for Elsa. Since he'd been held prisoner there before, he could explain how things were operated behind the Marblemen's walls. Lastly, she left them with a portrait of her husband torn from its frame.
Once again, they split up.
Adonna, Davy and little Bear always trailing behind her shadow headed for the second contact. They passed by scowls, bitter stares, hissed slurs and sidelong glances. One woman approached just to spit at Adonna's foot. She didn't let it shake her frame. Still kept her chin up, however voiceless 'til they reached the right door to knock on.
A goateed man answered.
"Elsa sent us." Said Adonna.
"They still need able workers operating the Speed train, working the stables, their precious warehouses and factories, and personal workers of course." The man explained inside his multi-functional room, which served as dining room, living room and a painter's workspace all at once. "After they had set up their factories and began mining the oils they needed, we were among the first ones imprisoned. Some of us earned our freedom in exchange for our… cooperation. Freed us after we helped them capture those with 'rebellious tendencies'. After that, the lot of them Marblemen left the island. Guess it's all a strategy to ensure no uprising now that their army is barely a fraction of what they came with. You can hate them but you must hand it to their smarts. Men can't do anything since their families are out here defenceless. And the women out here… well…"
"Would you happen to know where her husband is? The Mines or prison?" Davy asked.
"She's asked that countless times. I was probably released before his capture or we just never crossed paths. Been in and out of both. You see, younger captives are sent directly to the Mines most times. You work all day but at least get 3 square meals. Bad behaviour gets you expelled back to the prison and… let's just say it's not as rosy as striking pickaxe all day every day. In the prison we sometimes fought each other fists and teeth just to get selected next whenever someone got expelled from the Mines. Not a rosy experience at all."
This man's information left bone-chilling sensation in both Davy and Adonna 'til outside in an alley. Yet Davy wasn't about to back down despite her second-guessing the whole plan. "At least remove the moustache so you'd have a better chance for the Mines." She suggested.
"Absolutely not!" He cringed. "Your evil intent towards this work of art won't ever succeed." He stroked the moustache dearly.
Her chuckle prompted his. A final laugh before they'd have to say a temporary goodbye. He once again went over the plan with her over the stronghold's blueprint having two points marked out. "Ideally I get sent to the Mines, if he's not there I'll just bad-behaviour my way to prison. If it's the other way around, you can trust I'll charm my way across one way or another. No way to pass messages in or out so we stick to fixed place and time." He slid a finger from one point to another on the blueprint. "In two days – by exactly 1:00 noon, I'll make sure we're either here if I find him in the Mines… or here – if in the prison. So you guys split in 2 groups, set off the bombs around both points simultaneously. It should take you roughly a minute on Bear's back to get from either point to the other – if you get the wrong one. While the other group, Klein and Rwby, should escape the area immediately after setting their own bombs. Big Bear can carry tonnes so–"
"So if I find you, we ride to the other point to get them. If they find you, Bear and I circle back there still to get you three. Either way, we all escape together. Got it." She affirmed.
"Easy enough, huh?"
Their goodbye kiss cut short by the sight of a group of Marblemen strolling the street. Davy's cue, but he smacked a palm on his forehead in disappointment. "I was praying to find them in a carriage or some vehicle. These inconsiderate idiots will make me trek with them all the way."
It's the same group of Marblemen from the diner three days ago. Strolling, chattering and laughing, when Davy confronted them with such a lacklustre acting.
"You tyrants won't get away with your oppression. I'll stop you if it's the last thing I do!"
Sure enough, that got them to slap cuffs on him.
From up a rooftop,
Adonna watched through a spyglass as they took him away. She would soon be distracted by whispering winds carrying a haunting melody. Faint, melancholic, yet a beautiful tune that had her shifting her sight. It seemed to be coming from somewhere in the direction of that old citadel she sighted their first day in Ana.
Little Bear followed like her shadow.
The source of that music was a young boy playing the viola to calm a toddler in a cradle. Adonna watched this little boy as if she was listening to his music with eyes. The home so close to that old citadel, once the music ended, curiosity guided her feet towards the abandoned hall.
She met its main door chained shut. So Adonna walked around cornerstone to cornerstone looking for another way in. Instead she found a break in the wall wide enough to be an entrance. Animated chatters and a gathering of people inside so she remained concealed behind the wall.
The bartender from the diner, Gerchen, was there. She wouldn't recognise those 3 teenagers, Rowan, Arlo and Carla, due to her being in bed back when they investigated their ship disguised as Marblemen. But she did know Marblemen uniforms dumped on the floor amidst the gathering along with muskets and ammo.
"How could you tell on us, Carla?" Anger deepened Arlo's voice.
Carla couldn't muster response.
Another woman broke down in tears, while Gerchen came to Carla's defence. "You should thank her for telling us. What are you boys thinking? Couple disguises and some old guns, and you think that makes you equipped to take those men on?"
Finally, Carla found her voice. "I didn't want anyone to get hurt."
The weeping woman stepped forward and clung to her son. "Arlo, please," she begged, her voice trembling. "I can't bear to lose you too. Your father…" She couldn't finish the sentence, but the pain in her eyes spoke volumes that shook even Rowan's resolve.
"They took Tom. He's our friend. We can't just abandon him there." Rowan protested.
Gerchen, taking a deep breath, decided to address a critical question. "Where did you even get the guns? Don't tell me from that man…"
"From a group of adventurers that docked 3 days ago. They traded with us." Carla spilled.
"Carla, why you!" Arlo snarled, escaping his mother's hold.
"Not those same outsiders!" Unadulterated spite laced Gerchen's voice. "They're the one who turned in Tom!"
"They're not the enemy. They're not the ones who killed my father!"
"Everybody has lost someone, Arlo!" Gerchen grabbed him by both shoulders. "You're also someone that somebody could lose, do you understand?" She calmed her voice somewhat. "Listen. Might not feel like it but you don't even know how lucky you are. My son is in those Mines too, just like your friend. It tears me apart, but… I can't do anything about it because of what they can do to him if we antagonise them out here. Those muskets won't stand a chance against their rifles. They have not only better weapons but also the numbers. Going through with this, they won't hesitate to hurt a lot of people, including the ones you're trying to protect. Do you understand?"
"If you're scared, go hide away. We're not going to make excuses and give up. Right, Rowan?"
With neither of the boys willing to listen to reason, Gerchen prompted the other women into confiscating the guns.
As they began gathering the muskets and ammunition from the floor, an air of resignation settled over the hall.
But Arlo wouldn't let go. He wrestled with Gerchen over his gun she took.
She wrestled him for it also.
"Let go!" he'd shout, face contorted with anger. "You're all weak! Weak for just standing down and taking it! Too weak to even fight for your son!"
He won their tug-of-war, but at a cost as she lashed him a slap across the face.
Blinded by rage, he raised the butt of the musket to strike back before his mother intervened. She pushed him to fall whilst claiming the gun in the process.
Defeated, overwhelmed by emotion, Arlo rose up and ran from the scene. Rowan followed.
Adonna knew her cue to leave before they came passing.
Left behind, Gerchen discouraged Arlo's mother from going after them. "Let him be angry. Without the guns, they won't try anything."
Breezes once again brought that haunting melody to Adonna's ears. She sat on the floor, petting little Bear's head, heart heavy and mind racing, she talked to Bear like he could understand, asking what she should do. "Okay, what will he say?"
"This is exactly why I didn't want you coming along!" She imitated not only Davy's voice down to the precise inflection of his annoyance, but also his posture and mannerism.
"Let's see… Klein would say 'If it's a chance to fix a wrong, we take it together'." She mimicked his voice no less accurately. "What will Rwby say? 'Leave it to me!'."
She then turned to little Bear once again. "What would we say?" She asked.
Little Bear snapped a bark.
Then,
She rode through the city on big Bear's back as twilight began darkening the air. Eyes stuck out from windows to the sight of her. People rushed out doors for another view of the large, brown dog galloping the streets.
She breezed past a group of Marblemen, leaving them as disoriented as confused. Soon enough, she caught reached Klein and Rwby.
Without long exchange, Klein flung up his satchel to her.
From there, she rode to yet another direction. Towards the Marblemen stronghold in a race against time.
At a distance, she spotted the small group that arrested Davy yet to reach their destination on foot.
The loudening echoes of big Bear's paws clapping the road caught their ears while they chattered. As the first turned around big Bear rammed two of them away like skittles with his snout.
"ASTRID!"
The others opened fire.
Davy dropped face-down, covering his ears.
Blasting then cocking their guns. Over and over again. 'Til one after another their rifles emptied and the deafening eruptions of gunfire gradually died down to silence.
Big Bear shook the bullets off his fur, rattling onto the pavement like spilled grains. As the last shell dropped, Adonna called. "Bear."
He murmured with bared fangs, lips vibrating with aggressive intensity. One swipe of a paw cleared all the men away.
Except Gaff, who hastily reloaded but one bullet into the chamber only to realise the foolishness of that action. He threw the rifle and ran.
"What are you doing?!" Davy scolded as she unlocked his cuffs.
"Will explain. Let's go!" She climbed back on big Bear.
Davy too… right after picking a rifle.