Somewhere Over The Rainbow: Chapter 3

Chapter 3

Just before the break of dawn, at first light, Charon and Summer broke camp, preparing for the journey to the nearest village. While Charon had some reservations about leaving his boat and some of his gear, it wasn't just feasible to lug it around. They were simply too bulky and there were better things he could carry like his provisions and his gun.

Abandoning what he couldn't carry in the miniature fort, he sets off looking to cover as much ground before the heat becomes too unbearable. As they made their way down an old highway that was slowly getting overgrown by nature, he called out, "Hey Miss Summer."

"Yeah?" She replied as she glanced back at him. "Also, didn't I tell you to just call me Summer?" She pouted, "Miss Summer sounds too stuffy and makes me feel old."
"Fair enough," He chuckled softly before he, "But I just wanted to ask, are you sure we're on the right track?" Watching the woman cut down some overgrown bramble, he wasn't sure anymore. Were they really going down the right road?

"Are you sure the town's this way?" He asked apprehensively as he peered into the dark understory that surrounded them. With how tall these trees were and how thick their trunks were, most of these trees were probably centuries old if not millennia old and they were only getting thicker as they continued down this abandoned highway.
"Oh we're definitely on the right track alright. I'm pretty positive!" The woman answered before she paused as both of them found their way blocked by a recently fallen tree. Giving it a quick look, she shrugged, "Just give me a moment here."

Grabbing one of the trees, she dragged it off to the side like it weighed nothing at all. She really was something else, he noted as she dusted off her hands, "Huh, must have been a while since someone last got here," She noted, "But leaves are still fresh so maybe a week."

"Anyways!" She said as she walked towards a pile of rubble. "See these ruins?" She asked, patting the overgrown metal frame that must have served as a support post. With the hollowed out frame of what looked like gas pumps surrounding it, it looked like this was the remains of the stop. "They're actually great signs we're near civilization."

"People usually don't build too far away from established towns," She noted nonchalantly, walking and leaving it behind for nature to reclaim it, "Anywhere else and it'd be too far from help." Lingering for just a moment, he couldn't help but take in the somber sight.

Taking a closer look, he'd find more clues to what happened here all those years ago. The charred bits of furniture, the bullet holes and claw marks on stone and half rusted steel alike. Feeling something soft against his foot, he stared down and found himself staring at what looked like a teddy bear, its once brown color having long bleached.

"No wonder they call this place Remnant," He whispered as he knelt down and turned it over, finding it surprisingly whole. Smiling, he chuckled, "But their story hasn't quite ended yet."

"Hey Charon, hurry up!" Summer shouted, snapping him out of his musing.

"Just a second!" He shouted, dusting the bear off, before tucking it in his pack. Catching up to Summer, he apologized, "Sorry about that. Just something and had to pick it up."
"Oh?" She asked, eyes raised as she looked back at him, "Found anything good?"

"Yeah, this guy!" He smiled as she took out the half bleached bear. The fact that it survived this long out in the elements spoke of its quality. It would be a shame if he just left it behind because all it needed was a good cleaning. "Hey, maybe I could find him a new partner!"

For a moment, Summer just stared at him, before she burst out laughing. Pouting, he fired back, "What? He's cute isn't he?" All teddy bears deserved a partner. That's just how things worked.

"No, it's nothing," Summer replied, wiping a stray tear from her eyes, "It's just so precious of you." Smiling up at him, "My youngest would definitely like you alot."

"For the last time, I'm not hitting on your daughter," He chuckled, rolling his eyes at the woman's insistence. "Besides, you're already here, aren't you?" He grinned, waggling his brow at her.

"Oh stop it you," Summer chuckled, cheeks rosy as she batted at his arms lightly, "I'm already married to a wonderful girl!" Letting out a sigh, she then asked, "So, any plans Charon? We're getting quite close." Indeed they were as they soon passed a new sign.

Janus 1km

"What do you mean," Charon asked, giving the sign a look before turning back to Summer, "Like aside from our detour and going to this Ozpin guy?"

"Mhmm!" Summer nodded eagerly as she skipped ahead, "I get you want to explore, but anything else on the itinerary?" Now that she mentioned it, he hadn't really thought much on what to do other than that. In his defence, he was preoccupied with adjusting to his new surroundings.

"Remnants of a whole new world for you!" She told him as she started listing out the things he could do, "You have cultures to immerse yourself, cuisines to dine in, there's just so many things you could do!"

Gazing out to the morning sun as it crested over a hill, marking his first true day in this new world had just begun, he hummed, "Things to do while I'm here huh?" Giving it some good thought, he answered, "Sure I can't convince you to teach me to become a hunter?"

"Well, I could teach you a few things like the basics," She mused, rubbing her chin, before her eyes grew wide. Snapping her fingers, she added, "Oh yeah, I think I could awaken your aura!" Tilting her head at him, she hummed, "You don't look soulless to me so it should work..."

Blinking, he asked, "Aura?"

"Oh right, I almost forgot you're not from around here," Summer hissed as she slapped herself on the forehead. "Think of it as the light of your soul made manifest," She explained, "Not only does it protect you, but it also strengthens you and makes you faster!"

"Wait, is that why you're so fast and strong?" He replied, "That actually sounds awesome." The light of their souls huh? It certainly explained a lot with how willing she was to throw hands with those creatures from hell.

"It really is," Summer replied as a peaceful smile settled on her lips, "Aura is just something else." As she pulled out her weapon and traced her finger across its haft, he saw it; that faint glow. It wasn't just on her weapon, but all around her. He had thought it was just her ghostly presence, but it was far more than that.

Seeing her bathed in the light of the sun, she looked almost ethereal; Like she was glowing. "Beautiful," He whispered under his breath; In awe at the sight.

"Feeling it's warm glow for the first time is like discovering yourself," She whispered as she clutched her weapon close, "That this is your soul, that you can shine even when all things look grim, pun intended." As she let out a wistful sigh, she paused, cheeks rosy as she turned away.

Scratching the back of her head, she let out a nervous laugh, "Sorry about that. Just feeling a bit tad nostalgic about it. Last I talked about this was when I was in school!" Shaking her head, she mumbled, "That's quite some time now huh…"

"Nah, it's fine," He replied as he felt a smile of his own. The more he learned about this world, the more he felt at ease in it. It was still scary, but there was something about it that made it feel like it's still a place worth living in. "So, does everyone in this world have it?" He asked, "Aura I mean."

"Well, not all of us have it. Only a few have it," She answered, earning a raised brow at him. Why doesn't everyone have those? It sounded too useful not too. His thoughts must have been quite transparent given the amused looked she sported. "Oh don't get me wrong, Aura is a game changer for us here," She added, "But it does come with drawbacks."

As she stared off into the distance, her smile fell. "While our souls grow a bit brighter," She whispered, "It also attracts the Grimm to us in particular. Like moths to a fire, they are drawn to us, seeking to snuff the light that we possess"

"You become live bait," He replied. "And maybe why she died," He thought to himself as he saw the pain and terror in her eyes.

Those emotions, however, would be but a brief flash as she put on a brave smile. "If it means that we can draw the attention of the grimm from those we want to protect, I don't see much of a problem," She replied as she clutched her weapon tightly, "Besides, it just makes it easier to cull the grimm, aside from a few crafty ones that is."

"That's certainly one way to frame it," He replied as a wry smile stretched across his lips. It was all too easy to forget how the grimm were just out there waiting when things around here looked so pretty and peaceful.

Slowing down, she walked side by side with him. "Being a hunter isn't for everyone, so if you're having second thoughts about your aura, I won't press you about it," She told him as she gave him a comforting pat, "Besides, you don't need to be a hunter to be helpful."

Pulling away, he spun around and spread his arms. "I mean look at me, I'm dead!" She pointed out, "But you somehow gave me life and that's good enough."

Seeing that brilliant smile on her face gave him a bit of peace. Maybe, maybe he could just focus on what matters; On what he could do now and not plan too far ahead, but was that really something he'd do? "What if I want to help a few more people in more than just one way?" He asked.

Summer stared at him for a moment, before her smile lightened. "Then I'd be happy to be the one to awaken your aura," She answered before she turned ahead, shielding her eyes as the sun crested the hill, "But that would have to wait cause the village just over that hill!"

Grinning, she ran ahead. "Come on! What are you waiting for?" She shouted, beckoning him to run after her, "I'm starving over here!"

"When aren't you starving?!" He shouted back as he ran after the woman. It was a steep climb, but he would eventually catch up. Out of breath, he bent over, hands on his knees as took a breather. "Just give me a minute," He breathed out in between coughs.

Hearing silence, he stared up to see a look of concern in her face. "Hey, is something wrong?" He asked, before his ears picked up screaming in the distance. Following her gaze, he felt his blood run cold at the sight before him.

From their vantage point, he watched as the living ran from the now living dead. The living's screams of terror were interlaced between the screams of rage and anguish of those that had found themselves alive once more. Some ran, others fought, while more cried both in sorrow and in pain. It was utter chaos.

Without a moment to waste, he bolted down the hill, nearly tripping at how fast he was going. He could slow down, but there was simply no time. "Charon, wait!" Summer shouted as she caught up and trailing just behind him, "Damn it, you're going to get yourself hurt!"

"Less talking, more helping!" He shouted as both of them reached the edge of town and not a moment sooner as they chanced upon a father defending his family as a woman in archaic clothes attacked them.

"Why are you in my house! Where's my family! Where's my daughter!" The woman screamed hysterically and she pounced on the man, getting atop him as the mother and son screamed.

Struggling to fend her off, the man shouted, "I don't know!" He answered, "But wherever they are, don't involve my family in this!" Their plea, however, would fall into deaf ears as they let out an inarticulate scream of rage. He needed to get them off, now. With a running start, he sprang at the startled woman.

"I'm really sorry about this" He shouted as he cocked back his fist, "But you need to calm the fuck down!" Socking them across the jaw, the woman collapsed boneless over the man. He felt terrible watching the unconscious woman get thrown off by the panicking man, but it was either her or the family and he knew who he was choosing.

Cradling his fist, he rushed over to the man's side. As he approached the man, he noticed that he wasn't quite there; His form was equally as translucent as the rest of the ghost. Still, he helped the two so that's good. "Come on, back on your feet!" He urged them as he pulled them back up to their feet.

"Thank you," The man wheezed as his family rushed over to him, clinging to him as if he was going to disappear at any moment. "I'm not sure what's happening, but please, just run! People are coming back from the dead-!"

"I know," He cut them off before flinching as a ghost sailed overhead and slammed against the house. Behind them, Summer fends off an angry mob of ghosts. "Now go!" He urged them, "Get some shelter! Find somewhere to hide while we deal with this. You must have some right?"

"Of course, the Grimm Shelter!" The man nodded frantically as he grabbed his children, "Thank you. Thank you so much!" He took a moment to watch the family before he turned to Summer.

Pulling out his gun and cock it in one smooth motion, he aimed before firing off a shot. Nailing a ghost on the back, they staggered before Summer kicked them across the jaw, knocking them out cold. He silently thanked God that ghosts can't die, and are unable to bleed out as the man before him breathed despite the sizable glowing white hole he sported.

As Summer knocked the last of the mob, she turned to him, eyes blazing in anger. "God damn it kid, are you out of your mind!?" She shouted as she marched up to him. As she raised her hand, he grabbed it, earning a surprised yelp from her as he pulled her along deeper into town.

"I know!" He shouted back. It was the stupidest thing he could have done. "But damn it if I was just going to stand there and watch!" As they came upon a group of ghosts shouting at a pair of dog girls of all things, he let go before firing his gun in the air. This sent the crowd scattering, letting the girls escape. Turning back to her, he asked, "So are you going to help me or not?"

"Oum damn it, why do you have to be cute!" Summer hissed as she pulled out her rifle and aimed near his head. As he ducked out of instinct, she shot behind, making one of the ghosts from earlier drop their knife as they fell to the ground clutching their ruined knee. "But you better have some plan, kid, cause things are getting spicy!"

"That or some freaky new power! Those would help out a lot, just sayin!" She added as she reached out to him, hauling himself up before giving the ghost a good kick, knocking them out.

"I got nothing," He admitted, legs still shaky from the close call, "But I do have a plan."

"Spill" Summer replied.

"We just have to knock some sense back to every last one of them." He answered. While ghosts can't die, that doesn't mean they can't be harmed.

"I like your style, kid," Summer grinned before she turned towards the bell tower that dominated the town and led the charge. Even from here, he could hear the shouting from the town center along with the tell tale glow of a fire breaking out. Things were quickly getting out of hand.

As they came upon the town center, they skidded to a stop, finding themselves faced with an angry mob. "They don't even remember us or visit our graves," Shouted one of the ghosts, a withered old man leaning on a sword, drowning out the voice of reason in some, "I say we drive these good for nothing's out of town and then maybe they'll appreciate us!"

Blood boiling, he stepped forward, before Summer stopped him. Flashing him a smile, she stepped forward before firing her gun up in the sky. "Ok listen up," She shouted, catching their attention, "I know most of you are angry, but that doesn't mean you get to take it out on your own descendants!"

With her rifle shifted to an axe, she aimed at the lead ghost, "Call this riot off, now!"

The withered old man scowled as he called her out, "Or what, Huntress?" As the sound of guns cocking filled the air, "What are you going to do about it?"

Any person would have backed away, and even he took an involuntary step back, but not Summer. Glancing back at him, she gave him a wink before she turned to the crowd as he let out a savage grin, "I'm going to knock every last one out of you and tie you all up."

"Wha-?" Was all they could speak as Summer moved, knocking out the first of many. "Get her!" The lead ghost shouted as Summer smiled. While the risen dead might have unnumbered her a hundred to one, they were nothing like Summer Rose; A hardened Huntress who now culled those that threatened the peace.

White petals filled the air as Summer let loose, shooting and chopping with savage intent. It was a grizzly sight with limbs flying everywhere and bodies dropping, knocking them out one after another. As the last of the crowd dropped, and the peaceful one's looked around in fear in awe, Summer sighed in relief, "Whew! Still got it!"

"What?" He gawked at the sight. It was over in a minute. Hunters were truly something else.

Skipping over to him, she patted him on the shoulder. "Well, what are you just standing there and gawking at?" She asked, "We still have a whole town to save, don't we?"

-x-x-x-

While the large crowd at the center of town had been taken care of, that doesn't mean their problems were dealt with. Ghosts were still running rampant across the large town and there were only so many of them to deal with the problem.

"Into the shelter, now!" He shouted, urging the civilians into shelter. While most of the civilian population had fled into the shelters earlier, there were some that were still left outside. It took a bit of convincing, but eventually they opened up.

Now, he along with the ghost that hadn't turned on the living herded them in. Currently, Summer was out in town, picking off stragglers and giving them time to get everyone to shelter. As the last of the civilians were rounded in the shelter, he turned to the lead ghost; the father of the family he and Summer saved earlier.

"Thanks for the help," He thanked him, "We really couldn't have done this without you." If not for their calming presence, there might have been a stampede; Something they had to avoid at all cost given what could come down on their heads.

Speaking off, he turned to the forest. It was a surprise that the Grimm hadn't attacked with how Summer described them. Maybe ghosts didn't count? Something to think about earlier. Still, they couldn't be too complacent.

"It's the least I could do," The man replied, snapping him out of his musing. As the ghost guarding them rushed in, he asked, "Are you sure you don't want to get in? There's still plenty of space inside."

It was a tempting offer, but he couldn't. Shaking his head, he replied, "Sorry, no can do. Not until the town's safe." Grinning, she added, "We still have a few unruly one's to deal with."
Nodding, the man patted him on the shoulder, before getting inside and sealing the shelter behind him. It was now just him, Summer, the few odd villagers holed up in their house and the rest of the ghost still running amok.

Hearing footsteps behind, he turned, guns raised, before letting out a sigh of relief at the sight of Summer. She was a bit worse for wear, sporting a spear of all things on her shoulder. As he rushed to her aid, she raised her hands, "Just a flesh wound."

With casual ease, she pulled the weapon out before slumping against the thick walls of the shelter. "How's it looking out there?" He asked, keeping guard as she took a breather.

"Not good, but not bad either," She replied as she patted her belt, checking for any more bullets on her person, "I think I've dealt with most of the crazies and we just have to deal with the stragglers."

"Do you think we can do this?" He asked in concern.

"My dust stock hasn't regenerated yet, but I think we can do this," Summer replied before she perked up and reached for a pocket. Watching her pull out ammo out of thin air was freaky, but it was a welcomed boon. "Damn it, why can't they regenerate faster!"

Finding out that Summer's weapon regenerated ammo was a much needed boon. Unfortunately, it seems to be at a set speed. She couldn't simply spray and pray as both of them had hoped. "Good thing you have me to cover your back," Charon replied with a cheeky grin.

Summer snorted in amusement as she pushed herself up. "Still got enough of those weird bullets of yours?" She asked, glancing at his pack.

Feeling the side pockets, he found it still filled with enough shells to cause trouble. "More than enough," He answered as she nodded before she took off.

Trailing right behind her, they headed for the market. As they ran down the empty streets, Summer brought him up to speed. "I heard some gunfire earlier," Summer told him, "Keep your eyes peeled and-! Take Cover!"

Charon didn't have much time to react as Summer pushed him to the ground before an all encompassing explosion rocked him. With his ears ringing and his vision swimming, he stared dumbly at the blob in front of him before they came into focus. "Charon!" Their soft voices screamed at him.

"What!?" He shouted back as his vision came into focus. Seeing the woman sporting a gaping white hole where the side of her jaw was snapped him out of his stupor. "Summer!" Who the hell attacked them.

"It's nothing kid," She breathed out heavily, as pale as a corpse as she hauled him up. "Now up on you! We have company." Pushing back and standing before him protectively, Summer barred her teeth, her axe gripped tightly in hand as the smoke slowly parted before a lone figure.

"Well well well, look what we have here," A feminine voice spoke as their boots clacked against the ground while the eerie purple glow of their eyes peered out of the smoke, "A pair of hunters looking for little old me." Stepping out of the dust cloud, a blue haired woman, "And here I thought Atlas had forgotten about me."

Mouth dry, he swallowed. He wasn't quite sure why, but something about her had him uneasy. Maybe it was the way she held herself despite how unassuming she was, sporting a stick thin and emaciated figure, or how hard and cold those eyes were, but something screamed inside his head to be careful.

It also didn't help that that woman was heavily armed to an almost absurd degree. Raising her hands, Summer tried to deescalate the situation. "Look, this is all just a big misunderstanding," She told the woman, "You're in Vale, not Atlas so if you can just put the gun down we can talk this out."

"And then what, you're going to shoot me?" She snapped, "Like last time…" Pausing, the woman's eyes became unfocused, her gaze distant as she took a step back. "No, that can't be right," The woman mumbled as she stared at her shaking hands, "I-I can't be dead."

"Lady?" Summer called out, quickly picking up that something was terribly wrong. "Look, no one's going to hurt you," She assured her, her axe slowly slipping to its holster, as she approached her showing her hands were free.

Hugging herself, the woman took a step back, clutching her face as she looked around in distress. "W-where am I?" She yelled out, eyes looking frantically before she grabbed her head. With tears pooling in her eyes, she cried, "Why can't I remember anything else?"

"Calm down," Summer replied soothingly, hands reaching out to her as she finally got close to the broken woman, "Everything's going to be alright."

As Summer touched her, something shifted. Feeling the hair at the back of his neck stand up, he raised his gun as Summer jumped back. "Don't touch me!" The woman screamed as she pulled out her gatling gun and squeezed down on the trigger, laying waste to the street.

Abandoning his shot, he took cover, weathering the storm before explosions started ringing out. Jumping out of cover, he aimed once more, but he couldn't lock on the woman. She was simply too fast, darting across the narrow street as Summer took chase.

As her eyes locked on him, she took aim and fired once more. If not for Summer slamming up against her, her aim would have been dead center. "Run!" Summer screamed as she got atop the screaming woman, "I'll hold her off!"

He took a step forward before a kick to the chin nearly knocked her off. "Just go!" Summer screamed as she punched the girl.

Seeing he was just going to get in the way, he bolted, cursing all the way through. "Damn it!" He hated having run, but he was well out of his depth. He needed help. Heading for the shelter to gather some men, he skidded to a stop hearing screaming inside a building.

Shooting the door knob, he kicked open the door and found himself staring at a ghost on top of a woman. With the rope around that man's neck and the woman's state of undress, he took aim, before shooting the man on the head.

His second shot went wild as he was knocked aside, his head hitting the wall as the woman screamed. "You bastard!" Another man, probably the hanged man's friend, screamed as he kicked his gun away and landed blows at him. Lashing out, Charon kicked the man off as he scrambled for his weapon.

A kick to the side would knock the breath out of him before he was lifted up and sailed across the room. Landing hard on a vacuum, he groaned as the man approached him, "You're going to regret shooting my friend."

Eyes wide, he grabbed the nearest thing he could; the host of the vacuum as he scrambled up to his feet. "Back!" He shouted, jabbing at the man, "Back I say! I know how to use this! Don't turn this on, ghost! Or you'll be sorry!"
His bluff, however, would prove ineffective as the man chuckled. "And you'll do what?" The man grinned, "Suck us off?"

Sweat dripping down his brow, he turned it out. To his surprise however, the man let out a scream as his hand was sucked in. Quickly taking advantage, he cranked up the power, sucking the man completely. "That…" He was surprised, but he'll take it. Vacuuming up the other ghost, he asked, "I'll borrow this for a bit if you don't mind."

"S-Sure?" The woman nodded numbly.

Dropping his backpack, he strapped the vacuum to his back and ran off to the streets. "Don't worry, Summer. I'm coming!"

A/N

Took several rewrites so it's delayed by a day or two. Sorry about that. Moving on to winners of this month. I wonder which of the fics won