Battle Royale w. Cheese! Turn 2.1 - RWBY (Boobytrap Beach) (Patreon)

> HEAD TO THE VILLAGE

“I know!” said Ruby Rose, putting her hands on her hips and cocking them confidently. “We should go and investigate that village! We might find something there that will help us to win!” She beamed, though her eyes couldn’t have looked less happy.

Weiss Schnee smiled too. “WOW! Great idea, Ruby!”

“Yeah!” said Blake and Yang, in unison.

“Then it’s decided!” said Ruby, twirling to face the village. “Away. We. Goooo!” Raising a leg, she took a dramatic step forward and–

The light on her Collar blinked off.

–and froze midstep, foot poised above one of the red Xs. Heart pounding, she drew back.

“Ruby!” cried Yang. “Are you okay?”

“It–it’s okay,” said Ruby. “It–it turned off before I could step on anything.” Swallowing, she looked ahead. The village of stilted huts lay in the distance, separated from them by a sea of threatening Xs.

“What if we try to go the other way?” said Blake, moving back. After a few steps, her Collar beeped again–she jerked forward, scarcely avoiding one of the red Xs herself.

“I–I don’t think we have much of a choice,” said Ruby.

Swallowing, she turned her gaze back to Village. “Let’s… let’s take this slowly.”

Raising a foot, she took the first of many steps.

*

Ten torturous minutes later, Team RWBY collapsed into a heap on the far edge of the field of Xs. Sweat dripped from Ruby’s brow as she lay there on the sand. It had very little to do with the heat.

Catching her breath, she looked up and saw a ring of wooden huts, all straw-roofed and built on stilts, with rickety ladders running to their doors. She could hear no sign of the drumming she thought she’d heard before. Nothing moved in the village save themselves and the wind (and the omnipresent cat’s eyes).

Forcing themselves to their feet, the four huntresses looked around. “Why did they want us to come here?” said Blake as they crept into the ring of huts.

A giant, black cauldron stood bubbling in the center of the village. Ruby couldn’t help but notice the fire still burning beneath it.

“Hey,” said Yang, pointing to a gap in the ring of houses. “Are those sand sculptures?” Sure enough, there were a number of sand sculptures, all shaped like naked, curvy women. Beyond them loomed a large modern building, utterly opposed to the little wooden village. ‘HOTEL’ said the sign on its roof.

As they looked around, something creaked to Ruby’s right. Snapping her head sideways, she found herself staring at a crude wooden mask of a cat. Curious, she took a step closer–

–and felt her ankle catch on something sharp. Snap! …Thwip!

She had just enough time to see the dart in her arm. A second later, everything went black.

Thwip! Thwipthwip!

*

Ruby woke to the crackle of flame and the beating of a drum. Scratchy ropes bound her arms and her ankles both. Groaning, she opened her eyes and looked around.

They’d tied her (poorly) to the legs of one of the huts on stilts, facing the cauldron bubbling in the center of the village. Catgirls in grass skirts and coconut bras surrounded it, some stirring the pot, some playing instruments, some doing what might charitably be called dancing. The rest of her team were tied beside her, groaning as they recovered.

As Ruby struggled to find her voice, one of the catgirls bounded up to her. “Hello, nya! Welcome to The Village! You’ve picked a great day to show up! Most Wednesdays we practise basket-making, but today we’ve skipped straight to Cannibal Friday! Yay! Would nyou like us to make nyou something to eat? That’s a trick question, nya. Nyou probably shouldn’t answer.”

A bell sounded. “Oooh,” said the catgirl. “The Duchess is coming, nya!” She bounced away, giggling.

“What now?!” cried Weiss, face pale with fear.

“They–they’re not really going to eat us, are they?” asked Blake. Sweat dripped from her brow.

Before anyone could answer, the drumming stopped, and the curtain of the largest stilt-hut swished open. Ruby gasped as a familiar figure strolled out of it, the steps creaking beneath her weight.

“Oh, hey,” said Taberu, munching on a coconut. “I did’n exshpect to shee nyou guysh sho shoon.”

RWBY’s Collars beeped.