Foreword:
This setting is entirely based off of the YouTuber Jerry Freeman's video, "RWBY, but BETTER" and his Community Addendum. I was very much inspired to write this, though do not expect weekly updates for this story- if it even catches the attention of people. I have my own, real book I am writing which I will sell for some of that green dough.
I do not own Jerry's Thoughts and Creations, nor the Community that added upon them, nor do I own RWBY. In fact, this is to you, Jerry.
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Chapter Prologue- "Where the Wild Things Hide"
"We're hunting what exactly?" the Colonel asked, his strict, blue gaze resting upon the gathered soldiers. They had just got out of their train, their white camo gear melding with the snow-covered ground and trees around them. They melded into it swiftly, checking their magazines, cartridges, radios, backpacks, kits, knives, et cetera.
Colonel William Junior Wilkow was a young man loyal to the Torian Cause. His father had fought in the War for Auroria, taking the capital of Auror with his regiment. His father still served as a General, and at that time, William was stationed as Lance-Corporal in the National Guard of Torinth.
Now, he would make his Father proud. Next to him was an agent of the Order of Signal, a chap dressed in greys and blacks, overall looking like a simpleton, carrying a sword that had a revolver module. And it was a very big sword. His hair was tied into a jet black bun, his beard growing and his eyes shining with a red flare. It was clear he was as old as William, both being around their late twenties. Although, William was his senior in rank on this mission- or Hunt.
"More like Who, Colonel." the Hunter, Qrow Branwen, said, smirking his teeth. They were a yellowish tint. Of course, they were. He was most likely a hick from Gaillas, a farm boy who just so happened to be able to get into Signal Academy. The Colonel resisted frowning, keeping his natural, stoic face on view as he readjusted his white coat.
"You did not answer me, Hunter."
"Right, sorry," that was not a genuine 'sorry'. "Well, sir, we're hunting a Bull."
The Colonel turned, arching an eyebrow at him. "What do you mean 'Bull'?" he then growled instantly, shaking his head. "Look, Hunter, explain to me now why I am forced to work with you by General Fritz or I will have you demoted back to Acolyte rank, or so help me Ani…"
"Alright, alright, sorry, sir. Just calm down…" the man raised his hands in protest, looking down upon the slightly shorter Colonel Wilkow, who still glared at him.
"We're hunting Gerold Taurus."
"By Ani. You can't be serious?" William asked, his face doing a one-eighty as his eyes were now perplexed, his stubbled jaw and mug slightly ajar from the revelation.
"The very same. The feared Bull Leftenant. But now, he's alone. Out here." the man waved his hand around the white cascade of trees and laden pines. The Colonel sighed, rubbing his face.
"How do we know this?"
"I and other Hunters have been tracking him out here to the frontier for months. He's been dealing with some Private Company from the Free Banks in weapons deals. The Company is not our concern, but his head is. He usually meets them in this forest, a click West from here."
As the Colonel sighed and mulled it all over, rubbing the bridge of his nose, he could hear the trucks driving away and the licks of magazines entering their rifles. Footsteps approached, and Wilkow looked up to meet the eyes of one of his masked soldiers.
"Captain, are the men ready for a debriefing?"
"They've been waiting for one, sir. They don't like the idea of going in blind."
"I agree. Call 'em over, captain." the Captain nodded, as the Colonel slowly tied his hands over his chest and waited as the thirty men came over. Standing in three lines, the front line took a knee, and Wilkow nodded.
"Alright, men, let's not freeze our balls off just yet. We're here to detain a high priority target. Hunter Branwen will brief you on that." he waved toward the Hunter, who moved up, still smirking.
"Hello, gentlemen. Name's Qrow Branwen. Today we're going to take down a big shot in the FLA- Gerold Taurus." the men evidently tensed up, some huffing out a scoff, some shaking their heads. "We all know what he's done. So let's give it back ten fold to this sonuvabitch. He'll be coming to meet a PC that has a weapons deal with him, and so, he'll be guarded, no doubt by some good men, ready lay their lives down for him and their cause. The Meeting Point will be a click west of here, so we're going deeper into the Frontier. That means if we take too long with shooting up the whole place, we're gonna have Grimm on our ass, and I'm just one Hunter."
The men looked between each other, nodding along. The Colonel stepped up. "Our plan is simple, men. Surround tactic, use deadly force on all FLA targets, use deadly force on third-party targets if you need to. Nothing too excessive, unless with permission. I'll be going in with you all, so consider Cornelius your second in command. Understood?"
The men all replied with a resounding "Hu-ah!"
The snow crunched under his feet, as he raised his foot over various broken pieces of wood, frozen shrubs, and mossy mounds. He looked behind himself, seeing the long line of disappearing and reappearing white-camoed men, all handling their rifles in their shoulders, aimed forward.
"Nothing on the horizon. Nearing half a click to location point."
"Team Saber-One, nearing two point five to location."
William spoke into his radio. "Saber-One, halt for realignment with other Squads. Sabers-Two, Three, Four and Five, respond with your location en route to Point."
"Saber Two," Qrow's voice came "Nearing with three point one left."
"Saber Four and Five reporting same."
"Saber Three in position on two point five. I see Saber Three, they're here."
"All Sabers, stop at two point five and then advance when realigned…" As the Colonel moved with his Saber squad, he looked on out through the forest, seeing that a spacious clearing was coming up. No doubt the Zone. As the Sabers realigned, they all slowly moved forward, before crouching just above a ridge, covered with frozen shrubs and short and tall trees, fallen over or growing with mighty roots.
"Saber Five reporting, movement appearing a hundred and ten yards North of our position." at that, the Colonel pulled out his binoculars, and looked out, as he saw black silhouettes coming through the trees, easily seen from his elevated point.
"Saber Two reporting with more coming from the south. Twenty. One hundred and five yards and counting."
.
"... and the Path to Serenity,
Is in the Mind, of eternity,
Oh, Butterfly, where do you fly,
Where will you die?"
Adam sang, his eyes downcast at the rocks he was slapping away with the flaccid piece of tall grass in his hand. He trailed behind his father, who spoke lowly with his 'brothers', as he called them.
"Recently, General Wilkow'son was seen leaving Torinth with a train heading West." one of them said, and his father groaned, brushing a hand through his black and red hair, which was tied into a low tail.
"We shouldn't expect the worst. The Captain wouldn't risk an information leak on what we're doing so soon." Gerold tried to reason, but his brothers shook their heads, ruffling up in their black coats and masks. They all wore the same thing, except Gerold, with a fancy red sash around his arm. Adam simply wore whatever his father could get him in black, and in his smaller size. You don't always need to find gear for a seven-year-old.
"Sir, I see them." the man in the front, a wolf Faunus, said, staring with his beady, yellow-tinted eyes at the clearing they had used for about a year now. As they neared it, Gerold stopped and nodded to his men. Two stepped in with him, whilst the others stayed. One had a suitcase and the other held a shotgun.
Gerold slowly knelt to his son and put a hand on his shoulder. "I won't be long. Just stay here and don't do anything. Let Willhelm take care of you if anything happens." He told Adam, who nodded, not quite understanding or promising, but nodding. His father smiled and nodded to said Willhelm, who stood nearby.
As they approached the center of the clearing, they looked onward as they saw the oncoming men in grey suits, some wearing dense coats, no doubt lined underneath with armored plating. Soon enough, three men from their twenty man side came forward. Gerold extended a hand, and the one in the center between the two shook it.
"Gerold."
"Watts."
The Banker smiled and brushed some frostbite from his stylish mustache, which swayed upward on either end. His hair was cut and shaven at either side of the head. For a young man, he seemed to look like an experienced Banker. Watts then nodded to Gerold.
"My father is happy to trade with the FLA, for the right price. Did you bring the money?"
Gerold affirmed with a stern, slow nod, looking to his man with the suitcase. The Faunus moved up, his tiger tail swaying as he did, and he leaned down to put the suitcase on the floor. The Bull leftenant watched, pushing a strand of red hair behind his black horns. Watts' eyes gleamed, as he crouched down and opened the suitcase.
Taking a small peek, he hummed with a pleasant nod and closed it, taking the case. He nodded to his own man with his own case, who walked straight up to Gerold and handed it to him.
"The recent in Skyhawk technology. A scope that can trace more than five hundred yards and a barrel that lets the bullet descend only in two hundred and fifty…" Watts drawled with a wide grin.
Gerold opened the long case and saw the sniper rifle for himself, inspecting it hard with his eyes. After closing it, he finally smiled at Watts.
"The FLA will be pleased, Mister Watts."
"Oh, I'm sure it will, Gerold. I guess this is…?"
Suddenly, a symphony of blasts came from a ridge above, and various bullets ricocheted and peppered the ground around them, one hitting the head of one of the Faunus and striking him down.
"We've been busted, let's go!" Watts yelled to his own men, as both sides returned fire at the ridge, firing aimlessly. Gerold crouched and held the case close, running to his own group, who were firing their guns off. Soon enough, his other man fell, and he could see Adam curled up on the ground behind Willhelm, who was shooting at the ridge.
"Get Adam! Let's go!" Gerold ordered and two men stayed behind to cover, as bullets continued to fly at them, Willhelm scooped up the smaller Bull Faunus child and ran with Gerold and the others. As Gerold looked back, he could see men in white camouflage chasing after Watts and his goons, and soon, overtake Boris and Neville.
"It's Wilkow! How did he find us!?" One yelled out, but Gerold roared at him. "No talking, run! Into the thicket!"
As they ran off the beaten path into the wooded thicket, they all dispersed, all knowing the normal procedures of dodging the authorities. As Gerold ran by himself, he stopped, swiftly taking a knee and looking around himself. He then saw it. Through the woods, a gliding shadow, moving faster than he could have traced it. He blinked his eyes, fearing that it was a Grimm, but soon heard the trading of shots from the path that was taken by one of his men.
Cursing, Gerold soon let go of the case and opened it. Pulling it out, he checked the magazine and saw it was full. He swiftly put the butt against his shoulder and moved onward, slowly, trying to intercept the path Willhelm took. He had to save his son if he could.
Then, as the shadow whizzed past him, he narrowly ducked under a shot meant for his head, hitting a tree behind him. He hissed out and groaned, kneeling and trying his best to trace it, before looking blindly through the scope and pulling the trigger. Seeing the bullet impact and force a tree to groan and slowly crash, he got back up and continued his path. This kind of speed and precision meant one thing.
"A damn Hunter!" Willhelm yelled out, crouching before Adam as he fired blindly into the woods, with Jacob, a Cat Faunus joining him. He looked at Adam. "Adam, run! We'll hold him off! Find your father!"
Adam did so hesitantly, but the small horned child soon ran off, crashing through frozen shrubs and the snow. Willhelm looked back and began to fire again, before unloading all of his magazine. Looking through the smoke covered surrounding, he pulled out his magazine and extended a hand to Jacob. "Gimme some!"
As he got no magazine, he blinked, looking toward him, but soon saw a bloodied mess some feet off, slashed apart and mangled, clearly pulled away from him. Willhelm gasped and did his best not to piss his pants as he saw red eyes look at him from behind the dead Jacob.
The last thing he saw was a giant piece of shiny metal crashing down upon him. As he screamed, Adam and Gerold heard it.
Gerold checked his magazine. He had fired off eight of the ten bullets within it. All blind, all desperate. He cursed and ran to the scream. Deep down, he knew his men were all probably dead, but he had to find his son. For her sake.
As he rounded around a large collection of smaller trees, he froze, seeing a gasping and sprinting Adam. "Adam!"
The young Faunus stopped and soon started running to him, but as Gerold smiled and chuckled in relief, his face soon contorted into a glare. He roared out to Adam as he aimed behind him. "Adam, drop!"
The boy did as he was told, and Gerold fired off at the charging Huntsman, who stopped and slashed at the bullet with his blade.
"Good shot!' The man japed, but Gerold pulled back another shot and aimed at him. "Adam, out of the way!" he roared at his son, before the man was in his sights, with Adam crawling within a frozen mound. He fired, but the same happened with his bullet, and soon, he took the rifle with both hands and swung at the incoming Hunter, who blocked it with his giant blade. He growled, being stopped in his desperate attack, but he was a Bull. He soon pulled his rifle back and tried to dive in with his head, right at the Hunter's face.
The Hunter roared out, being sent back with the heavy headbutt. Gerold took this chance and tried to hit him with the rifle. The Hunter opened his eyes and dodged, forcing Gerold to break most of the rifle over a tree's bark. The Hunter laughed as he readied his strike.
"Looks like you bought cheap!"
Gerold roared at this insolent human. To dare joke while killing his brothers and threatening his son!? How dare he! Gerold readied for his strike and soon surprised the Hunter with catching his blade between his hands, although narrowly, his forehead bleeding from the sharp and narrow cut. Gerold quickly kicked the man back, right into a tree, before roaring out as he charged forward.
He charged head first, ready to push him through the tree itself, but soon fell, as his leg gave out after a resounding shot. It echoed as he groaned, clutching his leg. He looked up and saw the smoking barrel of his weapon- it wasn't a sword, no, it was also a damn gun. Of course. Damn Hunters.
"Sorry, Taurus. I play dirty."
"...Arrrgh… Your whole Kind does… Every last one of you… You all deserve to die…" He groaned, wheezing as he felt his adrenaline wearing off. But soon, Qrow scoffed, shaking his head.
"You guys are all the same."
Adam watched as his father slumped down on the cold ground, his eyes wet with tears, his body shivering with rage, grief and the cold. The Hunter slowly walked off, and Adam would always remember those red eyes and black hair...