Kira: So, as you may have read from the summary, this is a crossover story between the animated series RWBY and the Microsoft exclusive game Titanfall. If you don't know what it is, you may want to look it up, as you may possibly not understand a lot of the story as a result. I want to thank Hollow14 for coming up with this title and for helping me with some of my previous works. Anyways, hope you enjoy. :D
Dear Father,
By the time you read this, I am gone. I know I have left against your wishes, and I know you will be angry with me, but I must find out the truth. And if you won't tell me, then I will find out myself. That answer may be harsh, but I needed to let this frustration that's been building since Yang left five years ago... Again, I am sorry it has come to this, but what's done is done... And if that didn't stop Yang, than it won't stop me... Goodbye, possibly forever...
- Ruby
Ruby sighed slightly as she stared into the deep, empty space, save for a few passing civilian ships. The silence was prominent, but not unwelcome, as Ruby's thoughts were still on when she had finally left her father. Her mindset was broken when she felt someone tap her shoulder.
She turned around and saw one of the people she had met during training. The girl's name was Karla, Ruby remembered. She was one of the only people the silver eyed girl had conversed with during training, while the others stayed away from her. Ruby could only presume it was either because of her age, or her unimaginable skill at firing a B3 Wingman at such an extreme range with fantastic results.
Ruby glanced back at Karla and could see the girl was fidgeting with her fingers, and decided to mitigate her nervousness;
"Are you worried about the mission, or the fact that I may ignore you?" Ruby asked playfully with a small smile, scaring her friend with the sudden voice.
"W-what? N-no, that's not what I was thinking." Karla spoke with a shaken tone, before laughing slightly and scratching the back of her head.
Ruby couldn't help but hold her smile, "Then what were you thinking?" Karla didn't answer for a moment, her face stuck.
She shook her head and answered a moment later, "It was your first response, it's about the mission." Her tone was more solidified now, but it still held the nervousness.
"Why are you worried about it?" The black haired, silver eyed girl asked, her attention now completely with her companion.
"W-well, it's not only our first mission, but we're going in with no idea on what's down there, let alone without a Pilot's assistance." Karla explained, looking down at the R-101C assault rifle that was in her lap. Ruby glanced down at it and shook her head slightly, sighing soon after.
"You know we can't rely on a Pilot, Karla, no matter how good their skill is." Ruby said with a reassuring tone, putting her hand on the worried girl's shoulder.
"That easy for you to say Ruby. Based on what I've seen when all of us were training, you've got enough firearms skill to take on an entire IMC army." Karla said with humor and resentment. Ruby, knowing that the animosity Karla had in her tone was a joke, chuckled slightly before jabbing her friend in the arm. Karla chuckled along with Ruby, before going into a solemn silence following the joyous moment.
After noticing her friend not speak up, Ruby frowned before gripping the girl's shoulder again, "Karla, I want you to promise me this." She spoke seriously. The girl in question glanced back at Ruby and stared into her silver eyes, waiting.
"I want you to stay as confident as you can during this mission, and, after we get through this, I'll help you out with your marksmanship skills, then we'll go out for something to eat. Promise?" The silver eyed girl spoke with a large smile. Karla's eyes widened and followed with Ruby on the smile before pushing forward to grasp Ruby in a hug.
"I promise." Karla replied lightheartedly in Ruby's ear. The latter sat shocked as her friend latched her arms around her neck and answered with that sweet tone. She smiled a moment later before returning the hug jovially. The two sat in a peaceful silence before the pilot of the ship spoke up, forcing them to break the hug.
"Entering atmosphere in 30. Get ready for entrance." He spoke with authority before returning his attention back to the incoming planet. Another member of the ship stood up and faced the other seven faces in-front of him; all who were now focusing on said standee. With his grip on the assault rifle that was pointing downward at the floor, the man spoke up.
"Alright everyone. As you know, I am your commanding officer for this operation. You will answer to me as Captain Anderson for the duration of this mission. As soon as we enter atmosphere I want everyone to have their weapon ready with ammo and your heads up display operational. After we land I will give further instructions." Captain Anderson spoke with a monotone voice, signifying that there would be no questions. Karla, after the small lecture, turned to face Ruby. She smiled slightly before standing to move back where she was. Ruby followed suit, and ended up standing behind a male blond.
"Entering atmosphere." The pilot repeated. Everyone looked out their nearby windows and saw nothing but white, which most assumed was a cloud. A few seconds later, a vast view of wide cities, large wilderness, and a great ocean filled everyone's view, leaving most in awe.
Captain Anderson spoke up again, "Angel City." He started as the front window gave a show of a massive coastal city that was engulfed in both smoke and walls of a grand scale that were set up in a maze like state.
One of the male brunettes spoke up, "What's with the barriers set up here?"
"The barriers were set up by the IMC once the Militia finally rose up in a massive scale against them. When the IMC instituted martial law in Angel City, massive walls were built and a system of security checkpoints was created to divide the city into many smaller districts. The unfortunate residents of the Harbor District, now unable to move freely throughout the city, were only able to view the glittering skyline from afar." Captain Anderson answered with a sad tone, shaking his head.
The man turned to face the seven other soldiers he was with, "This is also where the last transmission of that Pilot was." Ruby bit her lip and gripped the handle of her R-101C when her commanding officer mentioned the goal of their mission.
The pilot spoke up one more time, "C.I.S. coming up on the MARVIN now." He spoke up. Everyone turned around to the exit hatch where a robot with yellow smiley face on its chest was. The smiley face disappeared and in its place was a tanned male with a headset over his head.
"Hello everyone." He greeted with a small smile before turning serious, "As the pilot of your ship probably said, I am the Militia's Combat Intel Specialist. The name's Bish. I am here to give an overview on your mission before letting you on your way." He spoke again. Silence reigned on the ship for a moment, the group of soldiers at hand giving their full attention to Bish.
Said man nodded, "Alright. About three months ago, we lost contact with a Pilot we sent on a covert mission to Angel City to collect some vital data on the IMC. Your mission is two-fold, both equally as important. One is to find the location of the last transmission of that Pilot and collect it, whether the Pilot is there or not. The second part it to find that intel the Pilot was looking for and collect it as well. Both of these locations will be marked on your HUD. Once you have both of those completed, contact me and I'll warp an evac ship to your location. All I have left to say is keep an eye on your HUD and stay aware. Good luck." Bish ended off with a salute before disappearing off the face of the MARVIN.
Captain Anderson spoke up once again, "Alright everyone, listen up. I was planning on waiting to tell you this but, with the new information provided; there will be a slight change of plans. We will split up into two teams for the duration of this mission; one will search for the Pilot's last transmission, and the other will find the intelligence on the IMC. Corporal Ashton, you-" He was cut off by the pilot.
"Cut the chatter, we're landing."
Anderson mumbled before speaking up again, "Ashton, you and the three behind you will search for the Pilot's transmission. You other three, you're with me on finding that IMC intelligence." Anderson finished with a nod. The other seven soldiers gave a nod of their own in agreement, and all was left in silence.
"One final thing; keep an eye on your HUD for your friendlies and objectives. Contact everyone if you notice one of those blue arrows start flickering." Captain Anderson commanded one last time before the ship landed. Ruby and the three people behind her exited the craft once the hatch opened. The exit hatch closed and flew to another walled off sector of Angel City where the other four soldiers would search for the intel.
Ruby glanced behind and saw that Karla wasn't in her group, causing her to frown slightly. She was worried for her friend since her confidence wasn't all that high, even after promising Ruby that she would stay strong. The people Ruby was with didn't know her in the slightest either, for the exception of the corporal due to his status. Speaking of him, Ashton spoke up once he saw nothing in sight besides the grand scale buildings.
"Alright everyone, stay sharp. We have no idea what may be out there so I want everyone with their sights up and their eyes wandering." He commanded, inserting the 24 round box magazine into his R-101C. Ruby glanced down at her own weapon and remembered what their superior officer during training had told them.
"The R-101C fully automatic assault rifle is a compact weapon that can be folded down into the size of a medium briefcase, allowing for easy maneuvering during downtimes, and quick access during firefights. Its 24 round magazine is easy to insert and eject with the quick push of a button. Due to this carbine's smaller than average magazine, keep a close eye on your ammo counter just above the adjustable stock so you're not caught dry during a skirmish."
Ruby pulled her weapon up to eye level and was very quickly looking through an orange optical sight.
"The holo sight is a somewhat standard replacement for the normal railing iron sights fixated on the assault rifle platform. With a clear sight picture and x1.85 magnification, the holo sight is a good alternative for any that need good aim out in the frontier."
"Our objective should be visible on your mini map people. Keep in mind, that marker only marks the general area of the last known location of that transmission, so be ready to start searching once we reach the destination." Corporal
Ruby glanced at the enclosed map in the top left of her HUD and saw a blue ping originating from a small, similarly colored dot that was pressed against the top edge of her mini map. Ashton, after seeing everyone with their weapons ready, moved forward with a hand motion signifying for the other three to follow. As they all moved in a diamond formation towards their destination, everyone's eyes were captivated by the sheer destruction of the city before them. Windows were smashed, billboards were frizzing out still, and even entire chunks of the buildings themselves were torn out, no doubt from a Titan battle.
Ruby stared at the torn up buildings, in both disbelief and awe that something this terrible could happen. She had heard about the skirmishes and battles through her T.V. back at home, but never expected them to be so... Terrifying, as she was witnessing the end result now. A few minutes past, the abandoned city completely devoid of much more than life, before they had reached their destination.
"Alright. I want everyone to split up and search for the signal. Keep within 10 meters of a friendly though, and, once again, keep your sights up and your eyes wandering." Corporal Ashton said before the four soldiers split up. While their search was mainly kept within the sun's basking light and heat, Ruby took her search inside one of the destroyed buildings, using a missing part of the wall as an entrance.
As she started searching, a voice spoke up in her ear; "Ruby?" Ruby's stood shocked as she heard a female's voice ring through her ears. The silver eyed girl looked around her for any point of origin, but frowned when she didn't see anything besides the gray scale walls. Thinking her mind was playing tricks on her, Ruby continued on, only for the voice to pop up again.
"Ruby, can you hear me?" With Ruby relaxed until that point again, she was able to tell who was speaking.
"Karla?" The girl asked, confused on why she was hearing her friend's voice.
"Thank god it worked. You there?" Karla asked, relived but also worried.
Ruby couldn't help but chuckle at the girl's worry, "I still here Karla, don't worry. How are you able to contact me though?" Ruby asked as she folded the R-101C and attached it to the magnetic strip on her back. With the weapon put away and her hands free, Ruby was able to move some debris that acted as a very annoying obstacle.
"The helmets have a two way communication system, remember?" The silver eyed girl rolled her eyes at the playful tone Karla used for her reply.
"Alright, alright, no need to act smart with me." Ruby joked back. A soft giggle ran through her ears, causing her to smile at the sweet tone.
"Anyway, how's your search going?" Ruby asked after she cleared her head.
She got a sigh in response, "Not too good. With the amount of information here it would take hours to just get through the mechanics of a Spectre." Karla grumbled.
Ruby chuckled and shook her head, "My search isn't that hot either. Right now all I've found was concrete and steel supports." Ruby sighed as she practiced what she preached; attempting to move some more chunks of concrete with some steel rebar embedded within the piece of wall. As she glanced up at her mini map, Ruby noticed that the blue dot was sending the small wave more sporadically.
"Hold on Karla, I think I've found something." Ruby mumbled. Karla hummed a response that the silver eyed girl could barely hear as she started walking closer to the dot, once again the dot itself increasing the speed of its pulses. She came upon a door that was still standing and attached to a nearly undamaged wall, save for a few indents and bullet holes. Glancing up at her map one last time, the pulse was almost supersonic and Ruby knew that the transmission was behind this one last obstacle.
Her right hand went to her belt behind her and gripped the handle of her Hammond P2011 side arm.
"The Hammond P2011 is a semi-automatic hand gun that allows even medium range foes to be little worry should you be caught dry with your primary weapon. The Hammond's match trigger integration allows for rapid pulls of the trigger if caught out in a close range, or religious pulls out to even 40 meters for accurate, devastating shots.
With her left hand on the door knob and her right clutching the handle and finger hovering over the trigger, Ruby counted down in her head to open the door.
3…2…1! Ruby quickly turned the knob and pushed against the door, throwing it open. As the girl adjusted herself once she was in the room, Ruby saw the light pierce through the broken window, and used that to take note of her surroundings. The room was big enough to be considered walk in closet, but only just so. Ruby glanced around and saw that the room was all but empty save for a computer desk with a shattered PC. The girl shuffled around the room slightly to test what her feet would hit and within a few seconds she felt something scrape her boot. Ruby quickly turned to face the object and aimed her pistol, only to stare through the sights at a hunched figure. Behind it, though, was what caught her attention.
A flickering bluish glow was faintly escaping the body every few seconds. Ruby felt her heart rate shoot up, her mind instantly thinking that it was the transmitter. Her peripheral glanced up at her map and saw the pulse the dot let out had disappeared, replaced by a constant shine. Ruby gulped when she remembered what her training officer had told her.
"When the objective in your mini map transitions from a pulse to a constant shine; that means there is a very good chance that you are all but on top of your destination."
Ruby breathed in deeply in hopes to calm her rapid heart before she kneeled down in front of the hunched figure. Putting her side arm away, Ruby slowly moved her left hand behind the shape, her fingers stretching and turning to try to grip the transmitter.
When she got a solid hold on something, she yanked her arm out and glanced down at the object in her hand; it was a small, solid pad with a broken screen, with the screen a blue, flickering light like it was behind the figure. Now curious about what Ruby assumed was the missing Pilot, she flipped the pad to face the person and saw the head was down, the hair falling forward in a shower. At first glance, Ruby assumed it was a girl due to how long the hair was and how pale the person was from what skin she could see.
Ruby moved her free, right hand to the person and slowly cupped their face. She flinched almost instantly as the shards of cold skin pricked at her hand, and frowned. She knew this person was dead, and felt saddened at the loss of another person to the war.
She was still determined to find out who this person was though, to at very least inform a possible family, Ruby didn't deter herself any further. She put some pressure on her right arm and pushed the face up, the hair flipping as well. The silver eyed girl's face froze and her eyes started shaking when she saw the face...
"Mom...?"
BOOM! The building shook under Ruby's feet and she tumbled around the room, her back smashing against an adjacent wall.
Her communicator that Karla had re-informed her about started buzzing, "It's a Spectre ambush! I repeat, it's a Spectre ambush!" Captain Anderson shouted to the entire squad through the com, followed by a hail of bullets. Ruby put her hand on her head in hopes to stop the overwhelming nausea, and as a result almost missed the yell of her superior officer. Ruby shook her head violently with her eyes shut, overcoming it. She glanced over at her limp mother and felt tears surge to her eyes, her breath hitching in her throat. When she heard another loud bang Ruby stood up and wiped her eyes, taking a long, deep breath, hoping to calm her shaking nerves.
With one last glance, Ruby pushed her arm under her mother's chin and took hold of something cold. With a yank Ruby ripped off the dog tags and held them up to her vision.
Summer Rose.
Ruby, with the tears pressing against her eyes, pushed the dog tags down her chest plate with a hope to keep them safe and started sprinting out of the building. As she exited, the room where her mother was collapsed and crumbled, crushing all that was in there...
Once Ruby reached the makeshift entrance she had used earlier, she almost instantly had to shield her eyes from the dust that had spread everywhere. When she lowered her arm, her eyes widened; one of her teammates were dead and there were about 30 Spectre's that were pummeling her other two teammates' cover with bullets, and even more of the machines were jumping over the walls by the five's. Her arm went to her back to grab her R-101C but felt nothing.
Her eyes widened, Shit, it must've detached when I hit the wall. She panicked. With resolve however, Ruby went to her belt with both hands; her right had grabbed her Hammond P2011 and her left held something round with small indents.
"Fragmentation Grenades have been in use since before I can remember. The mechanism is quite simple actually, just pull the pin and let it fly."
Ruby did just that. Her left thumb moved within the little circle pin and she pulled it, yanking the pin out with a small 'ding'. She tossed it within the center of the machines and started sprinting towards her last two teammates. Once Ruby dove behind the makeshift covering, the frag detonated and another large explosion went off, scattering limbs and cords everywhere.
"Ruby!" Corporal Ashton called to her once he noticed the silver eyed girl. The girl glanced up in response and soon noticed an R-101C being tossed towards her. She grabbed it quickly and nodded thanks to her teammate before pushing her head and weapon above the cover. Once she aimed down her sights her finger squeezed the trigger and a hail of bullets were launched from her weapon, most finding her targets due to the massive amount of the mechanical monsters that were bunched together.
"Reloading!" Ruby called once she saw the orange "0" on her ammo counter. Ashton nodded and popped his head out only to get it blown off by one of the Spectre's. Blood splattered against Ruby and her last teammate, most of the brain chunks hitting her teammate. She screamed loudly in shock and horror and was soon enough silenced by another bullet. Her eyes widened at the entering and exiting her head and blood dripped out of her nose and mouth before collapsing.
Ruby stared with complete horror at her two dead teammates, the unreal amount of blood painting the ground before her and sliding down her armor. She could hear the mechanical feet stomp towards her and started letting her tears flow.
"R-Ruby?" Her com buzzed through, the voice who spoke tired and broken.
"Y-yes... Karla…?" Ruby answered almost mechanically.
"This is it isn't it?" Karla's voice was in complete disorder, with her hiccups and sobs giving way her terror.
Ruby gulped, "Yes… Yes it is…" She answered with extreme reluctance, a lump developing her throat.
"I'm sorry I didn't keep my promise…" Karla spoke one last time before the communication cut. With that last line Ruby couldn't take it anymore, she let her tears finally explode with fury, her voice overtaken by hiccups and cries. Suddenly a bullet pierced her back and she fell to the ground face first, her features covered with pure shock as her body went into lockdown. A mechanical foot smashed into her back where the bullet hole was and she screamed loudly, only to be silenced by the three pronged foot press harder.
Unable to fight back, Ruby just laid there and not too soon felt the barrel of a gun press against her temple. As she awaited her death, her mind was soaring across her eyes as she thought of everything from her past up until now, and finally, the smiling face of her mother.
Mom… She thought finally before letting her eyes fall shut…
SMASH!
Ruby, not even allowed a second to register, suddenly felt the pressure lifted off of her back and was confused. She quickly looked to her right to see what was left of the Spectre fly across the city in a blaze of cords and its head. Ruby heard a loud mechanical groan and almost instantly after that a hail of bullets from another source. Ruby, with a sudden adrenaline rush, attempted slowly pushed herself up on her knees.
She was stopped by a hand on her shoulder.
"Stay down. Are you alright?" The voice was male, and sounded worried. Ruby lightly nodded, the pain giving her an inability to speak.
The voice sighed, "Alright. Listen to me, we're going to get out of here, ok?" Ruby just nodded mechanically again, still confused at what was happening behind her.
"Jaune, get the girl, move inside the building, and call for an evacuation. I'll cover you!" The next voice was a stern female's, and it slowly helped Ruby in keeping her awake.
"I'm on it." The male, now known as Jaune, answered with an even tone, however it was evident there was fear and worry in his voice. Ruby was suddenly lifted onto her feet, the blood rushing into her head followed soon after.
Her vision was blurry by this point, despite the previous adrenaline rush and attentive and loud voices of the female and Jaune.
"Hey, you still up?" Jaune asked with worry. Ruby's ears were suddenly filled with bullet fire, and she could only guess it was from Jaune's weapon. Even with that though, her eyes were dropping and her vision was extremely blurry.
"Hey, hey!" Jaune cried loudly when he noticed Ruby's head droop.
She lost consciousness.
Kira: Funny, most of this story was written while I was at school. XD In one of my classes I'm unable to do anything as of yet so my teacher has allowed us to work on any other homework we have. Since it's a computer class, we're allowed to use them to use the internet and stuff. So, as a result, I've just been working on this story the entire time. :P Either way, hope you've enjoyed. :D