I looked over my squad as we were currently flying through Vale towards are drop-off point. They were currently looking over their respective weapons and gear. Red Team was outfitted with three rifleman and the last team member carrying two standard dust-operated pistols, they were standard White Fang weapons but it will be more than enough for this job. Black team on the other hand kept it as light as possible so they could carry as much dust out as they could, they either carried a single dust pistol or blade on their hilt similar to a katana. I myself checked my ammo, for missions against human opposition I had specifically made dust rounds. The rounds were infused with lightning dust and when they struck a target they stunned and disabled them, they were a bit expensive but were worth the lien as they were non-lethal. As I chambered a round I heard a voice come over the intercom. "ETA to drop off is 2 minutes, ramp door opening."
As we heard the co-pilot over the com the door slowly opened, a gust of wind hitting us as we looked out the horizon. It was dusk outside, the setting sun spilling light throughout Vale. It was really quite a beautiful sight but I didn't have time to bask in the moment as our drop-off was approaching. "Alright Black, Red Team set up for hard landing." I order out as I take my place on the right side of the open door, I was gripping Snapshot tightly as I prepared for the descent. Behind me is Red Team and on the opposite wall Black Team is formed up. "Alright everyone on my lead." I call out as the bullhead descends as it lowers it's speed to help our landing. 'Alright on three. One... two... three.'
"GO!" I yell out as I take two steps and jump out of the bullhead.
The wind is deafening as I hit the side wall of the alleyway. I stick out my right hand and leg against it to help slide down it, twenty feet from the ground I plant my right foot against the wall and push off towards the middle of the alley. As I push off a roll forward and tuck in my left shoulder as I shove Snapshot into my gut, as my shoulder makes contact I roll forward until my feet make contact and shoulder my sniper rifle as I scan over the alleyway. 'Front is clear' I see as I pull an 180 and check our rear. As I scan my Red and Black team land in a roll. "Is everyone up?" I call out.
"Red Team up!" Yells the team leader.
"Black is good to go sir!" Yells Black Team's leader.
"Solid copy! Black Team move into position! Red Team on me!" I order out as Red Team gathers on my position. "Alright Red I got point." I say as I move to the front of the group and break into a light jog towards the objective. I come across the end of the alley and take cover against the wall, Red Team following suit. I poke my head out and check both sides of the street. 'Clear.' "Alright move across the street to the alley on my mark. I wait a couple of seconds to make sure no one is around "Mark!" I stay against the wall with Snapshot drawn to cover my team as they cross the road, as the last team member crosses I too run into the alleyway. Again I take the lead picking up to same pace I had earlier as I lead us through several more streets. After roughly five minutes of navigating the back streets we neared our objective.
I slid open a window of a foreclosed building and vaulted in, Red Team followed suit. I run up a stairway to the second floor and find a window over looking the holding bank across the street. I take aim with Snapshot and survey the building. 'Alright two armed guards standing on each side of the front doors, each carrying standard police issued dust rifles. Okay one security camera above them, I'll take that out first then hit the guards while their distracted. Once the guards are down we'll move in.' "Hey Brick hand me the case" I say as Red Team's leader pulls of his back pack and opens it revealing a small hard-case, he tosses me the case and I pop it open revealing a barrel attachment for Snapshot. The attachment in question is a silencer for my weapon that utilizes air dust to muffle and disperse the energy created from my weapon greatly reducing the sound,unfortunately it greatly reduces the effective range of my rounds. I remove said attachment from the case and slide it on my muzzle until it makes a small clicking sound and pops in. "Alright wait for the signal Red Team." I speak out towards the members standing along side me. "Once we have the signal I'm going take out the surveillance camera and then the security guards. Brick once there down you take point and breach the front doors, the rest of you follow him in and I'll be right behind you." 'I don't like to lead from the rear but it's unavoidable this time.' I think to myself as Red Team approves of the plan. "Alright head to the first floor and wait until the guards are down."
I slide my scroll into the insert on my rifle and expand it as I take aim once again. At 200 meters this is a cake walk as aim my cross-hairs, now centered on the camera. I steady my breath regardless and await the signal, just then my scroll lets out 'ding' and I squeeze the trigger. The window shatters as my round travels through it, a few milliseconds later my round pierces the camera sending glass and metal to the ground as it's torn to pieces. The guard to the right looks up towards the disturbance, as he looks towards the guard I fire again my round striking him in the chest. I quickly shift to the remaining guard and fire a third time hitting him center-mass, my rounds take effect as they hit the ground convulsing slightly due to the dust. The moment the second guard hit the ground the members of Red team burst out of the floor below me in a rush towards the entrance. I quickly remove and pocket my scroll and take two steps back, I then rush forward head down as I burst through the window and land in a roll and take of in a sprint a few paces behind Red Team.
A few seconds later we reach the front door and Brick lowers his shoulder and takes the damn thing off the hinges as it then shatters in splinters against a wall opposite to it in the bank. 'Im not sure if that's his real name or nickname by the way he took the door out. Probably both.' "Everyone on the ground!" I hear him shout out as he fires a couple rounds into the ceiling. A half dozen of customers in the store hit the ground in a panic as they are now involved in a robbery. Two security guards round the corner weapons raised prepared to fire, I out of instinct put a round into each of them and they hit the ground convulsing and go still. One of the members of red team tosses me the jammer and I set it on the ground. I quickly turn one of the knobs and then flip three switches and the jammer is active.
"Alright listen up, unless you to end up like those two gentleman I don't suggest you try anything stupid! If you want to be a hero you can die like one too!" I yell out to anyone in earshot. 'There just out cold but they don't know any better.' I think to myself as I walk over to the tellers. I pull out vial shaped like pod and hand to the teller, "Uncut dust, fill it." I order as my team follow suit with pods of their own. 'So far so good' I think to myself as the teller walks over to the dust dispenses mounted on the wall and begins to start filling the pods up. After about a minute she returns with the pods and forks them over. I slide the clip of the vial on my belt and secure it as my team does the same. We then spread out across the bank floor and await the signal to exfil. At that moment I hear muffled gunfire from the floor below us. 'Damn there must of been more guards.' I ran over to Brick and whisper to him, "Brick you have command, I'm going to check what's going on."
"You can trust me sir." He replies.
I take off running towards the stairway, opting to forgo the stairs I jump over the railguard. As I land I see Black Team pinned down by what seems as almost continuous gun-fire. I run up to them and take cover beside one of the vault door across the hall from them. "What's the situation!" I yell out over the gunfire.
"They have Atlesian knights sir!" Black Team's leader yells back to me. "We weren't equipped with the firepower to take 'em out!"
"Okay on my signal make a break for my position." I replied.
"What's the signal!" He yells back.
"You'll know!" I reply as I pull out my smoke canister and pull the pin. I canister's spoon handle with my left hand and flinged it towards the gunfire. As it was hurling through the air I fired the remaining ten rounds of my magazine as fast as I was physically capable of. The rounds pulled the attention of the knights gunfire, then my canister detonated smoke bellowing out of it. Soon the gunfire stopped as the robots can't see their target. As the gunfire stopped Black Team hauls ass towards me and slides behind the door.
"You really our ass there sir!" Black Team's leader tells me out of breath.
"I'm not done yet." I say as I sling Snapshot and draw Ripper in it's bladed form. "Our objective is behind them." As I take off towards the Knights.
"CHANGING OPTICS" I hear one of the robots drone out as they start to fire again.
I channel my aura into my legs and leap as high as I can up and behind the three knights. As they rotate their bodies and take aim I close my eyes and release my semblance.
"CHANGING OPTICS. CHANGING OPTICS. CHANGING OPTICS." The robots drones out as it attempts the clear it's vision of my semblance. I shake my nausea and run towards the closest knight.
"CHANGING OPT-"
*SHINK*
My blade removes the knights head from it's shoulders as the robot falls to the ground with a 'thud.' As the smoke clears the two remaining knights look to it's fallen knight and then to each other, there machine guns on their hands retract and then blades take their place. They run at me simultaneously and a roll back to create space. I then shift to my pistol form of Ripper and release all seven rounds of my magazine into the chest of the first approaching knight dropping it. As I shift back to my blade the last knight slashes with right bladed arm and lean back and to the left to avoid it, it follows with a left slash and shift and lean right to avoid it as well. It comes back with another right but this time I meet it's blade with mine and I crouch down to avoid it's following left combo and I catch it across the torso with a spinning slash. My blow leaves a gash in the knight but as it feels no pain in continues to attack me. I begin blocking it slashes as it seems to keep just alternating slices from each arm starting with it's right arm. I catch on to it's routine and when it comes with another right I go wide left evading it, I return with with backhanded slash removing it's arm. When it comes to hit my with it's left I swing with all my might to block it's strike. We meet blades the knights arm recoiling from the force of my blow, I use the opening I created a shove my blade deep in chest and I pull up and out splitting the robot's head in half.
"Clear!" I yell out as Black Team comes out of cover. "On the double everyone, we're behind schedule now and the bullhead has orders to leave without us if we miss exfil time!"
"Go go go!" Black Team's leader yells out as he runs towards the vault door. He takes a charge out from his duffel bag attaches it to the doors locked handle. He pulls a pin on the charge and steps back, the charge begins to glow bright red and then starts 'fizzing.' After a couple of seconds the charge stops glowing. He then takes his katana and removes the charge from the lock revealing a hole burnt through it. 'Burn charges sure come in handy.' I think as he pushes the vault door forward now unlocked.
Black team runs in duffel bags in their hands as they start to fill their larger pods with the uncut dust. They insert the pods into the dispeners wait impatiently as the pods slowly fill with dust. After a couple minutes the nine duffel bags are filled to the brim with the dust pods and we make are way out of the vault. "Alright let's go we're still behind schedule." I ay as one of the members of Black Team hands me second duffel bag. I holster Ripper and unsling Snapshot, loading a fresh magazine and chambering a round. I then load shoulder the bag on my back and make my way up the stairs.
As I reach the top I grab my spare smoke canister and fling it towards the center of the bank. As it 'clinks' against the ground Red Team sees my signal they grab the jammer and take off towards the rear entrance. I make my way out of the doorway and Black team is waiting spare bags in hand ready to hand them off to Red Team. As Red Team exits they grabs the bags and shoulder them without breaking their pace. Black Team follow behind them as we make our way towards the manhole. After we clear the second alleyway we see the manhole in the middle of the street. I lean out checking for anyone around, 'clear left, clear right.' "Alright lets go!" I yell out. Brick unsheathes his katana and uses it to pry open the manhole and then jumps down. Black Team jumps into the sewers as I can hear sirens in the distance. "Red Team on the double, move" as they practically dive head first into the manhole. As I jump onto the ladder the descends into the sewers I can hear the sirens getting very close, I pull the manhole cover above my head sealing it once again. I jump off the ladder down into the sewers, I hear the sirens pass overhead and continue down the street. 'Damn that was too close.' I think myself as I can't believe we got away with it.
"Hey Brick, jammer." I say as he hands me the jammer. I flip the the switches downward and turn the knob and the jammer deactivates. I pull out my scroll and check the time. "Alright we three-and-a-half miles to go to the exfil point and we have 23 minutes. Let's hustle or were sneaking through a city full of cops back to base." I order out as my squad begins to hustle through the sewer system with me navigating. 'Shit I can't see anything down here, I just need to stay close the my squad because I'm basically running blind, at this point I'm using my scroll as a dim light. 'Good thing faunus have night vision or I'd be up shit creek without a paddle,' almost too literal in this case. After twenty minutes of running we get to the manhole we need to enter the surface from.
Brick climbs the ladder and lifts up and pushes aside the cover and looks out. "Were clear." He says as he climbs up. I'm the last to exit and I pull out my scroll to check the time.
'19:08'
"Alright we got two minutes to spare, pickup's just around the corner let's go!" I says as I take the lead, I run around the corner and I can see the harbor as we approach the pick up. I look to harbor as I see a bullhead flying low, maybe twenty feet off the water. After following for about a minute approaches us and pulls a 180, with its ramp door already open we jump off the docks edge into the hovering aircraft. I look back to check to see my eight squad members start to take their seat. I run up to the cockpit's door and bang twice on it.
"PUNCH IT!" I yell. The bullhead begins to ascend as the ramp door closes.
"A job well done brothers! First order of business: Showers!" I order as my squad laughs and few 'thank Oum's' are said amongst them. "At 20:15 we'll meet to debrief, got it?"
"Yes sir!" They say in unison.
As I'm done with my small speech my scroll begins to ring, I look to the screen and Roman's ID comes up as the caller. "Yes Roman?" I speak into my scroll.
"Good job kid, you've exceeded my expectations. I can't tell you how many times I've had partners blow their first mission and end up in jail or even killed." He tells me over the scroll.
"Just had a couple of snags, nothing my brothers couldn't handle." I reply
"Your brothers eh? Funny name for a bunch of animals." He says smugly.
"Roman..." I reply with a bit of hostility.
"Yeah yeah yeah, just messing with you kid. Ease up a little, your new role as leader's getting to you a bit huh?"
"What did you call for?" I ask still a bit annoyed at his remark.
"Business first, I like it kid. Anyway... A rather good opportunity may have just fallen into our laps kid, and by judging by how you did on that mission I want to acquire your skill-set to help over-watch this operation I'm on."
"So we'd be working together?" I ask
"Right-o, I thought would be a good opportunity to see your skills put into action. Now you won't be leading this mission as clearly that will be left to me. But I want you to oversee it and make sure it runs as smooth as possible. I don't have all the details at this moment. But... I can give you some of the information."
"Okay shoot."
"Schnee Dust Company is importing a rather large amount dust in the harbor of Vale. We're going insure that it goes off the books. This can push forward our operation tenfold kid, so I want this to run without a hitch. You in?"
'Schnee's huh? Those Atlas assholes that discriminate against my teammates. Perfect.'
"I'm in."
Three-peat! Once I started this chapter I couldn't stop until it was finished. Out of all the chapters I've written I have to say this one just flowed out the smoothest. It will probably be a week before I have time to get another chapter out. But I get holiday leave for three weeks after so I'll have a plethora of writing time. Thanks for all the PM's I've gotten so far, the positive response is the main reason I've been churning out chapters so quickly. Also if you guys haven't seen the new RWBY episode all I have to say is "damn." Anyways until next time. -MidKnight209