Chapter 19: No brakes
Herman gazed over the dead city. His vantage point gave him a good view, but so far, he was not having much luck in finding any signs of life, with the exception of the hunters below him.
Below him, a dog whined and scarpered off, much to the alarm of the sniper-scythe girl. She followed the puppy. Herman shifted uneasily, unsure of what to do.
He rose, electing to stalk the girl. Not out of any innate predatory instinct, but out of the belief that doing something was preferable to doing nothing at all. Though perhaps his instinct were kicking in too; a lack of hormone inhibitor pills led to his mind wandering onto other sorts of matters.
Once more he smacked himself, clearing his mind. He carefully mad his way down the scaffolding and around the corner of the building, where her voice was strongest. He leaned around the corner.
"Zwei! It's an abandoned city! You can do that anywhere." Even when exasperated, her voice retained that pure, sweet tone.
Private Grauer, you keep that up and soon you'll be having a seat over there, he mentally chastised himself.
Suddenly the girl tensed up, causing Herman to freeze. Her attention was directed elsewhere, so Herman leaned in further, wolf ears standing at attention. Off in the distance, he could make out faint conversation.
The girl readied her sniper, prompting Herman to press the butt of the carbine against his shoulder. Looks like there would be some action soon.
She ran off in the direction of the voices, though Herman was mildly amused to notice how her movements were less stealthy, albeit fast. The dog took off after her, and Herman followed it, making sure to keep downwind from the pup. One sniff, and it would be onto him.
The trio moved on until they came to a sudden halt. The puppy ran ahead to its master, allowing Herman to move up closer. He hunkered behind a green dumpster, observing the location.
Following the girl was the right choice. He observed the two White Fang members entering a derelict building. The girl readied her weapon and stepped forward.
Suddenly there was a shaking of the earth, and Herman watched in horror as the ground gave way beneath her. The poor girl never had a chance as the pavement seemed to swallow her up, leaving only the weapon and the now alarmed dog behind.
Shit, what should he do? Reluctant to return to face the hunting party, Herman moved up until the very edge of the hole. The dog noticed him and barked, but Herman did not care.
The hole was pitch black, with no way of telling how far down it went. That girl could be seriously injured, or worse. Each passing second was agonizing, compounded when the barking dog ran back, presumably to alert the rest.
Herman picked up the sniper rifle and looked at his carbine. He aimed down the scope. It just didn't feel right to him.
Nah, sniper rifles were not really his style. He left it where it lay and grabbed the carbine. His ears perked up at the sound of voices and loud footsteps.
Should he stay and face the bullets? Or take the jump and risk broken bones?
Well, he didn't have an Aura for nothing. Anyway, bones could heal.
Gritting his teeth, he closed his eyes and focused his Aura before leaping down into the abyss.
He landed on his feet, letting out a gasp at the sudden shock of pain that ran up his ankles, but he could still move. Well, at the very least nothing was broken. Quickly he surveyed the surrounding area. It was a dark, disused room with two doors; one on the left and the other on the right.
The one on the left was shut, so he shuffled over to the right, which was left ajar. There was sound of whistling and footsteps rapidly approaching. Herman hid behind the door as a guard walked right past him.
"Raindrops keep falling on my head..." he hummed before Herman smashed him around the head with the carbine. Stunned, the guard fell but Herman caught him, not wanting to alert the others by the sound. Gently setting him by the door, Herman proceeded.
What he saw took his breath away. An underground base, like the one in Atlas. But the Atlas Base was consisted of sprawling passageways and rooms carved into the rock beneath the surface, while this was wide open and stocked to the roof with supplies. Forklifts were everywhere, with groups of two and three Fang members spotted about. Down one passage, he saw the helpless girl being carried towards the train tracks at the very end.
Sneaking about the shadows would not help, for the Faunus had senses as keen as his. To his left he saw a walkway leading down a hall. He followed that path, only to find himself face to face with a technician. The man gulped nervously, whiskers twitching. Herman put on his best predatory grin, unnerving the Faunus further. This one was no fighter.
"Please don't hurt me!" He squeaked when Herman aimed the carbine at him.
"Keep your voice down, else I'll put a bullet through your throat." That shut him up.
"Where is the central power at?" Herman pushed the carbine against the Faunus's throat.
"Hey! What are you doing here!" A voice called from down the hallway. Herman whipped around to see two more White Fang members. Both had axes.
Going silent was no longer an option. He fired at them, dropping both of them where they stood. They cried out in pain, clutching their arms and legs. If the gunshots had not alerted the base, their cries certainly had.
Herman whipped around to see the technician scurry away on all fours, his scabby grey tail stuck up in the air behind him. On the end of the hallway, more thugs showed up.
Herman advanced, firing semi-automatic bursts. From below, he was taking more gunfire, prompting him to take cover. More Faunus appeared on the opposite end of the walkway.
Something landed between his legs, and he knew exactly what that something was. He leapt over the side just as the grenade exploded, shattering the crate and setting off the Dust within. The walkway creaked and groaned.
Herman was falling, with shots whizzing past him. He landed upon an unfortunate White Fang member, causing the fellow to collapse and drop his weapon. Losing no time, Herman grabbed him and held his body between him and the bullets as he backed up against the wall. One hand gripped his captive round the neck, the other aimed the carbine over said captive's shoulder, firing off bursts.
The sight of their captured comrade prompted a few to stop firing, with the bursts from the carbine encouraging the rest to take cover. Damn, he was up against a wall, and had no way out.
There was an explosion in the distance, followed by more gunfire. Immediately there was a wild stampede of masked White Fang members, and had Herman not pressed up against the wall he would have been trampled. Gibbering and squealing, they ran towards the train on the far end. The walkway creaked once more, and metal sheets began fall, accompanied by those who stood upon the walkway. One member landed right on another, knocking the two out, and Herman had to shove his captive away and roll out of the way of a large part of the collapsing walkway.
The smoke cleared, and Herman's heart rose to his throat.
The hunting party had arrived. Well, time to leave. He turned and ran with the rest, firing shots in the air to encourage those who tried to stop and fight.
Immediately, a huge force tackled him and he went flying into one of the storage racks. Winded, he kicked off his assailant and rose, carbine ready. What he heard and saw next made him drop his weapon.
"H-Herman?"
Heidi rose, brushing her midnight-black hair out of her eyes. Unlike the rest of the White Fang members, she was attired differently.
She wore a full set of armor which resembled a gladiator from the history books. The entire set was a light blue with hints of white, and from the back of her visored helmet a pure white plume projected out, drooping over at the back of her cuirass. Beneath the armor she wore a belted black leather skirt. Yet behind the helmet, Herman could see a certain weariness on Heidi's face.
"Cat still got your tongue?" she asked, a hint of a smile playing upon her lips.
"Nice set of armor you got." Herman wasn't sure of what else to say. The familiar tingling in his skull was back.
Then, in a flash she had two swords at his throat. Both were symmetrical long curved blades, like a cross of longsword and scimitar. Oddly enough, there were two small holes in the flat, one on the edge of each sword.
"Why did you leave us?" She said, hurt evident in her voice. Herman narrowed his eyes. The hint of a smile had left her lips.
"Do you really believe the White Fang is working for our betterment? That our methods are right?" Anger filled Herman's tone.
"Shut up. You're a traitor." She pressed the steel closer to his neck, but was repulsed by his Aura.
"If that's how you see me, I'm hurt. I thought we were friends." Herman replied evenly.
"We were. But don't you see what Supreme Commander Adam-"
"Last I checked, Sienna Khan was the leader of the Fang, Adam her subordinate. Unless something else has happened?" Herman was slightly confused now.
"Sienna's losing her touch. It's only a matter of time she steps down, and Adam will lead us to a glorious future." She spoke with utmost conviction.
"You seem to know quite a bit about the politics of our organization." Herman said, trying to put her at ease, before sighing and closing his eyes as the cold blades tightened about his neck.
"Do it, then."
The cold metal shook, scraping against his skin. He opened his eyes, only to see tears trickling from her apple-green eyes. This close, he could see bags beneath them, and a general reddish tinge about the sclera. Her face had taken a hazy look, her eyes staring a thousand miles into the distance. He knew that look; he had seen it many times while washing his face in ponds and lakes.
"I was loyal, too. I was training to be one of their best operatives; yet I'm here. Why do you think that is?"
"Shut up!" Heidi sobbed. "I know you wouldn't leave without any reason, and I too….I've done too much for them."
"I'm no angel either. Remember the POWs we captured? The heist? The camp?"
Now Heidi's arms were hanging loosely by her sides as she weakly clutched the handles of the blades.
"Fear begets hatred. Hatred begets violence. Violence begets violence. The cycle continues. No-one wins if everyone dies in the end. That's why you've got to come with me." He remembered how Heidi told him about the organization's social work, their positive aspects. At that moment, Herman realized the problem was not the Fang, but the senior leadership infecting the organization. And they would have to go.
"Together, we can take out those responsible for the suffering. Otherwise, we'll die alone." Herman tried desperately to convince his only friend.
She looked at him and wiped her eyes.
"Okay." and offered her hand.
It didn't matter that they were surrounded by potential hostiles or Grimm, nor his court date, nor what Ozpin would say when he got back. That one word swept his worries to the wind, filled his heart until it got dangerously close to bursting.
He took her hand and pulled her up.
"Let's give 'em hell." She grinned, lighting up the darkness. Herman looked around and saw the hunting party approaching.
"But first, let's get out of their way."
"Friends of yours?"
"Nope. But we'll see about that. Follow me." They weaved between the cargo racks, evading the occasional shot directed their way.
"What's with the train?" Herman asked.
"Uh...well." Heidi was reluctant to answer
"Well?"
"Supplies, robots, the works." Robots? This was new.
"Atlesian Paladins." She explained. Herman grimaced. Those things would take some firepower to take down.
He held up his hand. They were nearing the train now, and Herman could see an orange haired man in a top hat holding the sniper-scythe girl hostage with his cane. However, the rush of retreating White Fang members also caused him to fall back, allowing the hostage to get up.
"Follow." Herman commanded and they rushed past the girl and into the darkness of the tunnel. The enemy was too busy clambering into rail cars and bolting down equipment to notice them, though occasionally, Herman would have to take cover and return fire. A burly Fang member leapt from the train, descending with his axe. Heidi sprang into action, sheathing her swords and kicking upwards. Her armored heel connected with his stomach, breaking the assailant's attack and making his eyes bulge out dangerously. Winded, the Faunus fell. He tried to get up, but Heidi had her blades round his neck.
"Heidi, stop!" Herman cried out in alarm, raising his arm as he did so. She looked at him, puzzled.
"Try not to kill the low-level grunts." She nodded and smacked the Faunus over the head with the hilt of her sword, knocking him out. "We should try our best to incapacitate, but-"
"I gotcha." Heidi interrupted as she jerked her elbow backwards, connecting it with the nose of another WF trooper, who collapsed like a sack of potatoes.
"Let's get aboard, try to damage as much equipment as we can." She suggested. Herman climbed aboard and helped Heidi up, swinging round to parry another Faunus, who had attacked him with his sword.
Herman kicked the attacker's knee, dropping him and bashing him over the head with the carbine. They proceeded down the carriage, eliminating enemies along the way, for the basic grunts of the Fang were no match for both of them.
Finally, they reached a locked door at the far end. Inside a weary, resigned voice could be heard.
"I did not put this bomb here. I did not, It's bullshit, It's not true. I did not." Herman knew that voice. Seems like today would be full of surprises. He kicked down the door and advanced, carbine ready.
Beckendorf, clad in the standard White Fang attire turned to face them in all his antlered glory. Behind him another recruit cowered in fear upon their arrival, but Beckendorf didn't seem bothered at all.
"Oh, hai Herman." he said nonchalantly. But Herman's attention was fixed on the bomb in the middle of the compartment.
"Bombs?" He looked at Heidi. She shrugged.
"I know, right? They are all over the train. So damn annoying. And on top of that, they locked me in here. ME! Oh, when I meet that little heterochromic girl I'll give her a talking to..." Herman had no idea what Beckendorf was rambling on about.
"Let's just head out of here." he suggested, cutting off Beckendorf's rant.
"I guess. Lemme just get my clipboard." The reindeer began to rummage around. The nervous-looking aide, however quaked in fear. Then he stood up and tapped Beckendorf's arm.
"What is it?" He asked, annoyed.
"Sir...haven't you noticed? It's the traitor!" the aide squealed nervously. Beckendorf just looked at him, exasperated.
"Do you think I give a damn? After all the shit the Fang has put me through?" He yelled back, making the aide cringe and cower further.
"Beckendorf...what did they put you through?" Herman asked. Beckendorf faced him and sighed.
"You'd think being in the Supply Corps is an easy job, one those on the frontline lust for. But I'll be damned if it isn't anything but sheer buggery every day. The fucking commissars sniffing up your ass-and I DO NOT mean that metaphorically-the bloody paperwork one has to file every day, and the fact that every goddamn time you want something done, you've got to move heaven and earth for it. Sometimes I think of killing myself, because my life is just so...I don't know, dreary." Beckendorf turned back to the crate he was rummaging about in, pulled out a quiver full of arrows and tossed it at Heidi, who caught it.
"Yeah, these are the ones you requested. They are also color-coded by dust type." She gratefully slung them over her back. Herman was deep in thought. If Beckendorf was as fed up as he claimed, then he too could come along.
"Hey Beckendorf? Why don't you come along with me?" Beckendorf slowly turned to face Herman, his eyes glinting. There was a long silence.
"You want me to renounce my allegiance, earn the enduring hatred of every Fang member and leave my cushy, albeit boring job?" Beckendorf said, slowly. Herman nodded.
"Ahhh, fuck it. Life is short." Beckendorf tossed the clipboard aside and grabbed a pistol from the munitions crate. This treachery was too much for the aide, who fainted.
"But first." Beckendorf said, pulling on his Grimm mask, "I sure as hell am not going to let them I.D. me easily." Before Herman could react, Beckendorf grabbed the aide and draped him over his shoulder.
"I kind of like this guy, so I'll be taking him along." The train began to rumble along the tracks, and the bomb began to beep. Anxious to get out, Herman stumbled after Beckendorf, Heidi in tow. Above them they could make out a heavy thunk, thunk, thunk as if some giant was lumbering along the roof of the carriage.
"Herman, be a dear chap and open up that hatch over there and take a peek outside." Beckendorf calmly said even as the familiar roaring of guns came from the top. Herman ascended the ladder and peeked his head out.
In front of him stood the huge white frame of an Atlesian Paladin, weapons ready and trained on him. Suddenly, a red-yellow projectile smashed into its chest piece, keeling the massive mech over. Instead, in its place a puppy stood. Behind it, Herman could see more Paladins as well as multiple Fang members crawling out of the hatches. He looked back, and saw that very sniper-scythe girl along with the fast-talking, green haired huntsman. He really needed to come up with better names for them.
Bullets plinked on the metal around him, encouraging Herman to duck below.
"Well?" Heidi asked.
"We've got White Fang soldiers ahead of us, a couple of hunters who may or may not be friendly behind us." he responded. There was a hammering on the supply carriage door, prompting them to move into cover. Herman and Beckendorf trained their weapons on the door, while Heidi smacked the hilts of her swords together. They clicked as the came together, and a targeting optic flicked out from the side of the conjoined hilt. Heidi slipped a high-tensile bowstring from the quiver and hurriedly began to tie it through the two holes. The door broke down, and four heavily armored troops barged in. They charged, firing their shotguns. Beckendorf was suppressed, the aide slumped next to him. Herman was able to take down one by aiming at an exposed point at knee. If only he had Nihil, it would be so much easier.
Over the din of gunfire, Beckendorf yelled at Herman.
"Is it just me, or has your accuracy has gone down?" This struck Herman as an odd thing to say in a gunfight.
"What do you mean?" he yelled back.
"On the few missions we did together, you always aimed to kill!" Herman grimaced and leaned out of cover to fire off a few rounds at a soldier who was trying to help his wounded comrade back to cover. Herman emptied the entire clip, and froze in shock when the enemy Faunus grabbed his chest and fell down, unmoving. Did he just penetrate the armor and kill the soldier? Sure, looked like it.
"Yeah! That's the Private Grauer I know!" Beckendorf yelled in encouragement. But Herman felt that old familiar rottenness. He had promised Ozpin not to kill, yet he did so anyway. 12-Gauge dust rounds chipped away at his cover, but he lay there frozen.
Was killing all he was good at? Who was he to stop other people, if he couldn't stop himself?
"Hush, boys." Heidi said, slotting an arrow into her bow. She rose and fired at the third soldier, whose shoulder was exposed. The arrow struck, and unleashed a shockwave of electricity. The two remaining soldiers were jilted out of cover, and they wobbled around before collapsing on the floor, spasming.
Behind them, Heidi and Herman could hear more footsteps. She looked at him for askance.
"That would most presumably be the hunting party." He said.
"The blokes who may or may not be friends?" Beckendorf asked. Herman nodded.
"Then I suppose we ought to move up. But first, chuck that bomb out." Beckendorf responded. Herman got up and dragged the bomb back. Setting aside the carbine, he lifted the heavy payload and tossed it out of the moving carriage. As he did so, Herman could see that the Grimm were now pursuing them as well. The bomb bounced along the tracks before exploding, obliterating some of the Grimm as well as causing the carriages to sway about dangerously. Herman fell forward, but was able to grab a handle by the carriage door. Heidi sprang to the rescue and yanked him back in.
"Thanks."
"Don't mention it."
The door behind them was kicked open, and in came Blondie, the Cat Faunus and Weiss Schnee. Upon spotting the trio, they raised their weapons. Beckendorf and Heid did so too.
"Wait!" Herman sprang between them. Both parties slightly lowered their weapons, but only slightly. Facing the hunting party, Herman spoke quickly before they decided to get any ideas.
"We're not the enemy; pass and leave us be." Even as the words came out of his mouth, they sounded lame.
"Why should we trust you?" Blondie asked, raising her shotgun gauntlets.
"You're right. You shouldn't. But fighting us is just a waste of time, which you can't afford. There are bombs on this train. Beckendorf, you know where this is heading?" he asked, hoping Beckendorf would answer. He paused a bit, before speaking.
"The tracks lead to Vale." Herman had what he needed to convince them.
"So, are you going to waste time fighting us? Or do something about those bombs? Clock's ticking. Vale's getting closer. " He had them now.
"Fine." The Blondie spoke, and the entourage passed them by. But as Blondie passed Herman, she grasped him firmly by the arm and whispered into his ear.
"This isn't over. I'll be keeping an eye on you." Herman responded with a stony glare.
She hurried off, leaving them alone.
"We had best get topside. I feel like we would not want to be down here when shit hits the fan." They nodded, and up the ladder the trio went. Herman was first up, and now he saw they were behind the sniper-scythe girl and the huntsman.
Lying prone, he crawled forth and fired bursts at the many assailants that charged. Beckendorf followed suit with his pistol, and Heidi dropped to a knee while loosing an explosive arrow at the Atlesian Paladin at the far end. It stumbled, but regained its footing. Fortunately, a few rockets and a slew of explosive arrows were enough to turn it into fiery chunks of metal.
Herman crawled forward, firing as he moved. The huntsman turned to face him, his rocket launcher morphing into a flamethrower. And it was pointed at him.
"Friendorfoe?" he jabbered.
"What?" asked Herman, dumbfounded.
"Friend, or foe." Even when slowing down his speech, the huntsman talked fast.
"Friend." That satisfied him; the weapon now switched to a thermos from which the huntsman took a swig. Herman wondered how he kept the Dust, brass (for the rockets) and the liquid separate.
The gunfire snapped him back to reality, and he and his squad mates laid down suppressive fire while the sniper-scythe girl charged.
Slowly but surely, they worked their way up the carriage. However, halfway through, there were a series of explosions from below, rupturing the carriages. This time the train jumped off the tracks, and Herman felt quite giddy. Heidi lost her footing and slipped, but Herman grabbed her hand. They skidded across the roof, but Beckendorf grabbed Herman's hand and clung for dear life onto the side of the carriage.
The train was skidding now, bucking about over sections of damaged track. Abruptly, Herman found himself flying forward along with Heidi, Beckendorf, the sniper-scythe girl and the huntsman.
The last thing he heard before blacking out was the screeching of devastated metal, the crunching of concrete, and the victorious roaring of the Grimm.