A/N: Surprise, I'm not dead, and neither is this story! I'm gonna try to have some more regular updates from here out, much sooner than this one. I want my work to be good, not just fast. Be patient with me!


Snowbird

Three years ago...

Falcon straightened up in her chair, adjusting her headset one more time. This was the day she had been preparing all week for—the day she would finally be able to do something other than sit in her room doing nothing. She had spent all week studying diligently and training, all in preparation for today.

Frost had a room prepared next door for her to work from, a small office with a Terminal and several computers set up. Now, Falcon was sitting in front of three monitors, making some final preparations. To be honest with herself, she was nervous as hell. This would be the first time Frost had allowed her to do anything since the accident. That wasn't what had her worried though, she was confident in her training. What scared her was the idea that she would be responsible for today's mission. No, that wasn't it either. The real fear for her was that the lives of three God Eaters would be in her hands, starting very soon. The team consisted of Oni, Ocelot, and Aki. This was not expected to be a hard mission, so Frost only had three God Eaters on this expedition.

In a way, having familiar faces at her command was reassuring. In another, the pressure to protect them was almost overwhelming. Falcon took a deep breath and checked her readings yet again. She opened the video link and found her team waiting just outside the gates of Frostpeak. The mission hadn't even begun yet, but seeing everyone safe and ready to go was reassuring all the same. Ocelot had agreed to wear a headset camera during the mission, but Falcon knew she might not always have a visual option. Still, it was comforting for today.

"I can't believe this. Why'd I get stuck with the commandant's brat as our operator?" Oni griped as he leaned against the wall, "That child doesn't know a damn thing about what she's doing."

Falcon had to take a deep breath to avoid saying something rude to his comment. Concentrate on the mission, she told herself, ignore Oni and focus on your job...

"You didn't have to come," Aki glared at the elder God Eater, "Frost said this is a voluntary expedition. You could've-"

"I had to come! Somebody's got to keep you brats in line." Oni shot his own glare to the two of them. "You kids better not embarrass me, get it?"

"Screw you, Captain Sunshine!" Ocelot waved a hand dismissively at Oni, turning away. Falcon had to bite her lip to halt a giggle. Seeing Oni get blown off like that was satisfying, but she had to focus. Letting her emotions get the better of her could cost lives.

"Hello, focus guys? Save that anger for the Aragami, yeah?" Aki interjected casually. "Speaking of, what are we hunting today?"

"Did you forget already? Idiot. We have a Chi-You in the valley. Your job is to kill it and come back with your limbs attached, so don't go getting yourselves eaten on my watch."

"Well! Up yours, you grumpy old fart," Aki muttered back as he flipped the bird at him.

"Try not to get so worked up," Falcon cut in, "I don't want any casualties."

"I know..." Ocelot snorted and changed the subject, "Hey, how are you doing in there Falcon? Ready for this? It's kind of your first mission."

"Yeah!" Falcon nodded enthusiastically, even though she knew they could not see her. "I've been waiting all week for today. I am ready to help!"

"You better be. I won't forgive mistakes."

"Ignore Oni. I believe in us. We'll kill that thing and be back before lunch." Ocelot looked off towards the approaching chopper and hoisted his spear on a shoulder. "Here comes our ride. Showtime, guys."

Aki and Ocelot walked towards the chopper. Oni, meanwhile, opted to trail behind until the helicopter landed. Falcon smiled and watched her team, switching to Ocelot's camera as they loaded the Arcs and boarded. This was it. Falcon took another deep breath to psyche herself up. Even though she wasn't on the mission personally, she still felt a mix of nerves and excitement. Falcon checked her readings again before returning to the video feed.

Ocelot sprawled casually across his seat and stretched. "So, Chi-You huh? Probably should've asked what your load-out is, Aki."

Aki hummed an acknowledgment. "The usual: my hammer and my shotgun. Made sure to build some crushing bullets for breaking its legs up."

He turned to the officer. "Oni?"

"You know I always use my Buster Blade. Nothing more reliable than a big-ass sword."

"Uh, really? But it's resistant to slashing-"

"I do what I do. Worry about yourself!"

"Why do I bother..." Ocelot shook his head and turned back to Aki. "Well, I got my rifle and my spear. I'll focus on the head and body if you nail its legs with that hammer."

"Solid plan. Sound good to you, Oni?" Aki's question only earned a grunt from Oni. "Seriously, Oni? Quit being like that."

Falcon decided to step in, "Oni, work with the team. That's an order, you hear me?" When she heard nothing but silence from him, she sighed again. Oni was so hard to understand. He could be standoffish, rude, and arrogant, but he was also damn good at slaying Aragami and had a knack for field strategy. His lack of trust in the team worried her to no end and worsened her uncertainty. Was she really ready to lead him when he wouldn't even listen to his peers?

To assuage her doubt, she checked the radar again. The only major reading she was picking up was the Chi-You, still a good distance away. There were a number of insignificant, smaller readings too, but she was sure they were just small fry. The rest of the journey was uneventful, and the chopper approached the landing zone with no issues.

Falcon pulled up her map of the mission area. It was a valley walled by sheer cliffs. There was the remains of a ruined village here, but it had been abandoned long before the Aragami showed up. Nowadays, there was little reason to come here, save to train or slay Aragami. Surveys showed a high occurrence of Fallen Ogretails and Zygotes, but larger Aragami were uncommon here. That was part of what made the Chi-You's appearance here noteworthy.

"Well, this is it, team," she advised, "The target is in the east part of the valley. Watch out for avalanches and take it down quickly."

"Will do," Aki replied.

Ocelot shouldered his spear. "No time like the present, eh? Let's get hunting."

It didn't take the three of them long to find their target. It was crouched over the corpse of a Zygote, munching on pieces with graphic sounds. Falcon watched them approach worriedly, her training failing her momentarily.

This is no time to falter. Start with the basic strategies. She shook her head to refocus and said, "There's the mark. Two Ogretail signatures detected as well. Advise eliminating the small Aragami first before engaging target."

Ocelot rolled a shoulder to stretch. "Welp, you heard her. Let's bag 'em all, starting with the small-fry. Where are those Ogretails?"

Falcon was pleasantly surprised at how well they were taking to her advice. Maybe she was being overly cautious. Maybe. It wouldn't do to get careless. "I'm detecting them both to the east. You could split up and keep the Aragami separated. Alternately, you might take the Ogretails down first, or maybe get the Chi-You and just hope the Ogretails don't join up. What do you think?"

Ocelot hummed. "I like the first idea best. Aki, you and me split up and tag those Ogretails. Oni, keep the Chi-You off our asses." Ocelot shot the elder God Eater a look. "You in?"

"I've got that bird. You two get those Ogretails." Oni hoisted his blade to a ready position, "Leave it to me."

Falcon blinked in surprise. Oni always had this jarringly odd way of shifting personalities when on the battlefield. She first noticed it the day she helped defend Frostpeak with nothing but her training God Arc two years ago. In just a moment, he would become this calculating, cool veteran, and when not engaged he would revert to being an asshole again. Falcon was never quite sure why or when he would do this.

Oni rushed ahead, baring his blade at the Chi-You. Ocelot took the chance to take the side path, with Aki close behind. Falcon could hear the Chi-You cry out in rage as Oni engaged it.

"Are we closing in?" asked Aki, "I don't see the enemy..."

Falcon checked her readings for the hundredth time. She saw two small Oracle signatures, but that there was no visual on them was unnerving. "Stay sharp, guys. I don't like this," she warned as she remained vigilant for her team. Losing visual of Oni worried Falcon more than she wanted to admit. His readings were steady, and that was reassuring. She returned to the visual, reminding herself mentally that losing focus might mean losing lives.

o-o-o-o-o

"There they are!" Aki paused and gestured with his God Arc at the two Aragami ahead, "Two Ogretails at 2 o'clock!"

Ocelot and Aki split and ducked to either side of a rock outcropping. The targets did not yet seem to notice the God Eaters behind them; they were too busy devouring something on the ground. Ocelot smirked impishly and switched to his rifle. It was just these Ogretails here. He had full confidence in his skill. Plus, there was a part of him that wanted to show off for Falcon. He knew she would be watching this mission carefully: it was her first mission as operator and Ocelot wanted this mission to be perfect—both for his sake and hers.

Ocelot shot Aki a meaningful wink, and he nodded and readied his hammer. Ocelot whooped out a battle-cry and opened fire on the closest Ogretail as Aki charged forward. Both Aragami spun and roared as Aki slammed into the right-most one with a swing of his hammer. The beast was flung mid-roar against the valley wall, and the second one started to rush Ocelot. The one still standing upright closed its distance. Ocelot took a second to dodge its charge and switch to melee form. He took a moment to decide on a tactic before deciding to meet the creature head-on. The Ogretail charged dumbly right into range, and Ocelot let loose with his spear. He took advantage of the narrow terrain to keep darting behind the beast and away from its jaws. It only took a few moments to fell the Aragami. He finished up with a quick devour.

"Wow, great job!" he heard Falcon cheer, "You took that one down easy!"

Ocelot took his headset off and grinned into the camera, "Ogretails are nothing to me. Now to take down that other one."

"No need," Aki said as he hoisted his hammer over a shoulder and climbed over the decaying corpse of his target, "it's over. Quit clowning around, Ocelot! We still got that Chi-You to deal with!"

"Nicely done you two. Regroup with Oni and finish the job!" Ocelot put his headset back on as Falcon continued, "Oh and Ocelot, no showboating, okay? Try and stay focused."

Ocelot ran a hand through his hair, mildly chagrined at Falcon's chiding. "Yeah, yeah, don't worry so much. I've taken on Aragami way scarier than a stupid-"

A loud scream over the radio interrupted Ocelot. He winced and turned back towards the clearing instinctively. His wariness was confirmed by what Falcon said, "S-stay sharp Oni! Get back and recover! Ocelot, Aki, rendezvous with Oni ASAP!"

Ocelot shook his head, "So much for him holding that Aragami down. C'mon, Aki, let's rejoin the hunt." Ocelot's good mood was diminished. He knew what he heard. If Falcon said something like that, Oni was... Ocelot shook his head to refocus. He had a mission to do. As he and Aki emerged back into the clearing, he found the situation looking a bit more grim than he hoped.

Oni was hiding behind a ruined vehicle. He wasn't engaging the enemy for some reason. His back was to Ocelot's view, so he couldn't tell much from here. "Aki, go for the bird! I'll patch up Oni!" He heard Aki acknowledge him as he made a beeline for Oni's position. Aki quickly closed his distance, firing shotgun blasts as he strafed around the Chi-You. Ocelot, meanwhile, ducked behind the vehicle.

"You okay, Oni?" he asked.

Oni squinted and looked up at him. Now, Ocelot could see he was clutching his side and seemed weak. "What the hell's it look like? Damn bird got me good..."

"Hang in there, I got you." Ocelot set up a Restore Post and poked his head up over the vehicle. His timing was bad, and the Chi-You spotted him. It growled and beckoned at him with an arm-wing.

"Shit!" Ocelot leaped out from behind the vehicle and armed his gun. As he engaged the Aragami with gunfire, Aki closed in with his hammer. He heard Oni pick up the pace nearby. Ocelot briefly found it odd that he'd be grateful for Oni's presence before returning his attention to the Aragami. He noticed the Chi-You's head and legs were unbound.

Falcon's voice cut through the chaos, "Okay, everyone's vitals are back in the green. Ocelot, concentrate on spear attacks to the head! Oni, aim for the legs, and Aki you unbind its wings! Keep one eye on your health, guys!"

Ocelot acknowledged her advice, then took aim at the Chi-You's head. He noticed the beast was weakening. It wouldn't be long now. Smirking to himself, Ocelot took several leaping dives at the bird's head as Aki slammed its legs. The bird finally fell to its knees, and all three God Eaters converged on it at once. In a matter of moments, the weakened Aragami fell.

o-o-o-o-o

"G-good job team! That's one Chi-You down!" Falcon congratulated her team. She simply sat there for several long minutes, only able to stare at her monitor, hands shaking, hoping that trembling wasn't showing in her voice. Her first mission... a success! Falcon started chuckling, then laughing, all in relief.

"Uh, Falcon? You alright?" Aki's query snapped Falcon from her fit.

"Er, ahem! Good work everyone. Looks like there's no further Oracle signs. Head out to exfil for pickup."

"We lived, no thanks to your blundering. Consider this a good day, whelp." Oni snorted.

"Oni! Don't be a jackass!" Falcon heard Ocelot scold the elder God Eater, but Falcon's mind was still hanging on what Oni said. He wasn't wrong. Thanks to her miscalculation, he was pinned down by the Aragami. She couldn't even form a plan to save him. If it hadn't been for Ocelot and Aki...

As if sensing her malaise, Ocelot said, "Don't worry too much. Oni's delivery could use work, but he's right. We pulled it off with your leadership. That's a win for us, right?"

"Yeah... a win! We did it team, we did it. Good work." Falcon replied, just as much to reassure herself as to congratulate her team. This was a good day.

"Well done."

Falcon looked up from her monitor so quickly, her headset almost fell off. Frost was standing right there, a small smile on his face. Falcon burst into a huge grin at his praise.

"I did it. I did it!" she blurted, "I hope you're proud of me, sir!"

He ruffled her hair. "Not bad for your first mission. I'm impressed. You took to your work like a fish to water."

"It feels so good to work for a change. If you think I did well enough, may I lead more missions in the future?"

"I'll have to review the stats, but I don't see why not," said Frost. Falcon couldn't stifle a scream of joy as she shot to her feet.

"Hey, whoa!" Aki's voice startled her momentarily, "Next time you scream like that, mute your mike! My ears are ringing..."

"Oops..." Falcon felt more than a little sheepish at her outburst. Her embarrassment was lessened by Frost's approving smile. Falcon could not hold back another smile. At this rate, she would be ready for any mission Frostpeak could throw at her. Falcon was proud, and judging by the rare smile on Frost's face, he was proud of her too.