Chapter 22...
Asher's eyes shot open when he heard a beep and a groan, but his vision was obscured by the two tufts of fur sticking into his eyes. Mauve was inside the bedroll with him, she had crawled in the night before just as he was starting to fall asleep.
Unfortunately, their cozy situation was ruined by the incessant beeping of a scroll alarm, followed by another groan from Sage.
"Kill the noise…" Sage begged, ducking deeper into his bedroll to avoid the sunlight that streamed through the windows.
"Oh hush, Sage… the hangover will pass," Rust muttered, the massive boy stretching his arms as he sat up. He rolled over and tapped his scroll, ending the alarm. "We'll get you a coffee or something… you'll feel better."
Rust pulled his legs out of his bedroll and began rummaging around in his rucksack to prepare his toiletries.
"Come on," Asher heard Mauve mutter into his chest. The lynx girl gave him a quick peck on the lips and wiggled out of his arms, leaving the bedroll and taking the warmth with her. Asher sighed and moved to join his team (minus Sage) in getting up. Mauve had informed them the night before that she had arranged for the bullhead pilot to pick them up early in the afternoon; this was so that they could take the chance to sleep in a little. Still… daylight was wasting… and preparations for the flight back to Vale had to be dealt with.
Rust eventually dragged a grumbling Sage out of his bedroll, the green haired boy cursing and groaning. Sage reached an arm out blindly and snatched his pillow, covering his face.
"You brought this on yourself, Sage." Mauve chided, stalking off towards the bathroom.
Rust grimaced as he observed his prone friend, "I won't deny my involvement…"
"I'm not drinking ever again…" Sage groaned in response.
Asher sighed and dug into his pack to pull out a pack of instant coffee. Setting up the hot plate all Beacon away-teams were provided, Asher retrieved some sink water and set it to boil. In a few minutes there was a small pot of brewed coffee… enough for four small cups. Asher retrieved a steaming cup of the sludgy liquid and waved it in front of Sage's pillow covered face.
"I smell coffee…" Sage groaned. "I hate coffee…"
"You'll feel better," supported Rust. "Caffeine takes the edge off of headaches… it's either this or another hour of agony, Sage."
Sage groaned again and dropped the pillow, reaching up to accept the cup and nurse it in his hands. He took several small sips, grimacing in disgust each time he swallowed, but the cloudiness left his eyes after a while.
"Thanks," Sage muttered as he set down the empty cup.
"No problem," Asher replied, downing his own cup in a single gulp. "Instant coffee tastes like shit… but the extra energy is so worth it."
At this point, Mauve exited the bathroom and Rust took the next chance to get changed. After some time the four teammates were ready to face the day, packing up their bed rolls and supplies to leave the house as clean as possible. They were wearing their usual combat outfits again, they had been neatly cleaned and pressed. It was approaching the time when the bullhead was supposed to pick them up and Team MARS made their way to the village gates. They received congratulatory and thankful praise from the citizenry as they filed down the cobblestone streets.
Standing at the gates was the familiar bearded face of Jameson.
"You four all set to head out?" The scraggly man questioned.
"Just about…" replied Sage, shifting his collapsed shield on his forearm.
"I just wanted to say one last thank you… this town is always going to experience hardship… but you guys wiped out the major threat…"
"It was our pleasure," spoke Mauve with a smile, Rust nodded in agreement.
"A perk of this job is seeing the good results!" Rust added cheerfully.
"Say," Jameson began. "We'll be holding another party in the summer months… don't suppose you four are interested in coming back?"
Mauve smiled again. "That sounds excellent… just send us the details by scroll!"
"I will! And I shouldn't hold you four up any longer…"
Jameson stepped forwards and gave each member of Team MARS a hearty handshake, he then motioned for the gate attendants to open the gates.
The gate attendants gave a quick greeting to the team as the village gates were pulled open, revealing that the transport bullhead was already descending in the nearby clearing. Jameson gave one final wave as the Team walked away; the gate closed and the interior of Rifugio was cut off from view.
Team MARS greeted the pilot and hoisted themselves up into the passenger bay; they took a moment to pack their bags before settling in the seats for the hour and a half long ride.
Since the mission was officially over Asher sat next to Mauve and swept an arm over her shoulders, setting his helmet on the floor just before he did so. He was pleased when Mauve settled into his grasp, shifting closer and leaning her head on his shoulder. Sage and Rust were sitting across from them.
"So," Sage began. "Once we get back to Beacon we can start looking at weapon construction… but Rust and I should properly introduce you two to Team VHLT."
"Just name a time and day," replied Asher, feeling Mauve nod in agreement.
"I'm thinking we could invite them over to our dorm one night, maybe we could play cards or something?" Rust suggested.
"But just a friendly game," Sage muttered in response. "No gambling!"
"Well… duh," Rust deadpanned.
The team settled into a quiet conversation, throwing around ideas and plans for how a night with Team VHLT would be spent. Within an hour and twenty minutes of their departure, the aircraft officially entered Vale's airspace.
Up in the cockpit, the pilot was shocked when several emergency signals popped up on the aircrafts communication systems. The heavy wail of Vale's citywide sirens could be heard over the hum of the bullheads engines.
Team MARS was shaken from their conversation when the pilot called out from the cockpit.
"Heads up!" the pilot roared. "Vale's under attack… were rerouting to assist so suit up!"
Rust, Sage, and Asher wasted no time in grabbing their gear and preparing. Mauve snatched her blade sheathes from the cargo racks and strapped them to her back, storming into the cockpit as she did.
"Any idea of the source!?" Mauve questioned.
"Negative…" the pilot replied, his fingers flying over the many buttons on the control panel. "But I can see grimm in the streets from here… fuck… people are running away.
Mauve's blood ran cold.
"Take us there and lower us to a safe dropping distance… how many people can this aircraft fit?"
"Maybe twenty or so if we squeeze in like sardines… we'd have to drop all the cargo though…"
"Then that's what we'll have to do… open the doors and give us a jump signal!" Mauve called, storming back into the passenger bay. Her team was already waiting, fully equipped and awaiting her signal.
"Prepare for a long fall," Mauve called out to her team, unsheathing her blades.
"GO!" the pilot roared over the intercom, the bay doors sliding open to reveal that they were hovering fifteen feet above street level. Below them, a dozen or so civilians were fleeing in terror from two beowulfs, the oversized wolves ripping and overturning cars as they gained ground on the defenseless people.
Team MARS jumped in unison and each utilized their landing strategy. Knowing that an electrical smash was too risky because of collateral damage, Mauve dug Electron into the wall of a nearby building to slow her descent.
The moment Asher hit the ground he drew the Jackhammer and sent two bursts downrange, the bullets shredding the heads of the charging beowulves.
Thankfully, the civilians had seen the hunter team drop and stopped in their tracks. Rust turned to address them and assure them that they would be rescued. Mauve pulled her scroll off her hip and contacted the pilot, opening up a call so they could speak.
"The civilians are secured," Mauve huffed. "Can you land?"
"Negative," the pilot called, the bullhead humming overhead. "There's an intersection down the block that looks pretty clear… escort them there and I can bring 'em to the nearest police station!"
"Roger!" Mauve responded, ending the call. She turned to address her team and the throng of civilians. "Rust, Sage, Asher… I want these civilians covered, we're moving them to a nearby intersection for extraction."
Mauve watched her team nod in affirmation and she turned her attention to the terrified civilians.
"All of you… we'll be loading you on a bullhead and you'll be taken to a police station…" Mauve adopted a serious look. "I need you all to listen and follow exact directions… not doing so will put everyone's life at risk… got it?"
Seeing the civilians nod, Team MARS surrounded the crowd and crept towards the intersection. The trip was thankfully quiet, with alarm klaxons and gunshots echoing in the distance.
The intersection was right ahead and the bullhead hovering above it. The moment the hunter team was in sight the pilot descended and the landing gear touched the pavement, the passenger doors swinging open. The pilot stormed out of the cockpit and pulled open the cargo doors, throwing out Team MARS' luggage to remove any unnecessary weight.
"Move up!" Asher roared, motioning with his free hand to the aircraft. "Everyone start piling on and follow the pilot's directions! Remove any and all unnecessary weight!"
Asher stood next to the civilians as they began boarding, his rifle at the ready. The remainder of Team MARS took up their own defensive positions.
Everything was going well until a screeching call was heard, everyone head swiveling to look down the street they came from. The first grimm that appeared was a creep, a two legged monstrosity with a thick hide that allowed for vicious headbutts and charges. The first creep was joined by a second, the creatures snarling as they cautiously advanced. The next grimm to emerge was an ursa minor, the bear demon snarling as it observed fresh victims.
"Alright…" Sage called. "That's not too bad…"
If jinxing really existed… this was a perfect example of it. As soon as Sage was finished speaking, a massive King Taijitu stormed onto the street. It's two heads snarled and whipped around, its muscular body coiling and whipping at high speeds, demolishing several storefronts as it charged.
"Asher!" Mauve roared. "Stay with the civilians… lets go!"
Asher followed the order, raising his rifle and opening fire on the charging behemoth. Knowing that his teammates would focus on the giant snake Sage shield charged to meet the advancing creeps. The first creep broke into a sprint, leaping over a smashed car to reach Sage. As planned, the creep smacked its head against his shield, Sage rebounded the creature into itself and the creep's neck snapped with a sickening crunch. Unfortunately, the blow was far stronger than Sage anticipated and threw him onto his back, his aura crackling but holding. The second creep took advantage of his vulnerability and pounced on top, roaring to reveal a set of impressive teeth.
Sage yelped as the creep reared up for a bite, only for its head to become encased with ice. Now weighed down, the creep slumped onto its side, giving Sage the chance to wriggle free. Snatching his weapon off the ground, Sage extended the blade and severed the creeps neck, ending its thrashing. Sage spun around to face Asher, snapping him a quick thumbs up as a thank you.
Rust and Mauve had already reduced the ursa to gibs, turning their attention to the gigantic snake. The writhing monster charged past them and Asher rushed forwards to block it from attacking the civilians; Asher dropped to his knee and fired to get its attention. Aggravated, the Taijitu's black head struck down to clamp around Asher's body. Anticipating this, Asher rolled out of the way as the strike obliterated the pavement. Asher unsheathed his knife and stuck it into the snake's vulnerable eye, eliciting a shriek from the monster. Unable to retrieve the knife, the snake pulled its head back up and the white head snapped around to kill Asher, but the helmeted boy used his semblance to escape.
"It's body is thin!" Rust roared out. "I can cut it… but I need an opening!"
"I'm on it!" called Mauve. She blasted forwards and used her electrified blades to deliver a flurry of vicious strikes to the snakes side. Shrieking again, the snake curled up in an attempt to crush her. Mauve jumped up and kicked off the snake's body to get on top of it.
Sage had already scrambled to his feet and moved to protect the civilians, firing his weapon wildly to help his teammates in the frantic battle. Asher also fell back to provide covering fire, his ammunition reserves dwindling. The bullhead was almost ready, stripped of all unnecessary weight with its engines warming up.
Mauve ran up the length of the black snake, stopping when she reached its head. With a roar she slammed her blades into the scales, pumping hundreds of volts of electricity into the beast. While this stunned the creature, it only incentivized it to flail harder in an attempt to buck Mauve off.
Rust took the opportunity to shoot forwards and land a long incision on the side of the creature, rending the flesh. The white head reared around in an attempt to bite him, but Rust sidestepped and fired both barrels of Ruination into its face, shredding its eyes.
Mauve couldn't hold on any longer, one last flail sending her flying. She smashed into the wall of a nearby building and fell roughly to the ground, her aura fizzling. One of her blades had come free and clattered next to her, the other stayed stuck in the snake's head.
"MAUVE!" Asher roared. He tried to charge forwards but Sage held him back.
"I'll get her! You just help Rust!" Sage begged, relieved when Asher followed his advice. Asher stormed off to assist Rust in killing the Taijitu while Sage charged to Mauve's prone position. Sage slid next to her and shook her, relieved when he heard a groan. Sage pulled her towards a wall and leaned her against it. Mauve's face was cut in multiple places but it was nothing too serious. She winced when he grabbed her leg to tuck her into cover.
"Where's your aura?" Sage questioned.
"Gone…"
"Gone!?"
"It's shattered Sage…" Mauve gasped. "I'm out…"
"Fuck! You should have been more careful!" Sage breathed. He jumped back and grabbed the blade that had landed next to her, thrusting it into her hand. "Can you still shoot lightning? Just to defend yourself?"
"Maybe..."
"Stay here!" Sage insisted. He whipped his head around and sighed in relief when he saw the bullhead ascending, the aircraft hovering slowly away from the carnage.
Asher stormed down the street, sliding across the hood of a car as he ran. He trusted Sage to look after Mauve… and Rust needed his help.
"HEY!" Asher roared to get the white heads attention, Rust was busy fighting the black head. The blinded white head turned towards, bearing its ruined fangs and flicking out its tongue to get his scent.
Asher gripped his rifle, he only had a few rifle rounds left and he couldn't afford to miss. Staring down the sights and charging up an explosive round, Asher let it loose. The shot traveled straight into the snarling snakes throat, the creature swallowing with a comical gulp. The white head was deathly still as the explosive dust hemorrhaged and burned its throat.
This was the opening Rust needed, he charged to the side and delivered a wind assisted slash with his axe blades. The strike sliced the two halves of the snake in two, each part slumping down as a river of black blood poured from the stumps. Rust jumped back and Asher lunged through the shattered window of a nearby storefront for cover. Sage also did his part by holding up his shield to cover him and Mauve.
The remaining nerves inside each of the giant Taijitu halves went haywire, the two halves writhing and smashing the street. Cars were reduced to scrap metal and the faces of buildings to rubble. The road became an indescribable mess of craters and cracks as the severed halves smashed around and bled out.
The twitching finally stopped… all was still as the dead grimm began to slowly disintegrate.
Sage heard the pattering of feet and removed his shield. Asher crouched into a slide to get to Mauve, he whipped off his helmet, his face betraying his concern.
"I'm fine," Mauve smiled. "Aura took the hit…"
"No, you're not…" Rust snarled, causing Sage to jump in surprise. Rust had taken the time to retrieve his teammates weapons from the black snake head, letting them clatter onto the ruined concrete. "Why did you take a risk like that?"
Mauve frowned. "It was a risk I was willing to take… I had the skills for it."
"You can't treat yourself like a glass cannon," muttered Sage. "Mauve… you can't be so reckless again… you couldn't take a hit like that and you knew it!"
"Were gonna build you those guns later… so you can keep your distance in the future," Asher added, squeezing Mauve's shoulder affectionately.
Mauve observed her boyfriend for a moment.
"Fine…"
Mauve's attempt to get back on her feet ended poorly. The moment she stood up her right leg gave out. None of Team MARS had extensive medical experience, they would need to retreat and find help. Leaning on Asher for support Mauve fished her scroll out to contact the pilot.
"Is the snake dead?" Came a staticy voice.
"Yes… but there have been injuries…" Mauve muttered into her scroll. "Are the civilians handled? Could you manage another pickup?"
"Hold on… I'm running on fumes but I can make it… I'll take you to the same police station." The pilot responded.
Within a few minutes the bullhead was sighted over the intersection, descending and touching down on the uneven pavement. It's hull bore the signs of scratches and claw marks, an indication of a nevermore attack, but the engines were still thrumming.
The bay doors slid open and Team MARS piled in, with Asher helping to lift Mauve into the craft. The bullhead ascended and gave Team MARS a view of Vale. Smoke was rising in some areas of the city, but the alarm klaxon had stopped.
"The initial invasion points have been plugged up…" Muttered the pilot. "The Atlesian military has been moving to assist Vale's… now it's just a matter of mopping up the stragglers."
"What was the source?" Sage questioned.
"Reports are saying that a train smashed through the ground in Yonge street plaza… it allowed the grimm a way in…"
"Shit…" Sage muttered. "That couldn't have been an accident…"
The bullhead soon touched down within the fenced enclosure of the nearest police station. The fence was patrolled by armored officers and the compound was bustling with civilians and emergency personnel. The pilot hopped out along with Team MARS, jogging over to a ground crew to initiate the refueling process.
Asher put an arm around Mauve's shoulder to support her and helped her limp in the direction of the police station. Along the way they were accosted by a uniformed SWAT officer.
"Are you Beacon students?" The officer blurted out.
Rust blinked, "Yeah."
"We've got beowulf's out front… another team is holding the line but they could use the help… could you spare some manpower?"
Team MARS looked between themselves and their wounded leader.
"Rust, Sage…" Mauve spoke through gritted teeth. "Can you two help out? Asher can join you once I'm handed off…"
"On it boss," Rust affirmed, he turned to the SWAT officer. "Can you take us there?"
The SWAT officer nodded and led them through the crowded halls of the station to the front door. Asher and Mauve were left behind so that the latter could receive medical attention. The trio were joined by several other SWAT personnel, forming a small squad as they jogged back to the frontline.
As they stormed through the glass doors of the precinct, Rust and Sage were met by some very familiar people. Defending the doors was Team VHLT, surrounded by the smoky corpses of a dozen or more grimm. Honey was in the process of finishing off one beowulf, thrusting a beautiful golden gladius into the unfortunate grimms head. Lavender was also making a grand spectacle of the fight, using a retracting spool of garrote wire to behead grimm as they charged.
Vermillion was incinerating enemies through the use of her flaming sword. Teal was using the most straightforward weapon, consisting of a large pump action shotgun, slung across her chest was a large bandolier of dust shells.
Rust and Sage didn't hesitate about jumping into the fray. The SWAT officers that accompanied them held defensive positions around the precinct door and provided covering fire. Within minutes any and all grimm that were attracted to the precinct were corpses, their disintegrating corpses blowing away in the wind.
"Sage!" Honey called out, jogging over and wrapping her new boyfriend in a hug. Sage was surprised by the action but quickly reciprocated, lifting Honey off her feet.
Sage had never seen Honey in her combat uniform, so he took a step back to observe her. Honey was wearing a thick leather cuirass overtop a golden yellow sweater, with forearm braces to provide supplementary protection. Covering her waist was a metal tipped black combat skirt. Knee high boots with built-in armored greaves completed the outfit. She kept her golden gladius sheathed in a small loop on her hip.
"Honey!" Sage breathed. "I was worried… it's good to know you're ok!"
"Were all ok…" muttered Teal as she slipped her shotgun onto her back. "Thanks for asking…"
"Oh hush!" Lavender huffed at her girlfriend. "You can't blame him for caring!"
Meanwhile, Rust and Vermillion were also taking the opportunity to speak.
"I'm glad my team chose to shadow a police unit…" Vermillion spoke softly as she sheathed her flaming sword. "When did you guys get here?"
"The sirens started blaring just as we entered Vale's airspace…" Rust muttered.
"Perfect timing!"
"Heh… yeah," Rust rubbed the back of his neck. "You know how we agreed to go on a proper date?"
"Yeah…"
"The restaurant I was planning to take you to… it just got leveled by a King Taijitu…"
"Well… shit," Vermillion chuckled. "You have a backup plan?"
"Sorta," Rust muttered. "I don't suppose you want to bring your team over one night to my team's place? You know… so were all properly introduced…"
"That's a great idea!" Vermillion agreed.
"Great! It won't be the two of us… but we can figure out a dinner date later…"
Vermillion ended the conversation by pulling Rust over to the rest of her team. Rust noticed how Honey's hand had found its way into Sage's as they stood close together. Vermillion shared Rust's invitation with the rest of her team, receiving a chorus of agreements at the offer (with minor grumbling from Teal).
With everyone caught up, Team VHLT and half of Team MARS resumed defensive positions. Asher came out to join them, informing Rust and Sage that Mauve had been transferred by bullhead to the Beacon infirmaries. She had no major injuries, but the bones in her right leg had been fractured, which would leave her in a cast for a few days; aura could speed up a healing process, but it still took time. Rust also took the opportunity to properly introduce Asher to Team VHLT, they seemed to get along well enough.
At one point Asher asked Teal about her weapon, the blue haired girl pulling out her shotgun to show him. Asher was appreciative of its simple design, showing off his arsenal as well. Rust knew that a friendship was already forming between the two, founded on their similar, more pragmatic approaches to combat.
One hour of guarding later, the two teams had been given the go-ahead to return to Beacon. They had been relieved and replaced by a squad of Valean army personnel, the green clad soldiers striking up a more cohesive defensive formation than the Beacon students could. Bidding the soldiers and SWAT officers farewell, the two teams (minus the leader of MARS) proceeded to the back of the precinct where a bullhead was waiting.
Teams MARS broke off for the infirmary once the bullhead touched down to check on their leader… Asher volunteered himself to spend the rest of the night there.