Six and Boone sat in the Bullhead alongside Qrow, off to meet this "Ozpin" guy. Both men knew he would try and recruit them, especially if he saw how well they'd handled the Grimm ambush. Their response to his sales pitch would heavily depend on what his motives were, as well as what Ozpin could offer them in return. And he could lie all he wanted; Six had a knack for looking right through those. Fenrir had been put on standby and held in the cargo bay alongside ED-E, mainly so the guards could feel safer.
It was an odd feeling, flying. Being so high in the air felt strange, even after he'd already been in plenty of Vertibirds. But this Bullhead, it was much larger than any flying vehicle he'd seen in the Mojave. Well, that was working anyway. The broken-down planes at Camp McCarren didn't count.
As Six cleaned his guns with a rag that could do with a bit of cleaning itself, Boone looked out over the city beneath them. It was massive, bigger than anything the NCR could ever hope to build. But even from up here, with all the fancy buildings and the polished look of it all, Boone knew this grand city held rot. He could see it in the slums off in the distance, old and graying buildings becoming more and more common as they went further on. Every city had them; it just depended on how well they hid them.
"We're approaching the docking bay." The pilot announced over the radio. The men all stood up and approached the door. The aircraft shook slightly as it docked, but before long, the large doors opened, and they were met with the sight of the Academy. It was styled in the likeness of a massive castle worthy of the highest of kings. Lampposts and holographic flags flanked the smooth stone pathway to the Acadamy's entrance. And in the center of it all was a massive tower, undoubtedly serving as Ozpin's office.
"Impressed?" Qrow said, a smirk on his face as he took a sip from his flask. The two masked men looked at each other before Boone shrugged.
"Let's just get this over with." Six grumbled. After the Sierra Madre, he had a distrust of fancy buildings. Those damned Ghosts will never leave his mind, their horrid breathing, their incoherent muttering. It'd been the first time he'd been fully separated from Boone and ED-E, and he hated every moment of it, both for that reason and a myriad of others.
They traveled through the school's vast hallways on their way to Ozpin's office. As they did, Six realized they'd never been told exactly what was taught at the school. He'd just assumed it was similar to a prewar Earth academy, at least from what he'd heard.
"Hey, bird boy, what's taught here, exactly?" Six asked. Qrow grumbled at the nickname but turned to answer him while walking backward.
"We teach kids with potential to become Huntsmen and Huntresses. They hunt and kill Grimm along with protecting the general population. It's a pretty admirable job if I do say so myself." He briefly explained, but all that did was make the two wastelanders stop and stare at him. "What?" He asked with confusion.
"You train kids to fight?" Boone said, and he didn't sound happy about it. Realizing how they misinterpreted what he'd said, Qrow quickly backtracked.
"Not literal kids. You have to be at least 19 to attend here." He purposefully left out the minor Huntsmen schools for younger kids, as he wouldn't like to stare down the barrels of two high-powered guns. They weren't from Remnant, so for all he knew, those bullets could go right through his Aura, and he'd rather not find out the hard way. Even so, Six gave him a stern look, one he could feel despite his face being hidden.
"You and your boss are treading on thin ice. We don't take kindly to those that train child soldiers." With that ominous warning, the three continued one, Qrow hoping Ozpin would be able to convince these guys to join up with them.
They finally reached the elevator, and they all stood inside before Qrow hit the button for Ozpin's floor. It was awkward as hell being cramped in a tight space with two heavily armed and armored men that could probably kill him then and there if they wanted to. The doors opened, allowing the men to exit the stuffy space, and he was met with the office of Headmaster Ozpin.
The whole place looked expensive. The clock's mechanical insides that also called this tower home hung above and around them, constantly moving, clicking together. Even the man's desk was heavily clockwork, being forged of brown metal shaped to pieces of clock gears. Behind the desk was a balcony that overlooked the school grounds' entirety and the city of Vale itself. Ozpin was seated at his desk, a cup of steaming tea in his hand. Upon them entering, he set his cup down on his desk and leaned back in his chair, a hand on a fancy-looking cane.
"I presume you are the two men my friend here discovered?" He asked, but Six wasn't in the mood for niceties.
"Yeah, we are." He said as he sat down in one of the two chairs laid out before him. Boone remained standing, arms crossed and keeping an eye on their "hosts."
"Look, I know exactly why you brought us here, and it ain't out of the kindness of your heart, as much as I'd like to think so. So let's not beat around the bush here. What do you want with us?" Six leaned back in his chair and crossed his arms, staring at the Headmaster.
"Well, you are blunt, I'll give you that. I wish to know where you two are from and what would justify you being as heavily armed as you are. Judging by your reactions to the moon that Qrow told me of, I can only guess." Six chuckled at that.
"You wouldn't believe us if we told you. And you still haven't answered my question." Ozpin narrowed his eyes slightly before responding, this time with a more demanding tone.
"You must see things from my perspective. Two men, armed to the teeth, and a pair of robots, the likes of which I've never seen before, appear through a portal in the middle of the Emerald Forest. Not just that, but they then proceed to bring the larger of the robots, the one you've taken to calling Fenrir, under their control. They then panic at the sight of the moon during the night, acting as if they had never seen it before, despite both being grown men with likely combat training." He paused for a moment to sip his tea, never taking his eyes off the man seated across from him. "So forgive my suspicion, but it is to both sate my curiosity and ascertain whether or not you mean my students any harm. And if you refuse to co-operate with me, I will have little choice but to hand you over to the authorities." Six sat in silence for a moment. If he were in Ozpin's position, he'd want to know as much as possible about these sudden arrivals as well. He was nothing if not cautious with people, and it seemed the Headmaster was primarily the same way.
"Alright, I'll talk. But I'm not revealing everything." He sighed before continuing. "We're ain't exactly from around here, but in what way I'm not exactly sure myself. The place where I'm from was caught up in a massive war that royally fucked the place up, but I won't get into too much detail over it. Just know it's called the Mojave Wasteland for a reason. Anyway, we were exploring a prewar bunker that one of the groups we're friendly with discovered. As we were going through it, I activated a massive portal I found deep inside the base. Unfortunately, that also booted up the base's defenses, the massive Sentry being the result of that. The portal exploded and sucked us all through, spitting us out in the forest there." Six explained.
"Qrow wasn't close enough to hear your conversation when he first came across you. If this robot was hostile towards you, how did you manage to get it on your side?"
"Something about the portal's energy fucked with the robots' circuitry. In Fenrir's case, it made him factory reset, allowing us to assign him as our guardian. But with ED-E, it completely fried his innards. I'm just glad it didn't mess up our suits in any way." Ozpin hummed thoughtfully at this. There wasn't a single place in Remnant's entirety called the "Mojave," but he seriously doubted these people were from another world. That would be absurd, but something in the back of his mind made him think it wouldn't be as incredible as he thought.
"But enough with that, I know you brought us here to try and get us to work with you. So far, the answer's a fat no, but let's see if you can convince me otherwise. So go ahead, give me the sales pitch." He held his arms out in a "give it to me" manner, waiting for Ozin's response. Ozpin couldn't let these men into his inner circle, not yet anyway. And he certainly couldn't tell them about Salem and her plots, especially if they weren't willing to inform him about this "Mojave." And there was zero chance of him making them teachers, for obvious reasons. But he could get them to do fieldwork for him. Brothers know he could use more than just Qrow. As good as he is, he's only one man, and these two look very highly skilled. Now he just had to convince them.
"You say your robot, ED-E, is heavily damaged, and you are incapable of repairing it. Correct?" He began.
"That's what I just said, yeah." Six responded as he lowered his arms, his voice slightly suspicious.
"If we could repair it, would you be willing to work for me? You would be compensated handsomely, and I suspect you have experience in mercenary work." Six crossed his arms and looked back at his partner for council. After a moment of silence, he nodded, and Six turned back to him.
"If you can fix him up," He emphasized the word, clearly having a dislike for how Ozpin was referring to the little Eyebot. "I'd be willing to do whatever you asked me." Ozpin raised a brow at that, something the armored man picked up on immediately. "That was a joke, don't get any ideas." He clarified.
"One month," Boone said, his first time speaking since entering the office. "We'll work for you for a month, and if you haven't made any progress, we walk." Ozpin was surprised by the harsh contrast between the two. While Six was boisterous and more on par with Qrow, the pair's sniper was much more soft-spoken and reserved. It made him wonder how they became partners. Perhaps they were brothers or similarly related.
"Two months, and it's a deal." Ozpin countered. They sat in silence for a moment, Six looking back at Boone. After some more quiet contemplation, he nodded.
"Alright, I guess you just netted yourself two new goons to do your dirty work, for now anyway." Ozpin breathed an internal sigh of relief. This impromptu meeting had gone far better than he had feared it would. Two new men to send into the field, and all he had to do was fix up a robot. But he had a feeling fixing ED-E wouldn't be as simple as he hoped.
"Excellent. I have a job for the two of you, but in the meantime, my assistant, Glynda Goodwitch, has had your new quarters prepared for you. After seeing they meet your standards, return here, and I will inform you on what you must do."
"Before we go, I got two questions for you." Six interrupted.
"By all means, ask."
"First, what kind of ammo do you guys use? I just wanna make sure the bullets from back home are at least somewhat similar to the shit you have." Ozpin nodded. Needless to say, munitions would be vital in their line of work.
"A valid cause for concern. I will have various rounds of ammunition using different Dust delivered to your quarters. What ammunition types do you use?"
".40-70 Gov't and .50 MG." Boone answered. "If you could send over all the sub-types as well, that would help, though we have enough bullets to last a good while." Ozpin nodded.
"Along with a manual on what the hell "Dust" is. I'm assuming you don't mean the shit that builds up in ruins and old desks."
"Of course, I will have both sent to you as soon as possible. Now, your second question?"
"Yeah, what do we tell the kids running around here? I know children, they'll see us and immediately have questions. You got a backstory or something?"
"I do. Your arrival coincides perfectly with an incoming delivery of custom ammunition for the students from a new supplier, Gunnar's Grimm Killers. If anybody asks about your origins, say you are ex-military who now work for old Gunnar to ensure merchandise is not being misused, as well as doubling as security. That way, you have a reason for being here, and your military history will explain why you are more heavily armed when compared to the other security personnel here." Six nodded before standing up. Ozpin pulled out a pair of Scrolls and handed them to the team, who picked them up.
"These will be used for communication as well as act as keys for your new home." They looked the small devices over briefly before pocketing them.
"Alright, we'll get back to you in a bit. See you later." He said his goodbye before leaving for the elevator, but Boone lagged behind briefly.
"Two months, no more." The soft-spoken sniper reminded his new boss, a slight edge to his voice. "We've had people try to manipulate us in the past. It didn't end well for any of them." Then he, too, turned and left.
X
Six pushed the door open to their glorified apartment, and he was immediately impressed by it. The main area was wide and spacious, the floors made of waxed wood, the hallways off to the left being carpeted. A sizeable high-tech TV hung from the right wall, a leather couch sitting in front of it. Instead of a rear wall, the room transitioned directly into a kitchen, stocked with all the appliances they'd need. Down the hall were three doors, all closed, the final two directly across from each other. Most likely the bathroom and bedrooms.
"Well, I'll be damned. This is almost as nice as the place House have me." Six said. They both used a hat holding near the door to hang up their helmets and venture deeper into the abode. After checking the area for listening devices and finding none, they checked out the final three rooms.
The bathroom had a toilet, sink and shower, all very fancy looking and already containing amenities. A pair of toothbrushes sat in a holder, along with some tubes of toothpaste. Various products for personal hygiene sat in the drawers—shaving cream, razors, brushes, antiperspirant, and deodorant, among other things.
And finally, the last two rooms were, indeed, bedrooms. Both contained a bed, nightstand, desk with computer, closet, and various gun/armor racks. Overall, the place was very nice, much nicer than even the typical prewar apartment, at least from what Six and Boone knew of them. Then again, Ozpin looked to be a wealthy man and would want the best for his employees. Even those that were more legally/morally grey others.
They stayed in the place for a good while, mostly just learning how to use the Scroll and looking stuff up. Aura, Semblances, Faunus, all sorts of shit that would be called science-fiction back in the Wasteland. Well, maybe not the Faunus thing, but definitely the others. The Grimm really caught Six's eye, but he'd have more time to research the subtypes much later. Once they were caught up on the usual shit that Remnant had to offer, Six was ready to get going.
"As much as I'd like to hang out here a bit longer, I'm itching to get into a fight. Let's see what this job Ozpin has for us is." Six said.
"Sure," Boone replied. After locking the door behind them, the pair made their way back to the elevator. Soon after, they arrived back at Ozpin's office, but instead of Qrow standing to the side, a blonde woman stood directly beside Ozpin and his desk. She looked like the typical strict teacher, and he assumed she was Glynda Goodwitch Ozpin had mentioned earlier.
"Hey-ho, we're back." Six said as they entered. "What've you got for us?" He asked, not bothering to sit down this time. Ozpin brought up the holographic display of his computer, the screen showing two minimized files.
"I've recently received intel on two men with less than noble intentions operating within the Kingdom, and I want you to hunt them down and capture them alive. They both go by different but somewhat similar aliases, which leads me to believe they are working together, though for what goal I do not know." One of the files grew large enough for him to read.
A big bastard going by the simple moniker "Outlaw." The image attached was a screenshot taken from someone's Scroll footage. It showed him standing in a burning town, pressing the barrel of a very large revolver to a kneeling and begging woman's head as masked men, all Faunus surrounded him. He was decked out in rusty metal armor, and Six could see military scrubs beneath. A grey beanie sat on his head, and a camo bandana covered his face. His revolver really caught their attention, though, as it was even bigger than Six and Boone's Ranger Sequoias.
"The Outlaw has been doing enforcer work for the White Fang, a terrorist group fighting for Faunus rights. This is highly unusual, as the group is notorious for their hatred for all humans, so them working with one implies something else going on. He has become known for his ruthlessness and lack of care for anything besides himself. If he were offered enough Lien, he would likely turn on his employers." The image expanded and revealed itself to be a paused video, which promptly played.
The Outlaw immediately pulled the trigger upon the video playing, killing the woman in cold blood. The pair could hear the sounds of screaming as other civilians witnessed her murder. After her body hit the dirt, he turned his attention and smoking gun to the other captives.
"Anyone else wanna be snarky with me?!" He yelled his voice stern and commanding. The hostages shrank back in fear, and he lowered his gun before reloading the spent round. One of the White Fang ran up to him from the side, getting his attention.
"The goods are loaded up and ready to go." He reported, and the Outlaw nodded.
"Good. Sooner we can get back, sooner I can get fucking paid." He muttered something that the Scroll's microphone didn't quite pick up but judging by the terrorist's snarl before he turned and left, it probably wasn't anything nice. That's when he noticed the captive recording.
"Well, well well, look at this dipshit!" He said as he stomped over. In a panic, the man dropped the device, the camera facing upwards. He tried to run, but a gunshot followed by a cry of pain followed. "You fucking retard, you really thought you'd get away with this?!" He yelled as he passed the Scroll. He swung his gun downwards as the sound of him pistol-whipping the man rang out, followed by another gunshot. He chuckled, and he noticed the Scroll. The last thing the camera recorded was his heavy-duty boot coming down on it hard.
"Great, another thug with a hardon for violence, what else is new? We've dealt with plenty like him, you've got nothing to worry about. We know what his Semblance is?" Ozpin shook his head.
"Unfortunately, no. We know he has Aura, but we aren't sure about a Semblance. If he does have one, he never uses it." After that, he moved on to the next one. The file came up, and Six's brow furrowed in confusion.
"It's nearly blank." Boone pointed out. All that the file listed was his name, the Thief, that he was likely male, not even confirmed, and his extreme proficiency in stealth, to the point nobody that they had access to had ever seen him.
"Indeed, Mr. Boone," Glynda spoke up. "This one concerns us more than the Outlaw, as he has infiltrated many secure locations, at least the ones we know of. Many are unconfirmed. The Thief is of higher importance than the Outlaw, as we do not know the extent of his abilities." Six nodded.
"I will send you what few leads we have on him, how you proceed from there is purely up to you. However, should you decide to do anything outside the law, be discreet. It would do me no good to be linked to criminals." Six gave him a thumbs up before standing.
"Sounds good. Send us everything you have, we'll take care of the rest." Ozpin agreed and sent them the info, what little they had anyway.
"Alright, let's go on a good old-fashioned hunt."
Review time.
Egus235: I haven't quite figured out what I'll be doing with the ammunition, but I'll figure it out.
ER-47: Six and Boone will be working for Ozpin, but only temporarily. I don't want to say too much for spoilers and other such shit, but their relationship will be very temporary.
selfishgecko: Aye, saying he's simply young is far better than turning a grizzled veteran into a bloody teenager. It's ridiculous. And there is enough for a team, but ED-E got fucked up. Guess Fenrir will have to do.
Another World Jaune Arc: They will, but they won't be the only guys in the limelight.
MemeMasterAssBlaster: Funky is one word for it.
SlateAgate547: Thanks, will do, lad.
Widonto: Your PFP is an affront to the Aesir.
Guest #1: The revolvers act as holdout weapons. I always thought it was dumb it didn't count as a holdout weapon, so I'm doing what pros in the business call a "fuck you", and making them hodout weapons anyway.
Guest #2: No, Qrow doesn't have a tail. I meant his coat had coattails.
Guest #3: I wasn't fully done with them, I was just taking a break from them for a wee bit.
djpj7652: No, it won't be. They're very separate. That Semblance idea is very good, I'll put that in the old memory bank for later.
blueassassin996: Yes, there will be, but not in the way you might think.
Guest #4: Be rootin', be tootin', and by God be shootin', but most of all, be kind.
Memese: Thanks, I'll just ignore your PFP as it activated my fight-or-flight instincts.
The Baz: They are. Ozpin knows Six and Boone aren't from Remnant, but that's all. Same type of shit the other way around with Ozpin not wanting them to know about Salem, the inoborna.
Don't forget to raise your horn in the name of the Aesir. Skål!
-Bile