Chapter 8: A Hunter's Intro To Remnant, Part II
AN: This one's gonna be pretty long. That's all I gotta say.
Hope you all enjoy this chapter!
As the firefight increased in intensity around Ike, all he could do was chuckle.
To him, this was what is meant to be a Mandalorian. To fight against almost impossible odds and to come out of them with your honor intact and your purse full.
While Ike was busy using his flamethrower on a group of White Fang that had gotten far too close for comfort, another Faunus tried charging at Ike's back with a small blade. As he closed the distance on the bounty hunter, the terrorist slipped on the oil slick Ike had left behind him. Not even looking back at the terrorist, Ike scraped his boot on the hard metal surface of the ship, igniting the oil with the sparks. The terrorist screamed in pain, before Ike shot a grappling line at him.
"Why don't you say hi to your friends!" Ike exclaimed, before throwing the burning terrorist at a distant group in front of him. As the group panicked at the flames consuming them, Ike fired a salvo of heat seeking missiles.
"Thanks for the upgrades, Sam." Ike thought as the salvo landed, turning the terrorists into chunks. Ike relished in the fact that his friend had upgraded his equipment to generate ammunition on the fly. Sure, his toys had taken a bit of a dip in the damage department, and he'd have to wait for the heat generated to die down every time he used them, but who cared about that when you could endlessly fire missiles at the idiots standing in your way?
As Ike finished off the last of the White Fang in front of him, his visor alerted him to the fact that the young lady he was supposed to be bodyguarding was fighting her own group of terrorists. Ike, unwilling to let the V.I.P get harmed, activated the rockets on his feet and charged right into the White Fang, driving his retractable blade right into the stomach of a terrorist unfortunate enough to be the closest of the group to him. With the V.I.P behind him, Ike unleashed an Energy Burst, disintegrating one terrorist and throwing the other three away with the force of the blast.
"You alright?" Ike asked the girl. The girl frowned. "I had that." she replied.
"Maybe you did. Either way, it doesn't matter. My job's to protect you until I get paid." Ike said. Noticing a group of White Fang breaking out of cover to attack them, Ike stood in front of the girl, before sweeping his blasters in an arc, firing wildly. The group of White Fang that had broken out of cover to fire at the duo were quickly killed.
"Word of advice, try to stay behind me at all times. You may have Aura, but my armor was designed to be completely immune to gunfire."
"That's impossible." the girl responded, her skepticism clear.
"Wanna bet?" Ike replied. As another group broke out of cover to fire at them, Ike got in front of the girl and shielded her with his body, holding his arms out. The dust rounds all hit various parts of his body, pinging off his armor.
Ike chuckled, as the terrorists frantically started reloading. "My turn." he growled, before pressing a few buttons on his bracer. Suddenly, from every possible corner of his armor, missiles began spewing out at the horde of White Fang on the ship. Dozens upon dozens of missiles detonated against the helpless terrorists, reducing them to bloody paste. By the time the dust had settled, the terrorists that had been fighting on the deck were all dead.
"Are you insane?! Your antics are going to destroy the ship!" the girl shrieked.
"Relax, Princess. This was all low grade stuff. We're fine."
At that point, a piece of the deck sheared off, buffeting the duo with powerful gales of wind. A few seconds later, the bulkheads sealed off the section of the ship that had come off.
"..."
"..."
"Ok, ok. From here on out, I'll take it easy on the explosives. Promise." Ike said, turning to the girl.
"You'd better. Otherwise, I'll kill you here myself and tell Winter you died fighting against the White Fang." the girl grumbled. She took out a handkerchief and started to wipe the sweat off her face. "Do you think the White Fang has taken control of the bridge yet?"
Ike shrugged. "Honestly? Yeah, they probably have by now. Capturing the bridge would be the first thing me and my friends would do if we wanted to kidnap someone."
The girl looked at him, scandalized.
Ike scratched his neck "Not that I'd know anything about that." he hastily added, trying to reassure the V.I.P.
Funnily enough, that didn't seem to calm her down in the slightest.
A Few Minutes Later, at the Bridge of the Blizzard
"I still can't believe that this ship is called The Blizzard, of all things. I mean, come on. Where's the creativity here?" Ike asked.
"It's a transport ship. It doesn't need anything special to define it.. The fact that it has a name is more than enough." the V.I.P replied.
"You say that, yet it has a name. Bit of a conundrum there, lady."
The girl scoffed, turning away from him in exasperation. Ike continued the conversation.
"Oh come on. It's been around for 20 years. Any ship that's been around that long deserves a little respect."
The girl looked at him, as if he'd lost his mind. "It's a ship! An antique that should've been scrapped years ago!"
Ike held a finger against her lips."Shh. We're closing in on the bridge. Keep yourself quiet now." If looks could kill, Ike was sure he'd be dead ten times over. Fortunately, the V.I.P wasn't Hadrian Kallig, so he was quite safe from the chance of her glare internally poisoning him enough to vomit blood.
Kriff, even now that gave him nightmares. What had Hadrian called it again? Basilisk Stare? Sith Glare? Whatever it was called, Ike made it a point afterwards to never look a Sith directly in the eyes after Hadrian had demonstrated it on the delusional assassin of a rival Sith Lord.
Up on the bridge, a group of White Fang stood, surrounding a rather large Faunus. Ike and the girl hid themselves, listening to the terrorist's speaking to his comrades.
"My friends, we have done it! We have shown our brothers and sisters that Jacques Schnee and his spawn are not invincible! Soon, we will have the SDC's heiress in chains! Her execution will be broadcasted, for all of Remnant to see!"
Ike tapped the V.I.P on the shoulder, before pointing upwards. He primed a grapple cable on the other hand.
The V.I.P's eyes widened, before she nodded. Ike activated the grapple cable, and pulled down. The White Fang, distracted, didn't notice the cable pulling down the machinery above them until it was too late.
With the terrorists now buried in scrap metal, Ike turned to the V.I.P once again.
"Well, we've got control of the bridge again, and all the intruders are dead. Wanna get outta here?"
The V.I.P sighed. "With everyone else dead, might as well."
The girl then proceeded to press a few buttons, confirming the ship's course. As the Blizzard began to move again, the girl and Ike proceeded to sit down and rest.
"I hope you realize I expect you to clear the room of bodies at some point."
Ike chuckled. "And I hope you realize that it'll cost you extra, per body."
The girl scoffed. "Mercenaries." She grumbled under her breath.
Ike sighed, taking off his helmet. "You always this polite to people who save your life, lady?"
He turned to look at the V.I.P, only to be surprised by her having frozen in shock.
"What? Is there something on my face?"
P.O.V Switch - Weiss
"Mercenaries." Weiss grumbled under her breath. Of all the sell swords she had to get stuck with, it had to be a comedian.
Suddenly, Weiss heard the hiss of her companion's helmet being taken off. Curious as to what was under the helmet, Weiss turned her head to gaze at the identity of the bounty hunter.
Fifty Lien that he's a horrifically scarred brute with a face made out of concrete. Why else would he wear that helme-
Weiss froze, shocked at what she saw.
The man was, for the lack of a better term, beautiful. His silver eyes were highlighted by the dark shadows across his pale skin, looking almost like makeup. Contrasting the shadows were small purple tattoos across his head, in the pattern of falling comets.
"What? Is there something on my face?" the man asked, spurring Weiss out of her trance.
"No! Nothing's wrong! At all!" Weiss shouted, trying to calm down her raging blush. Damned hormones! She hadn't even known the man for over twenty minutes and she was already drooling like an idiot all over him!
The mercenary frowned. "Riiiight. Look, don't take this the wrong way or anything, but I don't get involved with my clients. It's bad for business. Not to mention the fact that you're a kid."
Weiss laughed. "Ha! As if a Schnee would ever lower herself to fool around with a mercenary!" She paused. "Wait a second, you're barely older than me! How can you call me a child?!"
The mercenary shrugged. "Right. Forgot about that." he replied, leaning back on the chair. "How much longer are we gonna be on the ship again?"
Weiss sighed. "One and a half hours."
"Kriff. Guess I gotta move those bodies soon, then."
Two Hours Later, Vale CCT
As the two walked into the CCT, the girl turned to him. She sighed. "Well, here we are. Once I get in contact with my sister, she'll send you your what it's worth, I suppose there were worse people to be stuck with on the ship."
Ike smirked. "Well, for what it's worth, you weren't the worst person I had to play bodyguard to."
"If you say so." the girl replied, a faint tinge of red on her cheeks again.
Ike frowned. He really should've remembered why he usually kept the helmet on. As it stands, he wasn't gonna touch this girl with a ten foot pole. She was snobby, she was a client (even former ones could have a job later down the line) and way too young for him.
I was pushing...what was it, 27? 25? 23? Dammit, I can't remember, In any case, I'm done for now. Might as well collect my payment and find out where Agetol and the others are hiding on this planet.
As Ike turned away and leaned against the wall, the screen activated, and the V.I.P was greeted to the sight of an older version of herself, the woman who had hired him and many others just a few hours ago.
"Weiss! I heard about the attack! Are you alright?!"
"I'm fine, Winter. It's thanks to the man next to me that I was able to walk away from the attack, relatively unscathed."
"Hmm, is that so? Mercenary, come over here please."
Ike sighed, before getting up from the wall and walking towards the screen.
"I'm here. I did the job, now I want my credits."
Winter frowned. "Credits?"
Ike shook his head. "Sorry. Where I came from, we used a currency called Credits. I'm a recent visitor to the Four Kingdoms, and trying to adjust to the new stuff has been a bit of a challenge."
Winter looked over Ike with a critical eye for a few moments, before turning to her sister.
"Weiss, give me a moment with this man, please. He and I need to discuss business."
"But…"
"Weiss, please. Only a few minutes."
Weiss looked like she wanted to argue, but instead she walked out of the room. Ike moved the chair away from the screen and lifted it up a small bit so that Winter could see his face.
"Alright, what's this about? You better not be cheating me outta my payment, lady."
Winter shook her head.
"I'm not going to cheat you out of a fair day's pay, Ike Hunter. In fact, I have another proposition for you, in addition to your payment."
Ike smirked. "Really? Well, I can never say no to more cre-Lien. What's the job?"
"While the White Fang has been dealt with for now, I'm afraid a new threat to my sister has surfaced, one that is of my own making. If I must suffer for my mistake, then so be it, but I will not allow any harm to come to my sister. Call it intuition, or instinct, or whatever you wish to call it, but I feel that you will be able to defend my sister from this new threat. I want you to take a full time bodyguarding job to protect my sister in Vale for one semester. I should have this threat dealt with by then."
Ike hummed, curious about the offer. "How much are you paying?"
"My sister is extremely precious to me, Mr. Hunter. If you are able to keep my sister from harm, I will pay you one million Lien." Winter replied.
Ike smirked. "And here I thought I was gonna be struggling for the next few months to rebuild my reputation! Alright, I'll take the job. Just one question, though. This threat you're talking about, you gonna tell me what it is, or is this a confidential kinda thing?"
Winter sighed. "I suppose telling you wouldn't hurt. Just promise me that you won't tell Weiss."
"Confidentiality is included in my fee, you don't have to worry" Ike replied.
Winter smiled for a few moments at that remark, before slipping back into a frown.
"A few months ago, I tried to kill someone out of my fear that they had gone insane. They survived, and have sworn to destroy all that I hold dear. As we speak, they are heading to Vale. My men have tried to stop them, to no avail. Many of my soldiers have been carved into literal pieces in the attempts to slow them down."
Ike whistled. "Sounds rough. Got a name for this mysterious stranger?"
"Starkiller." Winter whispered. At that moment, Ike felt a chill work it's way down his spine.
The spine never lies. Whoever this guy is, he's bad news.
"I'll arrange a residence for you in Vale. Once I'm finished talking to my sister, take her to the Empire Hotel. She will be staying there until Beacon starts next week."
"Got it. See you later."
And with that, Ike walked away from the screen. He spotted Weiss waiting nearby.
"What did you and my sister talk about?" she asked.
Ike shrugged. "I think your sister will be better suited to explaining it than me."
Weiss looked at him, confused, before walking back into the room to talk to Winter.
A few moments later, Ike heard an ear splitting shriek from the room behind him.
"He's WHAT?!"
A Few Minutes Later
Ike stared out of the window of the limousine Weiss had rented, taking in the scenery. After a few minutes of awkward silence, Ike chose to speak.
"Gotta admit, those are some nice lungs you got there. If it wasn't for my cybernetics, I'm pretty sure my ears would still be ringing."
Weiss huffed. "Shut up. I can't believe my sister doesn't trust in my skill enough that she has to assign me a bodyguard!"
Ike sighed. "Look, your sister is just worried about you. This 'Starkiller' sounds like he's carrying a real grudge, and my instincts are telling me that he's bad news,"
Weiss shook her head. "I'll be in Beacon! Does Winter truly think that this 'Starkiller' character can get away with trying to kill me in a school full of Hunters and Huntresses in Training?"
"It's not Beacon she's worried about. Remember, my job is only to keep an eye on ya in Vale. Starkiller might not be able to reach ya in Beacon, but a major city? Any decent assassin would have a field day in an urban landscape."
Weiss groaned. "Fine! I hope Winter will be able to capture Starkiller soon."
Ike chuckled. " I don't. Long as he's running around, I've got an easy paycheck."
Ike took a moment to check the map of Vale he'd downloaded earlier, looking over it with his cybernetic eyes.
"Before we go check in, would you mind if I pick up some clothes and other important items? I can't wear this armor 24/7."
Weiss looked at him, incredulous. "Why can't we check in first, and you just leave me in my room while you shop?"
"Because my job's to keep an eye on you, and I can't exactly do that while I'm clothes shopping. Come on."
Weiss sighed. "Fine. One hour. After that, I walk back to the Hotel."
Ike chuckled. "Demanding, aren't ya?"
An Hour and Fifteen Minutes Later, Empire Hotel
"Well, here we are." Ike stated. Next to him, Weiss shuddered.
"Did you have to wear that...vest? Couldn't you wear something a bit more formal?" Weiss asked, pointing towards Ike's outfit.
Ike took a moment to inspect his clothes. A simple black shirt and brown vest combo highlighting his exposed muscles, with beige pants, gold colored boots, and fingerless gloves.
"Hey, I'd rather not have myself constrained 24/7. That armor's heavy." Ike replied.
"I wasn't talking about...agh, nevermind. Do you know how to use that Scroll you bought?"
"Yeah, I know how to use...it."
At that moment, Ike trailed off. He spotted a familiar splotch of silver in the distance.
"No kriffing way." he whispered to himself. He zoomed in with his cybernetic optics, confirming his suspicions.
Samael Hord, walking out of the Empire Hotel to hail a taxi.
Ike chuckled. "Well, look who it is! If Sam's here, not much of a long shot to think everyone else is here, too!"
Weiss looked at him, confused. "Who are you talking about?"
"I think I've got some friends coming over later. You ok if I meet them when they get here?" Ike asked.
Weiss frowned. "Friends? Are they also mercenaries?"
Ike shook his head. "Nope. Definitely not. I think you might like them."
"I don't believe that." Weiss replied.
A Few Hours Later
Ike took a moment to inspect the camera feeds he'd hacked earlier. After inspecting them, he turned towards Weiss.
"Well, looks like they made it after all. Wanna meet em?"
Weiss shook her head. "I'm fine. Take all the time you need."
Ike chuckled. "Trying to get rid of me already, huh? Don't worry. I'll be back. Gotta get that paycheck from your sister, after all."
Ike walked out of the hotel room, heading towards the elevator. Making his way outside, Ike decided to lean back against the wall and wait.
A few minutes later, a black van came onto the driveway of the hotel. Ike smiled. As Samael, Hadrian, and Agetol came out of the van with three other women in tow, Ike called out to them.
"What took you guys so long?"
Omake: Starkiller (Canon)
A Few Hours After Whitley's Disappearance From Atlas
Meral Ostragar sighed. He had no idea why Specialist Schnee was so worried about this sector. There was nothing here but snow and wind! Not even the White Fang would be willing to trek such dangerous conditions to escape Mantle!
One of his squadmates, Livi Solis, decided to stand next to him.
"Some days, I really fucking hate this job."
Meral chuckled. "Same. Honestly, not even the most hardcore of mental cases would come over here. Why would the higher ups be worried about this?"
Livi shrugged. "I dunno, but from the way Specialist Schnee was acting, something had her right spooked. Remember, this is the same lady that was able to stare down an Ursa! If something's got her scared, maybe we should be cautious too."
Meral shook his head. "I don't get it. If something or someone is dangerous enough that they've got Specialist Schnee scared, then why aren't the Huntsmen involved in this?"
"Specialist Schnee did say that she wanted this to be kept in house as best as possible. With that said, what do you think it is she's looking for? Could it be a science experiment gone wrong?" Livi asked.
Meral laughed. "That'll be something to put in the reports, won't it? 'Here lies Lieutenant Livi. Cause of Death: Asphyxiation by sentient slime!'"
"Fuck you too, sir." Livi replied.
Just then, the two soldiers of Atlas heard a notification ping go off in their helmets.
"A message? That's weird." Meral remarked. Opening it up in his visor, he was greeted to the sight of five words.
ONLY ONE WARNING. RUN AWAY.
Meral tightened his grip on his rifle.
"I've checked in with the rest of the squad. Sinn, Maron, Nave, and Bei are saying that they all got the message too, at the same time." Livi stated.
Meral growled. "Looks like I was wrong. Tell the squad to remain on high alert. I've got the feeling that whoever sent this, they don't send idle threats. Open a channel to Specialist Schnee."
Livi nodded, taking out a radio.
"This is Delta Squad to High Command, come in High Command."
"This is High Command. Delta Squad, what's happening out there?"
"Ma'am, I think we might be close to the target you described." Meral stated to the radio.
"Keep your guard up, Captain. This man is dangerous, and he cannot be reasoned with. Do not try to bring him in alive."
"Acknowledged."
For a few minutes, Meral and Livi slowly walked, scanning their surroundings.
"Captain, don't take this the wrong way, but I'm starting to get some serious shivers down my spine."
Meral looked at Livi, confused. "After that mess in Vacuo, you're getting scared by some mental case?"
"That's the thing, Captain. This don't feel natural. I've been in way worse situations than this, and it still feels like there's ice crawling through my veins."
Meral shook his head. "Could it be a semblance? Dammit. Squad, be aware that our target might have a semblance, one that could be related to horror and fear."
"Understood, Captain, we'll….wait, what was that?!" Sergeant Sinn exclaimed.
"Sergeant, what's going on out there? What did you see?" Meral asked.
"I don't know, Captain. I thought I saw something over by these dead trees here. I guess it was a...wait, what?"
Just then, Meral and Livi heard an unidentifiable sound on the radio.
SNAP-HISS
"Oh shit! Captain, they're here! The target is-"
Vrumm KYSH!
"ARGH!"
"Sergeant! Sergeant, what's your status?! Sergeant!" Meral exclaimed.
For the next few moments, there was no answer. Then, the radio crackled to life again.
"You were warned." A voice growled, before cutting off.
At that moment, the radio was flooded with chatter.
"Captain, I've got eyes on- AUGH"
"Focus fire! Focus-"
"Please! Please don-"
Livi desperately tried to get in contact with the rest of the team.
"Sinn, Maron, Nave, Bei! Respond! Please respond!"
Meral shook his head. "Snap out of it, Lieutenant! We're the only ones left now! Get High Command on the radio! Tell them that the sector isn't clear, and that we need backup!"
"O-Okay." Livi replied shakily. He opened up the channel with High Command.
"High Command, this is Lieutenant Livi, of Delta Squad! Sector 13 is not clear! I repeat, Sector 13 is not clear! The target is in the area! He's already taken down most of my squa-"
At that moment, Livi fell to the ground, dropping the radio. He only had a moment to look at Meral before he began to get dragged off into the distance, screaming and digging his nails into the snow to stop his flight, to no avail.
"LIVI!" Meral bellowed. He began to shoot into the heavy windstorm that was obscuring his vision, but nothing happened. All he could do was stand back as he heard Livi scream.
Meral began to breathe heavily. Looking back and forth, he began to fire on anything that looked like it could be the target. Picking up the radio, he could hear High Command speaking to him.
"Captain Meral, what's going on out there! What's your situation!"
"My squad's dead! The target is still out there, and I'm the only one left! Send backup now! I need backup no-"
At that moment, Meral heard the sound of snow crunching behind him. Meral immediately turned around and began firing his assault rifle at the sound.
Meral then heard the sound of snow crunching again, this time to his left. Meral opened fire, only to see his shots had not taken down the target. This pattern repeated itself two more times, and by the end of the second time, Meral was at his wits end.
"WHERE ARE YOU?!" he roared. Suddenly, a red light speared itself into his stomach.
"Here." a voice whispered behind him.
Looks like I'm not coming to Sill's graduation. Sorry, ma
And with that last thought, Captain Meral Ostragar breathed his last.
P.O.V Switch
Whitley smirked to himself, before noticing the radio that had been dropped on the ground. He bent down to pick it up.
"Delta Squad! What's going on out there! Delta Squad!"
"Mission failed." Whitley remarked. "On the basis that their insides seem to be decorating the entire sector. What a shame."
"You...you animal! I swear, you won't get away with this!"
"You tried to get your cronies to do it, and you failed. I told you before, sister. The only time I'm going to allow you to get another chance to kill me is when we have our family reunion in Vale, with dear Weiss." Whitley replied.
Taking another glance around the area, Whitley continued. "However, since we're still talking, I have a question to ask."
"I don't have anything to say to you."
"Oh, but you do, my dear sister! That is, if you want to see Lieutenant Livi walk out of this alive. If not, well… I can rectify that right now."
"I don't believe for a single moment that you took anyone prison-"
"Hello there, Lieutenant! Want to say anything to Specialist Schnee?" Whitley asked.
"Please help! Oh Brothers, I don't wanna die!" Livi replied.
"Does that put to rest any doubts you have, sister of mine?"
Winter didn't respond for the next few moments.
"What do you want?"
"Just an answer, and possibly a favor. You see, when you put me on the Atlesian Terrorist Watch List, along with a list of trumped up charges, I noticed that you didn't give me a name, just a vague description of me."
"What's this have to do with anything?"
"I'm willing to forgive a great deal, sister, but putting me on a wanted list, and not even doing the courtesy of putting my own name on there? Shame on you, sister. Shame on you."
"Why are you so obsessed with names?"
"Because I want to leave a legacy, Winter! I may not be in Vale yet, but that doesn't mean I can't carve out a legend of my own. One that is free of the Schnees and Atlas. So, here's my proposition. I will let the good Lieutenant live, and in return, you will change my designation on the list. It won't be my real name, of course. No need to bring any worries to our beloved Weiss."
Winter didn't respond for the next few moments. She sighed.
"I agree to your terms. What will your designation be?"
Whitley took a few moments to remember what his master had told him months ago, after he'd been saved from death..
I can see it within you. You may be weak now, but someday, you will have the power to destroy the very stars themselves. Whitley Schnee is dead. In his place, stands someone far worthier. From this moment on, your name shall be...
"Starkiller." Whitley growled.
"Designation changed. The number one person of interest on the list is now known as Starkiller."
Starkiller chuckled, dropping his Force Stasis on the man and letting him drop to the ground.. "Excellent! Well, a deal is a deal. Go on, then."
Livi shakily stood up, before seeing the corpse of Meral.
"You son of a bitch! I swear, I'll kill you! You hear me! I'LL KILL YOU!"
Starkiller laughed. "What spirit! And to think that just a few moments ago, you were begging for your life!"
"Lieutenant, don't provoke him! He's dangerous!"
"I'll let it slide, Winter. I think he's amusing. Well, duty calls, Lieutenant. Gotta go!"
And with that, the wind picked up again, obscuring the sight of the robed man from Livi. A few moments later, the wind had subsided, and Starkiller was nowhere to be found.
AN: How many of you were expecting a Bishōnen Bounty Hunter? XD
Alright, real talk, when I first decided to make a Rattataki BH a few months ago to replay the BH storyline, I ended up making him look weirdly effeminate. The character eventually grew on me, but it was pretty funny seeing my BH contrasted against my usually more masculine characters.
On another note, if anyone is wondering what Ike and Whitley's outfits look like, Ike's armor is Infamous Bounty Hunter Armor set dyed Black-Grey, and his casual clothing is Canderous's Ordo Armor. Meanwhile, Whitley is rocking the Sith Assassin armor from Star Wars The Force Unleashed 1, with an added hood and gloves.
Final note, I'm probably gonna change my description soon. The characters in this fic (Ike and Agetol) are turning out to be much more different than what I first intended when I started writing this.