Author's Note: Some people are wondering what's the point of the Mjolnir armour because they don't have the shields from Halo. I'm not using the same armour from Halo, but rather the armour from Red Vs Blue which lacks the shields. If you watch the fight scenes between the Freelancers and Insurrectionists in Red Vs Blue then you'll notice that they can shoot or stab through the armour easily enough. The suits in this fic enhance the Freelancers strength, speed and whatnot, but they are not invincible. Someone strong like Neo can do plenty of damage on the armour, especially since they don't have shields. Besides, there isn't much need of shields either as the Freelancers Aura acts as shields anyway.
There are also those who aren't happy with the Freelancers using the gas. It's my story so if I say the gas will disperse harmlessly then that's what's going to happen. If there are those who don't like that then they don't have to continue reading, but I recommend you do cause it's kickass.
Enjoy.
xXx
Standing tall with his back straight and head held high, Jaune awaits a couple feet ahead of the rest of his Freelancers who are all standing outside the soon to be blast zone with their weapons armed and ready. Along with the two dozen Freelancers are Locus and Caustic with the scientist in possession of the trigger device which will disperse the gas from the canisters that has been spread across the open area.
Some of the Freelancers will admit that the surrounding silence is quite unnerving, but they definitely prefer it over the deafening explosion that unearths the floor in the centre of the sector. The explosion is soon followed by the front of a train crashing through the floor, sending debris in every direction.
Several Freelancers take a step back, due to the shockwave of the explosion and the flying rubble that they narrowly avoid, but Jaune remains unflinching while watching the train skid across the ground. As he watches the train eventually come to a stop, a beach ball size piece of rubble drops down from the sky and heads straight towards the direction of the General himself. It would have hit Jaune straight on the head, if not for him smashing it into pieces by backhanding it, just as easily as someone swatting a fly.
As they await for the dust to clear, all the Freelancers aim their weapons at the damaged train, waiting for any Grimm to surface from either the train or the large hole in the centre of the open field. They also make sure to keep watch over the few carriages which are still connected to the rest of the train as Grimm or even White Fang terrorists could be hiding inside them.
When the dust eventually disperses, the first thing Jaune sees are a pair of soldiers lying amongst a pile of rubble which use to make up the floor. Signalling his Freelancers to remain in position, Jaune runs over to the pair of downed Freelancers and quickly recognizes them as Sleeveless and Snipe, although their Mjolnir armour appears to have been damaged during the explosion.
Crouching down beside the downed men, Jaune holds out his mechanical arm which brings up a small holographic screen across the forearm. On the screen shows the vitals of the two members of Red Team and Jaune is happy to see that they're still alive, although both are running very low on Aura. "Bring these two to the medics!" he ordered, pointing to a pair of Freelancers who move out of position to help the members of Red Team.
"General" groaned Snipe, having soon regained conscious after the explosion, unlike Sleeveless. He remembers Sleeveless and himself nearly getting to the front of the train, but then they saw the incoming wall that the train was speeding into. The last thing he remembers is the train colliding into the wall and then a bright light before his body is suddenly thrown into the air. It's only now he regains consciousness and sees the clear blue skies above him, as well as the General.
"Save your strength" told Jaune as he places his right hand on the soldier's chest. The moment his hand makes contact with Snipe's armour, Jaune's hand begins to glow brightly with the colour of his white Aura. At the moment, Jaune is using his Semblance, Aura Amplification which as the name suggests,, can amplify the Aura of others. Many times over the years, he has used his powerful Semblance to save the lives of both civilians and Freelancers who were on the brink of death. At the cost of his own Aura, he can increase the amount of Aura a person has, as well as increase its effectiveness, such as denser Aura shields, faster regeneration and even increase the strength of a person's own Semblance.
The darkish red Aura that belongs to Snipe suddenly covers his person as Jaune's own Aura begins to amplify it. Quickly, Snipe's heavy breathing subsides as his amplified Aura begins the process of healing his body. While he'll still need to be checked over by the medics and likely get a few days rest, he's now no longer in danger of dying.
As a Freelancer helps up Snipe and takes him away, Jaune turns to the unconscious Sleeveless and uses his Semblance on him as well. Sleeveless's brown Aura covers his body as Jaune amplifies it, healing the muscular Freelancer of most of his injuries, although he remains unconscious.
Jaune steps aside as a Freelancer picks up Sleeveless and help carry him to the medics. Jaune watches Sleeveless and Snipe be taken away before he hears something behind him. He turns to the front of the train and sees the side door get kicked off by someone. Immediately, Jaune's right hand reaches to the hilt of Crocea Mors, but he stops when Sharkface jumps out of the train with Demo Man over his shoulders.
In a white blur, Jaune reappears beside Sharkface and helps him and the unconscious Demo Man get to a safe distance. While helping the two, he begins amplifying their Aura so to heal any light injuries they may have on their persons.
"How's... everyone else?" grunted Sharkface in obvious pain. Having been in the front of the train when it crashed, Demo Man and himself have been hit with most of the force from the impact. It's only because of how much thicker his armour is that he's even conscious in the first place. The same thing can't be said to Demo Man who has not only lost conscious, but has also broken his Aura after the explosion and crash. Still, the General's Semblance is definitely making it easier for Sharkface to walk now as the aching pain of his muscles begin to sooth with the help of his amplified Aura.
"Sleeveless and Snipe are hurt, but alive. At the moment, Leader and Girlie are still missing" told Jaune, hoping that the two missing Freelancers are alright.
He soon finds out their whereabouts when the side door of one of the few remaining carriages slides open with Girlie falling out and landing onto her stomach. Leader jumps down after her and nearly falls to the floor like Girlie, but manages to catch himself before his face can touch the floor. Grunting in obvious pain, Leader grabs Girlie's uninjured arm and hoists her up while wrapping her arm over his shoulder. The pair limp towards the direction of Jaune who has a Freelancer lead Sharkface and Demo Man to the medics.
Just as Girlie is about to fall again, Jaune catches her by her free arm and helps Leader lift her up. At the same time, he uses his Semblance to amplify both of his Freelancers Auras. "Are you both alright?" asked Jaune, feeling worried for his soldiers health. Some military leaders may disagree with how familiar he acts with his subordinates, but Jaune is someone who worries for the safety of his soldiers.
Girlie grunts, having no spare energy to speak, even with the General amplifying her Aura. At least with her Aura being amplified, she'll heal from the stab wound she got from the multicolored woman from before. Unfortunately, she is also suffering from a concussion, as well as a few broken ribs, due to the train suddenly crashing and making her bounce off the walls of the carriage like a pinball. If not for her armour, she would have died as her Aura was nearly nonexistent at the time of the crash.
Leader decides to answer for them both. "I'm mostly alright, just tired. Before the crash, Girlie here fought against an unknown assailant and got her left arm stabbed. The blade managed to pierce through a gap of her armoured plating."
Jaune nods while making a mental note to watch the footage from Girlie's helmet, as long as it hasn't been too damaged after the crash. "Follow him to the medics. They'll take care of you" he said, pointing to the Freelancer who's leading Sharkface and Demo Man away.
Just after Leader nods in confirmation, something large suddenly pops out of the hole behind them, sending more rubble into the air and even launches one of the train carriages. A few nearby Freelancers either run or jump aside to avoid the falling carriage which drops down to where they were just standing. While no one is injured, the carriage does destroy two mounted Machine Gun Turrets which were set up to keep back the Grimm. Jaune turns around to see what has climbed out of the hole and quickly recognizes the black head of a King Taijitu which soon focuses its attention on Leader, Girlie and himself because of how close they are.
"Take Girlie and run! I'll handle this" ordered Jaune, giving Girlie to Leader who quickly makes a run towards the safety of the surrounding Freelancers. With Jaune having amplified his Aura, Leader now has the strength to carry Girlie over his shoulder and run, much to her annoyance, although she doesn't try to protest. She much prefers being rattled around on someone's shoulders then to being eaten by a King Taijitu.
The fleeing Freelancers are not missed by the King Taijitu which senses the fear coming off of them both, making them a far more attractive target than Jaune, even though he's far closer. The Grimm hisses at the fleeing Freelancers and prepares itself to chase after them. However, a streak of light suddenly flashes across its neck, causing the Grimm to pause for a moment, like as if it's trying to comprehend what has just happened. A moment of silence passes before its head starts to slide off of its body and onto the floor, having been sliced off by Jaune without it even realizing.
Jaune glares at the headless Grimm while brandishing Crocea Mors in his right hand, forgoing with using the shield. Having studied all the known species of Grimm, Jaune knows fully well that unlike most Grimm, a King Taijitu can survive getting its head cut off, as long as its second head remains intact. He's proven correct once the white head of the King Taijitu raises itself up from the hole and hisses at him.
Once the King Taijitu fully climbs itself out of the hole, more Grimm begin to pour out after it. Beowolves, Ursai and Creeps lead the Grimm out, although they don't get too far away from the hole as the surrounding Freelancers open fire at the growing number Grimm. While a majority of Freelancers are using their rifles, a few are in possession of Rocket Launchers and mounted Machine Gun Turrets which do a fine job at tearing apart the large number of Grimm. Even with the loss of two mounted Machine Gun Turrets, the Freelancers firepower prove to be more than a match for the large number of Grimm. Whilst firing at the Grimm, the surrounding Freelancers make sure to avoid shooting in Jaune's general direction which leave the Freelancer General with a small number of Grimm to deal with himself.
While delighted to see his Freelancers successfully repelling the Grimm, Jaune notices the injured King Taijitu hiss at him before it suddenly attacks him with the speed of a viper. Just as the Grimm opens its mouth to bite him, Jaune jumps over the lunging snake Grimm and spins in midair with Crocea Mors outstretched. Landing on top of the Grimm's head, Jaune swings his blade so to clean it of the black liquid which makes up the blood of all Grimm.
The source of the blood is soon tracked to the Grimm he's standing on when the remaining head of the King Taijitu begins to slide off the rest of its body. Just as it's about to fall off, the head splits down the centre, having been sliced in four different chunks during the time in which Jaune jumped and spun in midair before landing.
Jaune jumps off of the disintegrating Grimm's corpse and rolls across the floor before climbing back up to his feet. The sight of him has the two nearby Beowolves lunge at him with their jaws wide open to take a bite out of him. Their attempts fail when Jaune manages to bisect the both of them with one wide swing of his blade, managing to cut them as easily as a hot knife cutting through butter.
"Caustic!" he shouted, jumping away from the growing number of Grimm that are emerging from the hole. He even sees a Death Stalker trying to climb out of the hole, although a series of rockets and gunfire makes it difficult for the Grimm to climb. Still, if the Grimm numbers keep rising, the Freelancers might find themselves overrun soon. They brought an abundant supply of guns and ammo, but they do not have nearly enough to constantly bombard the constantly growing number of Grimm.
Whilst firing into the unprotected chest of an incoming Ursa until it collapses, Caustic smirks beneath his gas mask when he hears his General's shout and chuckles. He reaches to the triggering device that he has clasped by his waist and holds it out. "Dispersing the Nox Gas, now!" Pressing his thumb on the trigger, Caustic watches as the canisters inflate before dispersing the green gas around the open area.
While the Freelancers are unharmed by the highly toxic gas, the same can't be said for the surrounding Grimm.
xXx
As Team RWBY and (J)NPR discuss the possible reasons for the roadblocks, the sudden explosion in the distance has them all forget their conversation as they all turn towards to the direction of the loud noise. In the distance from behind the roadblock, they can see dust and smoke trailing in the air, obviously being from the source of the explosion they just heard.
The Hunters intend to bypass the roadblock and run towards the source of the explosion, only to be impeded by the Freelancers who step in their way. "Stop. This road is blocked until further notice" told the bronze-colored Freelancer who seemingly hasn't heard the explosion behind him. Either that or he has been ordered to ignore the loud explosions.
"Are you serious?" asked Yang in disbelief. "Did you not hear that loud ass explosion right behind you?!"
"Simply going over safety protocols, miss" explained the Freelancer, remaining in place.
As Yang is about to make a remark, the sound of gunfire and roaring Grimm stops her and makes the hearts of everyone in the vicinity skip a beat. After all, nobody should be able to hear Grimm from behind the safety of the Kingdom's walls.
"Grimm" muttered Ren in horrific realization.
"Get out of our way, now!" ordered Ruby, brandishing Crescent Rose. She isn't the only one as each of her friends pull out their own respective weaponry with the intention of running towards the source of the explosion so to deal with the Grimm threat, even at the cost of running through the roadblock.
However, the eight Freelancers, including the one who is manning the turret on the Warthog all aim their own weapons at the Hunters. "By order of the General, nobody is to pass the barricades until further notice. Any who try are to be restrained and placed under arrest" told the leading Freelancer who aims his Battle Rifle at Yang.
"There are Grimm in the city!" shouted Nora, causing nearby civilians to panic and run in the opposite direction.
"Let us through!" demanded Blake, taking a step forward which causes the Freelancers to take the safety off their weapons. The turret on the Warthog begins to spin, indicating that all the Freelancer has to do is pull the trigger to release heavy gunfire down on the Hunters.
"Drop your weapons, and stand down, now!" ordered the leading Freelancer who's beginning to get frustrated with the rebellious Hunters. "If you continue to resist, you will make yourselves an enemy, not only of the Freelancers, but to the Kingdom of Vale as well."
Pyrrha lowers Miló and Akoúo somewhat and looks at the leading Freelancer, quizzically. "What do you mean by becoming an enemy to the Kingdom of Vale?"
"The Council already knows of what is happening and have given their full support on the matter. Any actions to interfere with the safety protocol will only be met with severe repercussions" explained the Freelancer, much to the shock of the Hunters.
"WHAT!?"
xXx
"What was that?" asked Emerald, turning around from the middle of the street to face the direction of the large explosion which she has just heard go off. In the distance, she can see smoke rise up into the air and notices how it's coming from around the same whereabouts of where the train from Mount Glenn is suppose to make its final stop. "Is that the train?" she asked her partner as Emerald doesn't remember Cinder mentioning anything about sending the train early. The last time she checked, Roman still needs to get the upcoming shipment of Dust from the Vale Docks before they can send in the train with the Grimm.
Unlike Emerald who's starting to feel a little bit paranoid, Mercury shrugs his shoulders in an uncaring manner. "Who cares."
Emerald turns to Mercury and glares at the apathetic assassin. "I care and so should you. The train wasn't suppose to go off until Torchwick stole the upcoming SDC Dust shipment. Cinder doesn't like setbacks to her plans."
Mercury quirks a brow while an amused smirk graces his lips. "Setback? Does this look like a setback to you?" he asked, spreading his arms out to gesture at the many distracted civilians who are too busy gazing at the smoke that they can't bother with listening in on their very incriminate conversation.
Emerald looks around the street and sees several people staring at the rising cloud of smoke in shock and horror. Their negative emotions are only increased when the roars of Grimm and the sound of gunfire fills their ears. Quickly, everyone begins running in the opposite direction of the gunfire and Grimm while either holding onto their loved ones or crying out gibberish.
"To me, it looks like the plan has gone off without a hitch" said Mercury, smirking while enjoying the sight of so many panicking people running for their lives. "The plan was always to blow a hole into the city so the Grimm can go wild. It doesn't matter how many people are killed or how fast the Grimm are repelled. All that matters is for the news of Grimm getting pass the walls to spread across the Kingdom so the poor suckers can finally realize that they aren't safe in their homes anymore. With their growing fear, negativity in the Kingdom spikes and attracts more Grimm here, making the end game that much easier for us."
Emerald scowls, hating how Mercury speaks to her like as if he's smarter than her, but she mostly hates how she knows he's right. The plan may have gone ahead of schedule, but it has still completed its intended task. With the negativity within the Kingdom increasing, the already large number of Grimm around Vale will grow even larger and when the time comes to invade Vale, they'll not only have an army of White Fang terrorists with Atlesian equipment, but also a very large army of the creatures of Darkness. Not even the likes of the Freelancers will be able to stand up against them.
"Now stop moping and put on your game face. We're here" told Mercury as he walks up to the front of a bookshop which is said to be owned by the White Fang deserter. He doesn't understand why Cinder has Emerald here with him. Admittedly, her Semblance is useful, but he has been trained to be an assassin ever since he could walk. He doesn't need anyone else to help him kill a simple White Fang deserter.
"Let's just get this over with" muttered Emerald as she walks past Mercury and enters the bookshop. "The faster we kill the traitor, the faster I can return to Cinder's side."
So distracted with her thoughts that Emerald doesn't notice the air shimmer from a nearby rooftop.
xXx
The effects from Caustic's Nox Gas is noticeable almost immediately.
Having been carrying a gas mask on his person all along, Jaune quickly secures it on his face before the gas can spread out across the open area. Studying the effects, Jaune notices that the gas is causing the Grimm to move much slower than usual with many being in obvious pain. The bigger Grimm like the Death Stalker and King Taijitu are holding out better against the gas because of their larger size, but even they are starting to show signs of damage from the deadly gas. The more common Grimm like Beowolves and Ursai are already beginning to drop to the floor dead, if the disintegration of their bodies is any sign.
In Jaune's own opinion, he believes that he's providing the Grimm with undeserving mercy by allowing his Freelancers to gun down their weak and dying forms. Only the larger Grimm try to fight back against the gunfire and explosives, but they are soon quickly torn to shreds from the combined might of his Freelancers and the Nox Gas.
The Nox Gas proves to be a very good method to rid the large amount of Grimm, especially when the gas begins seeping into the hole. With the hole sucking away the gas, the hundreds more Grimm which are currently in the underground subway system are now suffering as the gas fills the tightly narrow space of the subway tunnel. The Grimm have no choice but to either run up to the surface and get gunned down by armed soldiers, or to run back, although they can't very well do that with so many of them filling up the narrow tunnel. Those who do try to run back quickly get clogged up by their fellow brethren and die from either breathing in the poisonous Nox Gas or by being stomped on.
The sounds of dying Grimm from the large hole is like music to Jaune's ears. It's almost a shame for him to have to seal up the hole so he can't hear them anymore, but he still needs to make sure that the Grimm can't get back into the city. He presses the communication device in his right ear to connect himself to the Freelancers who are standing on nearby rooftops and awaiting their orders. "Fill it up."
The two Freelancers don't respond, but they do place down their Mortars before firing an Earth Dust-filled mortar into the air. Everyone in the area watches as the mortars fly up into the air before dropping down towards the large hole in the middle of the sector. Upon falling down through the hole, the mortars detonate and release its Dust contents. Solid rock explodes from the mortars and quickly begins filling in the hole, although it does take another two mortar rounds for the hole to be completely filled. Any Grimm that may have been within the splash zone of the mortars are quickly killed when Earth Dust envelop their bodies and turn them entirely into solid rock.
Within moments, the large hole which has been made by a combination of a speeding train and explosives is now filled back up with solid rock. The only evidence of it being there in the first place are the uneven pieces of rock that are poking out of the floor, as well as the train and carriages which are situated nearby.
As the remaining Grimm are gunned down by the other Freelancers, Jaune notices that the remains of Caustic's Nox Gas is dispersing in the wind and within moments, the air is safe to breathe once more. Taking off his gas mask, Jaune breathes in a lungful of fresh air and smiles over the success of another mission.
All what's left to do now is to organize damage control.
xXx
This was suppose to be nothing more than a simple assassination mission!
With Mercury's assassination skills and her Semblance, killing the White Fang traitor should have been a piece of cake. They would go into the bookshop, make light conversation, carefully reveal who they really are to the former Faunus terrorist through dialogue and then she would use her Semblance to trick him when he moves in to attack and catch him off guard. Mercury will then step up and blow a hole in the surprised Faunus's skull. They would then leave with none the wiser and inform Cinder of a job well done.
Unfortunately, Emerald realizes that her luck isn't that great, especially with the Freelancers around.
"You know who we are, don't you?" Emerald asked Tukson as a smirking Mercury uses the sensor beside the door to tint the windows so nobody outside can see what they're about to do.
Tukson tries to keep his expression blank, but he can't help but glare at the two with his eyes. "Yes."
"And you know why we're here?"
"Yes."
The left side of Emerald's lips tilts upwards into a knowing smirk. "And are you going to fight back?" She can hear Mercury step up behind her so to get in position when the Faunus makes his first and final move.
Tukson frowns and clenches his fists, preparing to dish out his claws so he can rip out the smug woman's throat. That is until he sees something over the assassins shoulders which makes him slowly smile and ease the tension in his shoulders. "No."
Tukson's response actually manages to surprise Emerald, but none more so when Tukson suddenly drops down behind the counter. It's only because of Mercury pushing her down to the floor that her body doesn't get shredded with bullets when sudden gunfire cuts through the front door and windows. After ten seconds of constant gunfire, the flying bullets stop, giving Mercury and Emerald the chance to crouch down to a nearby intact bookshelf and poke their heads out.
What they see are two individuals walking through the space where the door use to be with the lone male reloading his smoking weapon.
"I hope we're not intruding on anything."
Neither are wearing the iconic Freelancer armour, but Emerald and Mercury can still see the Freelancer logos on their clothing, signifying their allegiance with the private military.
The Freelancer who spoke is a handsome man in his early thirties who adorns a yellow jumpsuit with pieces of leather armour over it. Keeping his dark well-groomed hair back is an orange-tinted set of ski goggles which is odd since the closest ski resort is in Atlas. The biggest oddity about the man's appearance are the round metal objects that are protruding from his clothing and neither Emerald or Mercury know what they are or what their purpose could be. In his hand is a Freelancer manufactured light machine gun that goes by the title, Spitfire.
( Spitfire - Apex Legends )
"Hi there, I'm Mirage" greeted the grinning Freelancer who pats himself on the chest before waving his right arm to the woman beside him. "And this dazzling beaut is Wraith. Don't let the name fool you, she's actually a big softy."
( Mirage - Apex Legends )
With even looking at him, Wraith punches Mirage across the jaw, although the pain from her punch doesn't stop Mirage from chuckling.
Unlike the cheerful and charming Mirage, Wraith lacks any actual emotion whatsoever. All that can be found is an emotionless visage which makes the likes of Mercury shiver, because her expression reminds him too much of his cold-blooded father. Her attire mostly consists of a black scarf, a black and purple shirt and a pair of combat pants along with combat boots. While she may not be wielding a firearm, both Emerald and Mercury can see the sharp dagger which she is holding in her left hand.
( Wraith - Apex Legends )
Mirage notices a sweaty Tukson poke his head out from behind the shop counter and tilts his head towards the direction of the shattered windows and door behind him. "Tukson, you better head on out of here. We'll deal with this."
Tukson nods, having absolutely no problem with escaping with his life and leaving the more suited Freelancers to handle his would-be assassins. He quickly jumps over the counter and runs to the destroyed door, but the fleeing Faunus isn't missed by either Emerald or Mercury.
"No you don't" thought Emerald, using her Semblance to make both her own face and Mercury's appear blurry to the two Freelancers so they can't be identified. She pulls out Thief's Respite and shifts them into duel revolvers before she aims them at Tukson's back. The last thing she wants is to return to Cinder after failing to kill one single traitor, especially after getting ambushed by Freelancers.
However, Emerald is forced to let the Faunus go and drop back down to cover after Mirage fires a couple rounds at her with his Spitfire.
"I can do this all day" told a grinning Mirage. "So how about you drop your weapons and we can all have a nice peaceful chat. Or not, I don't care" he shrugged before aiming his Spitfire at the bookshelf the assassins are hiding behind.
"Okay, enough of this" growled Mercury who kicks the bookshelf he's hiding behind at the two Freelancers.
Wraith is quick to roll to her right and avoid the bookshelf, but Mirage isn't.
That is what Mercury thought until the bookshelf passes right through Mirage who disperses into particles.
"What the?!" cried Mercury in surprise as he has no idea what just happened.
"Yoo hoo!"
Mercury turns around and sees Mirage who is leaning against the bookshop counter and waving at him. Scowling, Mercury throws a straight kick which shoots an explosive round from his boots, Talaria at Mirage, but like last time, Mirage disperses into particles once the explosive round passes through him and hit the store counter instead. The resulting explosion has the counter explode and shower the room with wood shards.
"What's going on here? Is this some kind of Semblance?" wondered Mercury before his eyes widen when a dozen Mirages suddenly materialize all over the store. So surprised at being outnumbered by the exact same guy, Mercury doesn't see the shimmer in the air move his left until he hears a sharp whistle. As Mercury twists his neck to see who whistled, the only thing he does see is Mirage's fist which knocks him back a few steps.
"Dude, you do know Mirage isn't my birth name, right?" asked Mirage with a teasing grin as he finds it amusing how the silver-haired assassin still hasn't figured out the reason why he can summon so many of himself.
While Mercury struggles against fighting Mirage and his illusions, Emerald finds herself struggling against her own opponent.
"Stay still, damn it!" yelled Emerald while firing at Wraith who is constantly disappearing and reappearing into thin air.
Wraith ignores her opponent's yells and teleports to her left, causing Emerald to widen her eyes in surprise. Wraith lunges at the dark-skinned woman and thrusts her knife into one of her red eyes. The moment Wraith's blade hits Emerald's eye, she vanishes from existance, leaving the whereabouts of Emerald unknown.
"To your left."
Having learned to listen to the voices in her head, Wraith turns to her left and even though she can't see anything but a bookcase against the wall, she still throws her blade.
An invisible Emerald jumps out of the way to avoid the knife which would have hit her in the chest if not for her quickly avoiding it. "How did she know where I was?" thought Emerald, having never fought someone who can somehow see through her hallucinations before. Wraith proves to Emerald that it wasn't just an accident by teleporting above Emerald and dropkicking her in the back. Emerald opens her mouth and let's out a silent scream as she feels Wraith's boots dig into her back while also feeling the floorboards shatter beneath her.
Mercury balances himself on one hand and performs a series of spin kicks to hit all three incoming Mirages, but each one fades into particles, revealing themselves to all be fake. Through quick instinct, Mercury pushes himself up into the air to avoid gunfire from Mirage who suddenly appears to his right. Once he rights himself in midair, Mercury raises his right leg and drops it down on the Mirage who he definitely knows is real.
Only for his leg to pass through Mirage harmlessly, much to Mercury's shock and quickly growing annoyance. "WHAT!?"
Mirage turns off his cloaking and is already aiming his Spitfire at Mercury who can only cross his arms before a birage of gunfire hits into him. The force of an entire Spitfire clip throws Mercury back and while his Aura does hold out from getting his body shot through, he still feels every bullet hits him and each one hurts just as much as the next.
Having not been paying much attention to his surroundings, Mirage only sees in the last second that he has just launched the assassin to Wraith who is standing on the back of second assassin. Luckily for him, Wraith sees the body flying in the air and backflips off of Emerald to avoid it.
Groaning in pain, although delighted to have the Freelancer no longer standing on her back, Emerald slowly pushes herself up to her feet while Mercury gets up into a crouching position.
"Watch it" spoke Wraith, casting a cold glare at Mirage who steps up to her side.
Mirage raises his hands up in defence. "I admit, that one was on me."
"Got any good ideas?" Mercury asked Emerald, realizing that the Freelancers they are fighting against are a bad match up for their skills. In an honest fight, he's sure that he can whoop the smug smirk off of Mirage's face, but he can't exactly do that when the guy is making virtual copies of himself. He hasn't failed to notice that the odd metal objects glow when the holograms are produced so he knows that they aren't the result of a Semblance, but rather technology. Still, that information doesn't exactly help him since he still can't hit the guy.
"I'm thinking " growled Emerald through gritted teeth. Constantly keeping up the illusion to cover up both of their faces is starting to give her a massive headache and the pain from Wraith dropkicking her into the floor isn't helping her growing frustration. From her fight with Wraith, she knows that Wraith is still somewhat effected by her Semblance because her eyes don't follow her like they should when she moves. Yet, there's something that is alerting Wraith of her position and for the life of her, Emerald can't figure out what it is.
Just as Emerald is about to raise her weapons and open fire, the sound of glass shattering echoes through the destroyed bookstore before Neo appears in between Emerald, Mercury and the Freelancers.
"Who this?" asked Mirage, tilting his head at the small multicolored woman.
Neo smirks and throws a playful wink at the Freelancers before Wraith runs at her and throws a punch. Instead of hitting flesh, Wraith's fists breaks through the illusion that Neo placed, revealing that the assassins have already escaped.
A moment of silence fills the store as the Freelancers try to comprehend what has just happened.
Mirage decides to be the one who breaks the silence. "The Commander is going to kill us."
( Beacon - Ozpin's Office )
Ozpin is not a happy man.
Within the timeframe of an hour, he not only discovers that the White Fang have remained in Mount Glenn, even after Team RWBY discovered their presence earlier on, but they had also used a train that was rigged with explosives to blow a hole in the middle of the city, allowing the Grimm entry so they can kill and cause mayhem across the Kingdom.
Luckily, there has been no civilian casualties or even deaths, thanks to the Freelancers discovering the terrorist plot before hand and preparing the necessary safety precautions. Not only did the Freelancers prepare the soldiers and required firepower to repel the Grimm threat, but they had also prepared a full evacuation of every civilian in the sector so no innocent civilian would get caught in the crossfire.
The White Fang could have killed a lot of civilians because of their terrorist plot, but the Freelancers did a fine job in countering it. A lot of lives were saved because of the Freelancers and Ozpin is very grateful for their hard work and quick thinking.
However, he is also very displeased with how Jaune Arc didn't think to call him so to explain to him of the White Fang's plan or of the Freelancers own plan to counter the terrorist plot. The fact that they used poisonous gas in the middle of the city is also something that Ozpin is heavily frowning upon.
Thankfully, Jaune answers his Scroll after Ozpin calls him from the terminal in his office desk so he can discuss what just happened in the city. "General."
"Headmaster. May I ask what this call is about? I am quite busy at the moment so I can't talk for long" answered Jaune, showing no signs of weakness that Ozpin can hope to exploit.
"You and I both know the reason why I am calling" answered Ozpin, narrowing his eyes at the Freelancer General so to show Jaune that he is obviously displeased with him.
Jaune raises his right eyebrow as he looks at the Headmaster from the holographic screen over Ozpin's desk. "I don't have the foggiest idea, Headmaster. With my sudden workload, my memory must have escaped me. Please, do remind me."
Ozpin frowns, not liking how his former pupil is acting coy with him, but decides to explain anyway. "I am referring to how you failed to notify me about the White Fang's presence in Mountain Glenn, as well as their plot to release Grimm in the city."
Jaune closes his eyes and nods in understanding. "I see. Headmaster, I hope that you do not take any offence form this, but why should I have informed you?"
Ozpin looks at Jaune and exchanges his angry expression for one of bewilderment. "What do you mean? Of course you should have informed me!"
Jaune stares into Ozpin's eyes so to make sure he gets his message across. "If the attack was to occur on Beacon grounds, then I would have obviously informed you of the upcoming threat. You are the Headmaster of Beacon Academy and the safety of your pupils is most definitely your responsibility, but your title holds no importance for the rest of Vale. As the Council are the ones who run the Kingdom, I had informed them of the White Fang terrorist plot and was granted permission to allow the countermeasures that were used to repel them. As you are only the Headmaster for Beacon Academy, there was no reason to inform you of our plans."
As much as Ozpin wants to point out that he could have provided support and wisdom to repel the White Fang and Grimm, he knows that he can't. After spending so many life times running his secret organization and holding influence over so much of Remnant, Ozpin has forgotten what it's like to actually be told no. As Jaune Arc has just explained to him, he has no direct power over Vale since the Council is the actual leading figures of the Kingdom, no matter how much influence Ozpin might have over the people. Legally speaking, there is no reason why the Freelancers should have explained anything to him as his position only gives him legal power in Beacon and even then, the Council can always take away his title if they so wish.
Ozpin returns his attention to the holographic screen where he sees someone whisper into Jaune's ear. Jaune nods to the man who walks off as the General looks back at Ozpin. "Apologies, Headmaster, but I must be going. I've got to make sure everything doesn't blow up in our faces."
Given no time to reply, Ozpin watches in silence as the connection cuts off, leaving him alone in his office to think.
AN: Wasn't really feeling the juices flowing while making this chapter. Hoping to get better for the next one and to focus more on Jaune.