AN: A new update. This time one chapter.
The quartet of Bullheads, modified to fit two dozen or so students each, flew away from Beacon Academy and over the treetops of the Emerald Forest.
Inside one of the Bullheads, Ruby's fingers once more danced over the belt of rounds she was wearing at her waist, tried to use the repetitive action as a way to ground herself, tried to use it to settle her racing thoughts.
Back and forth. Side to side. From round to round. One after another.
It was an action brought on by countless nerves, by a growing anxiety towards the mission she had found herself on.
'Why is this happening? None of this makes any sense. We shouldn't be on any missions right now. We haven't even learned anything. They canceled our Leadership Classes all week. We didn't learn anything. They didn't tell us anything. Why are we doing this? Why are the teacher so fine with this? We shouldn't be doing this. We don't know anything. We haven't even covered missions in Professor Greene's class. I'm don't know what I'm supposed to. This is insane. I'm not ready for this.'
Silver eyes raced over face after face, washed over the interior of the Bullhead and everything seemed little more than a blur of colors and shapes. She couldn't even find it in her to focus on the weapons around her.
She wished Jaune was here.
She wished she had gotten to see him before this mission.
She wished she had stopped that one-sided fight sooner.
She wished she had done a lot of things.
"Focus." She was talking to herself, doing her best to ground herself. That was in the past. She had to focus on the present, on the now. She pressed her fingers down on top of the belt of rounds at her waist, ran her hands over the rounds again and focused on the stamped indent on the jackets that told her what type of Dust each contained. Fire, Ice, Lightning, Gravity, Rock, Wind. Each arranged in sequence, four rounds each. She had spares in her magazine, different mixtures for different effects, but these were at her waist for easy access, for quick use when the situation called for something else. She would stick to normal rounds to help feel out the Grimm they were supposed to search for today, deal with any of the younger Grimm that were likely to be in the forest.
She focused on what she had to do.
She needed to think about what to do and where Yang, Blake, and Weiss would be. The formations couldn't be too widespread, too complex.
Weiss and her were partners, would work well at medium to long range.
Yang and Blake were partners, should work best at medium and close range.
She could provide support if they needed it and either Weiss or her could close the distance or help Yang and Blake fall back if they needed to take a breather, if they needed to retreat.
This Grimm, the Geist, would need to be dealt with carefully if they were the ones to find it. It's ability to make use of its environment to change its body, how difficult it could be to track in an area as tightly packed as the Emerald Forest, would need to be taken into account.
Trees, rocks, the Geist could possibly even turn the ground itself against them if they were unlucky.
"You good?" Yang nudged her side, had to nearly shout to be heard over the engines.
Ruby only nodded her head.
"I'm just kind of worried." She looked to her sister. "Professor Mulberry wasn't kidding when he said this Grimm was old. What he told us is…kind of scary. The Geist we're after knows how to hide, knows how to avoid fights it can't win, and we're supposed to hunt it down? This is going to be really hard."
"Ah, don't worry about it." Yang smiled. "Once we find it, I'll take it down all by myself."
Ruby didn't smile back, she frowned.
"That's not how we're supposed to fight this thing. I don't even think Uncle Qrow could take this thing down by himself. It could have traps set up for us, could stalk us the second we get into the forest. Professor Port has a lot of notes on it, tried to hunt if before more than once. It's smart enough to run from fights it can't win, knows its territory better than we do." She hesitated, didn't know if it would work this time, if Yang would actually listen to her. "We need to work together if we want to beat this thing."
"Ruby's right." Weiss nodded across from Ruby, had finished going over the briefing provided by the Professors. Her face was paler than usually. "I've…had a little experience with a Geist before. If we underestimate them, we'll be playing right into its hands. They're versatile creatures, dangerous even when young. If one is this old, if it's been actively avoiding not only the students during Initiation but escaping the Professors when they try to hunt it themselves, we need a proper plan." She sent an expectant look to Ruby. "I'm sure you have a plan?"
From the Schnee's side, Blake looked up from where she was performing some last minute maintenance check on Gambol Shroud.
"I have something." Ruby ran her hand over the belt of rounds at her waist, ran the tips of her fingers over the casings once more. Fire, Ice, Lightning, Gravity, Rock, Wind. "We don't know what's going to make up its body but all Geist are protective of their masks. Based on the terrain, we can expect things like trees, rocks, for the body. Should be ready for it to escape more than once. As much as brute force may look right, we can't rely on overpowering it. We need to outsmart it, get it in a spot where we can corner it and break the mask."
"We'll need to be careful of what Dust we use. Anything we leave, can be used by the Geist. Ice, Rock, we should even try to avoid Fire. It could cause a forest fire to escape us, use anything on fire to separate us." Weiss shifted her selected Dust for Myrtenaster with those thoughts in mind, going from Fire to Wind.
"…We should try encircling it. Larger groups work better, can keep it from focusing on one of us and keep track of it. We can't let it get away, give it a chance to hide or plan out something. That's when it's the most dangerous." Blake returned Gambol Shroud to her lap, unable to place it on her back with the cramped space of the Bullhead they were on.
"You all worry too much." Yang withheld the urge to roll her eyes, a confident smile on her face. "When we find it, we'll take it down. Easy as that."
"It's not insane to have a plan Xiao-Long." Weiss shook her head at the attitude she had come to expect from Ruby's sister. "It's not only unwise but the height of arrogance to go in without one."
"Fine, fine. The plan is to kill it." Yang leaned back in her seat, well as much as she could in such cramped quarters, didn't even bother to spare Weiss a look. "This is a Grimm. We're not fighting some rogue Huntsman. Even if we were, you've got me here. I'm like an automatic win."
Ruby looked like she was about to try and protest Yang's attitude but her word died in her throat before she could speak them. She returned to running her hand over the belt of rounds at her waist, her eyes on the floor of the Bullhead. Weiss frowned at the sudden onset of defeat.
She bit down on what she was going to say, what she wanted to say to Xiao-Long. Now wasn't the time.
'Later. Once we're done.' She closed her eyes, took in a calming breath. 'Later.' She couldn't let her temper flare, let an attitude impact her performance today. She wouldn't let Yang impact the mission, wouldn't let her ruin Team RWBY's first assignment as a team.
She glanced to Blake.
The dark-haired girl was watching Yang before amber eyes turned to her.
The two shared a look.
It went unspoken between the two of them that Yang would be a problem, that they would need to pick up the slack her attitude so consistently brought on.
Weiss found herself looking at Ruby again, sympathy on her face. She couldn't imagine having such an overbearing sister, one who was stifling more than helpful.
Soon enough, the Bullhead began to descend. The pilot gave a brief warning that they were about to land, to stay strapped in until he gave the all clear.
Once they were off, most of the students looked for where the professors had gone.
"Alright students! Gather around." Professor Port rested Blowhard on his back, the gray-haired man no longer smiling. The sight of the normally boisterous man being utterly serious enough to unnerve a few students, most willing to take this sudden mission much more seriously from that fact alone.
Professor Mulberry seemed busy speaking with the pilots and the group of armed soldiers that had been waiting for them in the manmade clearing.
"I'll keep this short so you can all be on your way swift as can be. You already know you're sectors to search from your briefings. Each of your Team Leaders have been given green flares to fire off when you engage the Geist. All nearby teams are to respond, form a perimeter so it can't escape while they engage it. Either myself or Professor Mulberry will be in contact with you with further instructions. The Bullheads will be nearby and the soldiers here, some of Atlas' finest, will be assisting us. Once you begin your search, aim for some Grimm extermination while you're here but it's not a priority. The Geist is. If you're in trouble for any reason, fire the red flare you've been given. The soldiers and either myself or Professor Mulberry will immediately head to assist you."
"If nothing happens, we'll be back to the school in time for lunch, a little bit past that at the worst. If some of you manage to find the cursed beast and kill it? Well, we'll just have call it a day early and you'll have an early start to your weekend. Might even get some extra credit if you do it quick enough!" Professor Port laughed, a few of the students throwing in nervous laughs, few able to find his words as funny as he did.
Professor Mulberry seemed to have finished with the pilots and the soldiers, what had to be an officer splitting up the soldiers and sending them to the Bullheads.
"Of course, this is no game. The Geist, any Grimm in his forest, can be a lethal threat if you're careless, if you let your guard slip. If you feel you're in danger, don't hesitate to call for help. Don't think things like 'I can handle this' or 'My team doesn't need help'. Any of that nonsense, toss it aside now. Let that type of thinking go. Being prideful, overly arrogant, will do nothing but get you killed as Huntsmen." Professor Port paused, seemed to wait for the words to sink in. "Am I understood?"
He earned a few scattered nods.
"I asked, am I understood?" Port's sudden booming voice made a handful of students jump.
None of the First Years had heard Professor Port take on such a manner of speaking, were normally something they experienced in their Second Year, maybe towards the end of their First Year.
Rarely before, especially when they hadn't even spent a full semester at Beacon Academy yet.
"Yes!" "Yeah!" "Loud and clear!"
He seemed satisfied at the number of varied responses, nodded to himself.
"Then I've got nothing more to say." Professor Port lifted Blowhard, aimed it skyward. "Good luck on your hunt." He fired a shot, the students scattering into the forest, most of their eyes focused on the maps on their Scrolls. A few sent glanced back at Port, surprised more than anything at the commanding tone the Professor many had considered near senile spoke with.
Harold watched them leave as Peter joined him at the Bullhead.
"This is going to be…something. I should've listened to Glynda. If feels like this can only end badly." Harold shook his head as he leaned the massive hammer/jet turbine he had welded a handle to named Raspberry over his shoulder, Blackberry hanging from his side.
Peter slapped his back. "Have some faith in the kids Harold. They'll manage. And, if they don't, we'll be there for them."
"We can hope." Harold sighed. "The soldiers tell me they're from General Ironwood's guard detail, half of them were supposed to be the night shift for something he wants guarded."
"Something for the Vytal Festival most likely. Amity's coming all the way from Atlas, right?"
"With what looks like half their airship fleet escorting it from what the soldiers say."
"Ah, then everything's fine. Ironwood is just being his normal paranoid self." Peter managed to force a laugh.
Harold dropped his massive hammer to the ground, crouched down next to it to get a better look at it. Whatever humor Peter was feeling, his fellow Professor clearly didn't share in it. He occupied himself with his weapon instead, focused on switching out the Dust charges in his hammer, worked on something he could actually control.
When things went wrong, if things went as bad as he feared they would, he could be ready for it.
With how hard Ozpin had pushed for this trip, it was the best they could hope for.
Peter gave up on continuing a one-sided conversation, settled for heading into the Bullhead instead. His entrance was noted by the Specialist in charge of the platoon.
"Leonard."
"Port." After the rather short introduction, Specialist Church turned back to the electronic map of the area, the Scrolls of the students currently being used to track each of the First Year out in the forest. He seemed to have been splitting his time between it and going over the files Harold and Peter had been busy over the past few days putting together on each team. "Where's Mulberry?"
"Weapon maintenance." Peter chuckled, set Blowhard on his back for now. "You'd be amazed how often he sits down and cleans that hammer of his."
"Smart man." Church turned back to the file in front of him. He rose an eyebrow at what he uncovered. He looked to Peter. "You've got a team missing from this, why?"
"Medical issues." Peter didn't feel like entertaining that round of questioning.
If they hadn't needed to head out so early, he would've taken a moment to check in with Glynda, ask what happened.
Unfortunately, neither of them could delay heading out to the forest so early.
"What a shame. It would've been…interesting to see Pyrrha Nikos in action." Church seemed set to drop that topic at least, focused on the map projected from his military issued Scroll. "Like I told Harold, I've split my men into three squads. I've also got a direct line to the infirmary. If we take any casualties, they'll be ready for them."
"Hopefully we won't need it." Peter kept an eye on the map, watched as the students began to spread out, an expanding ring of Huntsmen and Huntresses in training heading out into the unknown.
"We will." His words didn't leave it up to question. Church collected his Scroll, checked a message on it. "General Ironwood contacted me while you were briefing the students. In addition to my platoon, two Specialists Candidates will be arriving within the hour. Both of them near the top of their class."
The news came as a surprise to Peter. With the tension the program itself had spawned from Huntsmen across Remnant, Specialist Candidates were a rare thing to see outside of Atlas. Most Huntsmen had come to consider Specialist Candidates less real than unicorns with how hard it was to see one out of wherever Atlas stored them. The furthest most ever got were usually those stationed in Argus. Every now and then, one or two of them were part of a special project group for one thing and another, usually headed out to one of the CCTS Towers. The only time he had heard of any groups of them was when they were serving some purpose on Amity Colosseum when it was in Atlas or in transit.
To learn that not only one was arriving but two was odd.
The fact that they were in Vale to begin with was even odder.
Peter had the idea that something was going on here, Atlas was up to something in Vale.
"Did Ozpin call in a favor or something?" Peter couldn't help but wonder. "Three Specialists for a mission like this? Aren't all of you supposed to be top class?" He laughed. "Or is Atlas too busy building robots to bother with training these days?"
"The General decided they needed field experience. Given the situation, Headmaster Ozpin readily agreed." Church seemed to take Peter's words as an insult, something Peter was sure a certain Huntsman would call it "Atlesian brand jackass" where others would call it pride in his Kingdom.
With the look on Church's face, Peter was close to agreeing with him. He resolved to buy him a drink the next time he had a chance.
"Easy. It's a joke Church." Peter wished that everyone from Atlas was less serious. "Who exactly are these Specialist Candidates?"
"Specialist Candidate Bree and Specialist Candidate Thyme." Church checked his Scroll again. "They're making good time. They'll be here shortly." He nodded towards the open doors. "Go bring Mulberry in. I need to speak with the both of you before they arrive."
Peter wanted to take some affront with Church basically ordering him but decided against it. He'd had about as much as he could take of Specialist Church for now. He could use the break.
"Say no more, old boy." Peter did his best to not just outright laugh at the cross look on Church's face as he headed out. 'I think I get why Branwen does this so often. It's just a bit too easy to push their buttons.' He chuckled to himself as he headed over to where Harold seemed to have finished his work on his weapon, at least judging from the fact that it now rested over his shoulder.
He rose an eyebrow at Peter as he approached.
"Trouble with Church?" Harold didn't seem surprised.
"You could say that." Peter shook his head. "But, that's not what I'm grabbing you for. We've got two more Specialists showing up. I suspect Church wants to brief us on one thing or another. You know how these Atlas boys are." Peter nodded towards the Bullhead. "Best not to keep him waiting."
"Damn. We're getting more of them?" Harold let out a sigh but he headed over to the Bullhead. "Like one of them wasn't already enough of a headache."
Peter grabbed Harold's shoulder, half a grin and half a grimace on his face. "Nothing we can't manage Harold."
"I hope." His fellow Professor didn't seem happy but he managed at least a little grin back. "Let's go and see what he wants."
AN: Well, that's it. Going to see if the rest I've got planned comes together or if it crashes and burns.
Review if you want.
PM if you want.
Peace.
