Something something soldiering
Chapter 18: Operation Firecracker
Beacon Academy, Vale
Today was the day, Ruby cheered to herself as she and her team got ready to hit the town and dig up information on the White Fang. After days of preparation, the team decided that it was finally time to conduct Operation Save the Kingdom which was totally an awesome name for their mission. As she laced her boots, she had to admire their new apparel. But before she could say anything else, Blake spoke up, "I really thought Port's lecture would never end..."
"You should try our leadership challenges," Ruby giggled, "I never thought a video game could help me learn more."
Weiss shook her head as she clipped Myrtenaster to her belt, "Yet for some reason you still get beaten by Jaune of all people."
"Aww give her credit Weissy," Yang teased as she jumped from her bed, "She's going up against Azure's personal student, and from what I hear, he's one hell of a tactic's teacher."
Ruby soon butted in, "Well... my losses aside, let's get down to business! We got bad guys to find, and butt to kick!"
"I see you're taking this seriously," the Schnee heiress rolled her eyes.
"We do have a plan!" Ruby protested, who was backed up by her sister Yang.
"Yeah Weiss, we do have a plan! A plan that's mostly serious!"
Sighing at her sister's teasing, Ruby began to remind them of their roles. She and Weiss will be heading down to the CCT tower to dig up any information about the dust robberies from the SDC records. Blake will use her knowledge of the White Fang meetings to try and gather information about their movements within Vale. Finally, Yang would be asking a friend of her's in downtown Vale to get information about Roman Torchwick's movements in the underworld.
With their roles understood, the 4 huntresses prepared to head out when they heard a knock on their door. Curious, they opened the door to reveal Sergeant Gambit and 2 of his men. The way they carried themselves showed that they were not amused for some reason.
"G-good morning sir," Ruby stuttered as she stepped back from the door while Gambit continued to look straight towards the window.
"Come on down there Wukong," the Guardsman Sergeant ordered, his arms crossed as he waited for the student he called out.
It wasn't long before the blonde monkey Faunus revealed himself as he awkwardly lowered himself into the window, embarrassment written on his face as he met Gambit's visor.
"And you Vasillias, get yourself in here before you fall off," he continued to order, and as expected, a blue-haired teen scrambled into the room, finally relieved to be on better ground.
With both boys now inside, Gambit handed Sun a piece of paper, "Detention with Goodwitch, stop climbing the buildings."
No other words were said as the trio of BSF troopers left, closing the door behind them. 4 pairs of eyes landed on the two newcomers as they smiled sheepishly at them.
"Uh... room for 2 more?" Sun asked.
CCT Tower, Beacon Academy
The 5th Fleet Marines were no strangers to guard duty. Hell, that was their primary purpose when they were first formed by the Republic Admiralty. While most of them take great pride in their duty, it doesn't go without saying that they absolutely hate dealing with troublesome individuals, and it seems that no matter which system they end up in, these idiots will still exist.
"Ma'am, I'll say this again, being a student of Atlas doesn't constitute an ID," a marine sighed as he held a female student at the entrance. This particular student has gone through the trouble of avoiding any form of presenting their identification. It would be impressive to some that she's still arguing, but most would be impressed more at the Marine's patience.
So far, the Atlesian student remained persistent in her demands, slowly getting under the clone's skin. It really didn't help that she was very loud about it, even going so far as trying to find fellow Atlesians to join her cause. He was about to shout at her to sod off, but he was fortunately relieved by a white-haired teen who approached the tower.
"Excuse me, sir, I would like to enter the CCT tower if you don't mind," Weiss Schnee said as she approached the door with her scroll in hand.
Seeing a possible ally, the Atlesian student piped up, "Miss Schnee! You must assist me! This man refuses to let me enter the tower!"
The aforementioned marine deadpanned at her, "Ma'am, I said it once and I'll say it again. No one is to enter the tower without showing ID. Either you present ID right now, or leave so I can let others pass."
"See what I mean?" the white-uniformed girl exclaimed, pointing at the poor trooper, "You call yourself a soldier when you fail to recognize your betters?"
Weiss shook her head, "Truly disgraceful."
"See? Miss Schnee agrees with me! Move aside you-"
"Truly disgraceful to Atlas," snapped the heiress as she glared at her fellow Atlesian, "I should remind you that you are a guest here, and you must follow any and all rules or customs of the Kingdom you're visiting."
This caught the troublemaker off-guard as she stuttered, "B-but we-"
"But nothing. You will respect this man as you will an Atlesian soldier and you will follow his request," finished Wiess as she crossed her arms.
Sensing that she was no longer able to win this one, the student turned tail and ran away, embarrassment written all over her face.
"Thank you, Miss Schnee," the Marine sighed as he accepted the heiress' scroll to check her ID. A quick scan of the ID was all he needed before he returned it and opened the door to the CCT, "Welcome to the tower ma'am."
The heiress nodded as she graciously entered the building, with the door closing behind her. She was greeted by the sight of a few more marines who patrolled the halls. Proceeding to the elevator, she chose the floor to the calling terminal using the elevator AI. She had to mentally prepare herself for what was to come and maybe hope that her father was not on the line.
...
Elsewhere in the tower was Ozpin's office. The Headmaster sat at his desk as he went over the most recent paperwork he had to sign. Ever since he agreed to house Beacon's Security Forces, the amount of paperwork seemed to increase.
Then again, to undergo such a large move in operation would undoubtedly require more work than usual when instating a security force. Especially if said force is an army quite literally out of this world.
Paperwork aside, Ozpin had to consider several things about this arrangement. On one hand, Azure has already highlighted the presence of possible agents of the Black Queen. This was alarming, but very much expected when he considered the attack on Amber. Next was the multiple operations his Chief conducted, namely the evacuation of Outpost 327 and the dispatching of his special units in Vale. These actions have raised a few concerns from the Council, who up to this point, paid no mind to what happened within the Academy.
It really did not help that he had a meeting with the security chief and his men in...
DING
"Ozpin, I swear to those brother gods that you intentionally made the elevators slow," grumbled Azure as he, Captain Murray, and the unidentifiable Captain Price entered the Headmaster's office. The Chief of Security soon locked the elevator floor to prevent any unwanted guests from prying into the meeting, his black-clad captain, used a scanner to find any bugs within the room.
The Headmaster offered tea to the 3 men as Azure sat down while his two Captains stood behind him. The Marshal gratefully accepted the tea as he began to speak, "Thank you, Headmaster," he then set down the cup, "Now, I would like to update you on our current status about finding out the White Fang's movements."
He offered Ozpin a datapad and continued, "As of now, we have a complete circle around the complex and have taken the necessary precautions needed. The Vale Police will evacuate the area before we strike and I have dispatched two gunships to ferry Murray's quick response force should things go south."
"Well Garreth, I've talked to General Ironwood and he's offering a battalion of his new android units," Ozpin said as he returned the datapad, "I told him you'd most likely decline the offer knowing what the mission needs."
Azure nodded, "I shall tell him myself that I appreciate the offer, but I need shock and speed, something those AK-200s cannot accomplish as far as I can see."
Murray coughed into his fist, "If I may sir, we could lease the androids to the VPD to help increase the perimeter and crowd control."
"The fewer civilians involved, the better," agreed Price as he studied the map on the datapad.
The Marshal's eyebrows raised as he eyed his two Captains, "Interesting choice gentlemen, and you do make a point... very well."
Ozpin readjusted his glasses, "Well, I'm glad to see that you are willing to adjust, however, I do have one concern..."
"What is it, Headmaster?"
"It has occurred to me that you have gotten the attention of the Council and they are beginning to press me for answers," his eyes remained calm as he explained the difficult situation, "If this operation is to happen, then you must create a better cover-up story for your operations."
"Hmm... yes that does raise quite a few problems... I'll see what I can do."
The Headmaster smiled at his ally, "I'm sure you'll be able to make something up."
Soon, the group was joined by two more guests. Eadrass Marr and Captain Hound entered, locking the elevator behind them as they made their way to the assembled men. Azure placed down a holodisk while Ozpin closed his office's windows, ensuring no one else will be able to see this meeting.
The white-coated gentleman soon began the briefing, "Right, now that we're all actually here, let's go over the operation."
A building schematic was then projected on the holodisk. A structure resembling that of a warehouse, the Marshal began the briefing, "As we all know, we have word that there is a large faction meeting for the White Fang at this warehouse. Thanks to the work of Foxtrot 9 and Eadrass, we have good reason to believe that Roman Torchwick might be present in this meeting, making him a highly valued target."
"With the possible recruits they're drawing in, it might be difficult to capture him alive," Eadrass pointed out.
Price also spoke up, "There's also the girl he tags along with. Neopolitan, if I remember correctly."
One could hear Hound grumble under his breath as he remembered the operation in the docks. He swore that he will not let it happen again, but it was just so unfortunate that his unit will be needed elsewhere.
"You'll just have to make due Captain Price," said Azure, "Unless Ozpin has any hunters in mind that could help... do you, Headmaster?"
The Headmaster shook his head, "Unfortunately, my most trusted hunter is still elsewhere on a field mission."
Garreth winced in annoyance but nodded all the same, "Very well. This will have to do. I don't like plans being half-baked, but with the timetable, we'll have to make do with what we have."
"Then you'd best be on your way Mister Azure," Ozpin stated as he stopped looking at the map.
Nodding, the Field Marshal and his men left the office, leaving the immortal professor to muse on his own.
Vale Docks, City of Vale
4 hours later...
Captain Murray was sharpening his one-handed sword as he and his half-company of marines waited in a building adjacent to the warehouse. Due to the severity of the operation, he and his unit were equipped with DC-15A blaster rifles with bayonets. They were anticipating most of the resistance being melee based, and since they needed more prisoners, they will have to fight harder to dislodge the Faunus extremists.
"Besh 6 to Marines, we're in position," sounded Murray's radio, "No sight of Torchwick yet."
Activating his comm he replied, "Roger, we're holding tight. Police are beginning to close down the area to the public and the other half of my unit is waiting in the gunships."
"Copy that, we'll be entering in 10 minutes. Besh 6 out," replied Price, ending the transmission.
Murray deactivated his own comm as he walked towards a window in the building. A trooper with binoculars was looking down at the warehouse, "I'm tracking seven more Foxtrots coming inside, one has a handgun in his pants."
"Torchwick might've gone through a backdoor then," observed Murray to which his fellow trooper agreed.
"That he might sir," the clone replied before returning his view to the warehouse entrance, "Wait a minute... Captain, look at that."
Pointing towards the entrance, the clone marine then offered his binoculars to the Captain. The latter followed the direction his trooper was pointing at and cursed as he saw two familiar faces. It was Blake Belladonna and Sun Wukong, and from what he could tell, they were going to try and find out more information about the White Fang too. Time was now of the essence as Murray reactivated his transmitter, "Gold Shed, Besh 6, we have a problem."
Azure's voice would soon respond, "Golf Shed reads, what is it, Captain?"
"We have two students, identified as Blake Belladonna and Sun Wukong," informed Murray as he watched the mentioned students enter the warehouse.
"Damn... can you stop them?" asked Azure, stress now evident in his voice.
"Negative Marshal, they're already in."
"Copy, Besh 6, you're receiving an ID for your two new guests, designated Solar and Lunar. Do not engage them, I say again, do not engage. If they get in trouble with the Fang, help them out."
Price's voice soon replied, "Roger, anything else?"
"Negative, Golf Shed out," confirmed Azure as he cut his line.
"Anything else Murray?" asked the Commando Captain.
"Nothing else, and it seems the last of the volunteers are inside."
"Good, entry rescheduled in 30 seconds, standby, Besh 6 out," finished Price as his own line turned off.
Murray returned the binoculars to his trooper as he switched his channel to his unit's own, "Alright men, in 4 minutes we'll be storming that karkin' warehouse. Most of the occupants are civilians, but some of them are armed. If they so much as level a weapon at you, you are being authorized to use deadly force."
The marines within the building listened on as they checked their gear. Making sure that each blaster was primed and ready to fire when the action starts. A trooper rechecked his belt for his flash grenades while another made sure his bayonet was sharp enough. It's safe to say, these men were ready to go and it was only expected from Murray's unit.
"Besh 6 has entered, we have visual on Torchwick and Neopolitan," the hushed voice of Captain Price informed.
"Golf Shed reads, we're receiving your feed now Captain," a clone operations officer replied.
Murray tuned in to Besh 6's transmission and listened carefully.
"The councils, their armies, and hell, even the hunter academies! All of them are responsible for your problems in life!" a voice jeered. It was Roman Torchwick alright.
Behind the speech, the crowd of Faunus agreed as they cheered. The Thief was going somewhere with this, "They're the PESTS that you and I despise, and like pests, they all need a good exterminator. Lucky for you, I just happen to be the one you need. Oh, and no offense to any rodents in the room."
Then, a sound was heard as a hundred voices gasped in wonder. It was unfortunate for Murray that the feed was only audio as he could only guess what they were seeing. Besh 6's commander would soon satiate their curiosity.
"Tracking a Paladin, prototype by the looks of it."
"Any word on what they're going to do with it?" asked the operations officer.
"Resuming feed," was all Price said.
"-before they... hit the shelves so to speak," continued Roman's voice, "Now you're brothers and sisters have already moved to our operations in the southeast. I won't fault you if you'd like to stay in the city, trust me, I would too, but if you think you have what it takes to stand up to those pests that rule the society you have today, then this my friends, is the arsenal I could offer."
Field Marshal Azure's voice buzzed in, "Southeast Vale... Mountain Glenn... Foxtrot 9, Eadrass, begin your search."
A new, but familiar voice replied, "We're on it Marshal, Eadrass out."
"Besh 6, Marines, we have what we need. Commence the operation!" ordered Azure.
"Roger, Besh 6 going dark."
The feed was now cut and Murray had heard enough. He turned to his unit and began to issue orders.
"Marines, on your feet!"
"Yes sir!"
The building was now alive with activity as troopers began to scramble to their positions and checked their rifles one last time.
"Marines will fix bayonets," ordered the Marine Captain, "Fix!"
Like their brothers in the Guard Regiment, the 5th Fleet Marines drew their blades.
"Bayonets!"
In unison, the sacred blades were attached to their rifles as Murray checked his pistol one last time before he sent them in.
...
"They're moving forward sir," Soap observed as he and his team watched the crowd move, "At this rate, Solar and Lunar will be caught."
Upon observation, it would seem the commando would be right as Roman's gaze fell upon the two Faunus.
"Then it's time we gave them a little surprise," Price remarked as he drew a detonator, "All stations confirm your status."
"6-5 in position."
"6-9 in position."
"All stations in position sir," confirmed Price's 2nd in command, Gaz.
Prince nodded at his Sergeant as he flipped the detonator, "Watch yourselves..."
With a click of a button and the charges, they planted earlier went off. Each section of the building that would cause the most panic blew up, causing many to scream in fear. White Fang grunts struggled to fathom what was happening as the chaos ensued.
Operation Firecracker was now in full swing.
"Soap, hit the power box, Gaz, flashbangs ready!" ordered Price.
Soap's aim snapped towards the mentioned power box, "Stand by, lights out!"
A shot from his DC-17MBR rang out, hitting the target. As expected, the power went out, causing even more confusion within the White Fang. Not one to waste an opening, Sergeant Gaz and three other Besh 6 commandos threw down flash grenades. Several loud snaps and the crowd below was now in pain as their senses were overloaded by the effect of the grenades.
"Set for stun and gun for Torchwick!"
"Wait boss, look!"
Price, using his built-in night vision, cursed when he saw Blake and Sun running from the warehouse, albeit struggling due to the flashbang, while Roman crawled into the Paladin suit that he was presenting.
"Griffen! Hit the paladin!" relayed Price, but it was too late as the battlesuit powered up and gave chase.
Gaz then spoke up, "Neo's following them, sir."
"We'll have to deal with them another time, now we have to deal with the remaining leadership."
Another explosion rocked the building as the entrance doors were knocked down, behind them were the 5th Fleet Marines with bayonets fixed.
"AHOY YOU BASTARDS!" yelled Murray as his marines charged the crowd, taking down anyone who put up a fight.
The White Fang then realized that they had little chance of escaping as the chaos finally came into full view. The fighting below showed little success for the Faunus as the blue and white armored troopers clashed against the Faunus soldiers.
Murray was now in the thick of the fighting as he crossed swords with a White Fang lieutenant. The two men exchanged blows, but Murray knew that he was at a disadvantage. His opponent was a leopard Faunus, her club almost knocking his sword out of his hands, had kept him at bay for the most part. He had to counter with well-aimed stabs and cuts to keep her from going all out.
Elsewhere, the marines continued their assault, offering the enemy a chance to surrender before putting them down should they try and fight back. The rafters above saw the black-clad Besh 6 commandos taking potshots at the Fang's leadership, their blasters set to stun to yield the most prisoners. Their best shot, Soap made most of their counts as he sprinted above, firing at anyone who raised a gun at his team.
Price was aiming for another shot when he noticed a chameleon Faunus lurking towards him. A knife was in his hand as he snuck up on the dark-armored Captain.
Not one to be ambushed, Price swung his aim to shoot the newcomer but was slower to the draw as he felt his weapon get kicked down to the floor.
He had to stop himself from growling as he gave his opponent a good look. Sleek build and hard to spot was a dangerous combination to fight, but Price was a new kind of dangerous.
Drawing his wrist blade, he challenged the Faunus, "Your move."
Accepting the challenge, the now-revealed Faunus charged, going for a stab downwards, but Price blocked it, his one hand holding the knife as he delivered a jab to his opponent's guts. This caused him to cry in pain as he felt the vibro blade penetrate his stomach, rupturing his insides. Price followed it with an arm twist, making the Faunus let go of his own blade.
He tossed his opponent to the ground as he picked up his blaster and set it to kill. Realizing the situation he was in, the Faunus tried to beg, "Wait no-"
Zhip
No other words were said as Price returned his focus to the ground below.
Back with Murray, the Marine Captain finally ended the fight as he kicked his opponent down, sending her tumbling. In a similar fashion to what Price did, he drew his pistol on her and fired, sending a stun bolt her way.
It was enough to put her down as she finally laid down, tired and beaten. After a few more minutes of fighting, the remaining Faunus surrendered to Murray's platoon. The recruits loudly protested the supposed false imprisonment, while the grunts shouted all forms of profanity at them. Murray heard a hiss and click and turned to see Captain Price descend from the rafters, his team following behind him.
"You have to deal with Torchwick," he pointed to the hole in the wall, "Leave half your platoon here, we'll handle things on this end."
Murray nodded, "Right, 1st and 2nd squads, stay here! Everyone else, with me! Move out!"
"Move it! Move it!"
"You heard him lads let's go!"
They could only hope that they were fast enough to avoid collateral casualties.
Vale Highways, City of Vale
"Ice flower!" yelled Ruby as she and Weiss got ready to perform their combination.
Glyphs manifested in front of her deployed Crescent Rose as Aura-infused dust bullets hit the Paladin, slowing it down as intended. The opening allowed Yang Xiao Long to finally swing around, her grip on Blake's Gambol Shroud tightened as she delivered the final blow to the Paladin. The damage caused Roman Torchwick to emerge from the wreckage, surprisingly unscathed as he dusted himself off.
"You ladies really ought to respect a man's clothes," he muttered as he faced the four teenagers.
Suddenly, floodlights were on him as the sound of 2 LAAT gunships echoed throughout the highway. The passenger bay opened to reveal several squads of the 5th Fleet Marines, weapons drawn.
"Roman Torchwick! You're surrounded! Surrender now!" the gunship pilot's voice echoed as it began to descend on the area.
Within the transport, Captain Murray was watching the scanners making sure to keep track of Roman's partner in crime Neopolitan.
It was too late however when a trooper called out, "Over there! Blast her!"
Blue bolts of light flew from their blasters as they tried to take down the criminals. Just like before however, they shattered like glass, causing the Captain to curse as his gunship touched down. He and everyone else noticed a bullhead lift off, with both Roman and Neo inside. The former waved towards them as they made their escape.
The gunship pilot of the 2nd LAAT saw this as he thumbed his missile lock, "Oh I don't think so..."
A rocket flew from the gunship's pods as it made a break for the fleeing bullhead, and much to the pilot's satisfaction hit the bullhead in the engines, sending it plummeting down to the grounds below.
"Great shot Clive!" his co-pilot cheered as the gunship jerked forward to chase the bullhead and find Roman.
Down below at the original battlefield, Murray watched the 2nd gunship fly off before turning his attention to the wreckage left behind. It was littered with metal, concrete, ice, and mist. The roads above were damaged and to top it all off, the supporting police units have reported multiple injured civilians along the highway.
He could only imagine what the Field Marshal would think upon hearing about this.
Back with team RWBY, the four girls reconvened about what just happened, with Weiss trying to make a joke, "Well, I suppose she made our plans fall apart?"
Blake could only shake her head in disappointment, Ruby stifling a laugh, while Yang crossed her arms, "I'll give you credit for trying, but that joke was just not good enough."
"Unbelievable!" scoffed Weiss as they turned around to walk away, but were met with a 3rd gunship landing in front of them, the passengers being Captain Sixers, a few of his men, and professors Goodwitch and Azure, the latter two expressing great frustration at the two teams.
"Unbelievable is the correct term Miss Schnee," Azure said as he stepped off the gunship, arms behind his back, "Now what I'd like to know is what in the hell were you four thinking?!"
"We were stopping the White Fang from doing something!" Blake protested, "A job that the police should be doing! They have the resources, and they have information, yet they sit there doing nothing, and when we finally do something about it, then they finally act."
This outburst caught the attention of everyone as eyes were now on four huntresses-in-training. Azure spat back, "Is that how little faith you have in the police? You said it yourself Blake, the police are capable to do it, and they were. Unless it crossed your mind, the Vale police were everywhere near the docks, making sure that no one else gets hurt while I sent my men to help handle Torchwick."
To emphasize the point, several police sirens wailed above, signifying the presence of Vale's police department.
"Do you have any idea what you four just did?" Azure asked, anger lingering in his voice, "Instead of us capturing Torchwick and the Fang, we only have the latter, with the former causing all manner of chaos in the city. We had them cornered, nowhere to run had you not decided to take justice into your own hands."
Ruby looked down in shame as the reality of the situation dawned upon them. The Chief of Security was right. For all intents and purposes, they caused more damage than there should be. It was a total mess all around.
Azure then sighed as his anger began to dissipate, "You should count yourselves lucky that no one could pinpoint who was causing the mess."
"But that doesn't mean you're getting out of this unpunished," Glynda remarked as she crossed her arms, "Headmaster Ozpin would like to speak to you at a later date, but for now you'll be observing detention with me until the day of the dance."
"Frankly, you shouldn't be at the dance at all," the Marshal remarked as he turned around, "It just so happens Ozpin is the forgiving type."
A police officer approached him, "Are you, professor Azure?"
Turning to him, Azure nodded, "That would be me, yes. Is there something you need?"
"The police chief would like a word with you," the officer said as he pointed toward a nearby car.
"Right, lead the way then."
As Azure and the officer walked away, Glynda pointed to the gunship, "Alright you four, into the craft. You're no doubt tired after that fight and it would do you good to get some rest. You still have classes tomorrow after all."
Ruby nodded, "Yes Professor Goodwitch. Come on team."
The rest of her team followed suit as they were helped up into the gunship by Sixers and his men. The doors closed when Miss Goodwitch climbed aboard and soon, the flight back to Beacon began.
Suffice to say, it was a long trip.
And wrap! Hope you all liked this one around! Not as long as Wrap Up, but still plenty of action. Anyways, I'll let you all leave the story with more reviews while you wait for the next chapter which would probably be fillers.
Until then, I bid you adieu! Stay frosty because that's soldiering!