Chapter 8…
"Well…" Asher muttered as he leaned over the dark abyss. "In my professional opinion, it's definitely a cave."
"Hilarious," Sage yawned. The faunus boy joined his teammate at the mouth of the cave, his shield collapsed into a smaller form for easier mobility.
Asher had been correct in his classification of the geographical occurrence.
The mouth of the cave's entrance was situated atop one of the large hills dotting this area of the tundra. It was hidden in the folds of the miniature mountains, a wide pit with a jagged maw of broken stones.
"The real question is whether or not it's the correct cave…" Mauve muttered as she joined her teammates. She had her hands planted on her hips, Her gaiter was still pulled up over her mouth and nose, and Mauve's sharp eyes glared over the fabric . "The trail stops here…"
"Oh, it's the right cave…" Grey loudly yawned, the man standing beside the small assembly of teammates. His long-shafted weapon was propped up against his shoulder; an unreadable look upon his usually expressive face. "Eyes down, you four…"
There was little snow at the mouth of the cave, most of the white substance having been peeled away to show a glimpse of the rocky ground beneath. The stone ground below the team's feet was heavily scratched and pockmarked. Rust, who had yet to join his teammates at the mouth of the cave, stood behind to analyze the trail. His brown eyes narrowed when he caught a glimpse of red amongst the white snow and grey stone.
"More dust!" Rust licked his chapped lips. He could feel his teammates eyes on him as he carefully followed the powdery trail of fire dust. It led up to the very mouth of the cave, but was soon obscured by the darkness beyond.
"Extra points for you, Zephin," Grey gestured in Rust's direction. The brass bell hanging off of the man's weapon jingled as he walked up to the mouth of the cave. Grey pushed past the teammates to stare into the abyss.
"So, it's the correct cave…" Asher straightened his back and sighed. "Are we spelunking?"
Four pairs of eyes turned to face their chaperone. Grey still had his back to the team and was peering into the dark expanse. His nose wiggled occasionally, as if he was trying to sniff out any danger.
Up above, the once blue sky was now streaked in dark orange tones. It would be night soon, it was getting colder by the minute and once the sun dipped below the horizon…
Well, prolonged exposure to the cold would be fatal…
The cave would be chilly, without a doubt, but at least there would be protection from the wind. Most pressing, however, was the undisputed fact that their mission objective sat inside the cave system. The dust was one thing, but the missing soldiers were another…
"Mister Grey?" Mauve asked quietly. "Are we going to go in?"
Grey did not answer, but he did mumble something incoherent under his breath. The man's long hand reached into his pocket to withdraw the radio.
"Flyboy? Are you there?"
For a moment, the radio crackled.
"Roger, I'm still circling…" The voice of the pilot finally broke through, although it was distorted. "Night's coming…"
"We have a very strong lead here… it's a cave system," Grey spoke into the speaker. "And as tempted as I am to pack up for the day and tackle this later - I need to justify the fat paycheck I get every few weeks...so..."
For a long moment, there was no response.
"...maybe an hour before nightfall…" The radio crackled heavily. "...wouldn't advise…"
"The radio is breaking up? It must be the hills…" Asher theorized out loud.
"Quiet!" Mauve shushed her partner before turning her attention back to her teacher.
"Flyboy!," Grey shouted into the radio. "If you can hear me, we're going in. I don't think that you'll be able to hear us down there, so do us a favour and stick around so we don't freeze to death."
The radio repeatedly crackled, the pilot's voice failing to break through. Grey audibly swore under his breath as he shoved the radio into his pocket.
"Do you think that he heard that?" Sage grumbled and shook his head. "Mister Grey… why don't we just call for backup?"
"I'm not a tech expert…" Grey planted his hands on his hips. "But if the radio ain't working then our scrolls sure as hell won't. Everyone ready? We're going on a little adventure…"
"I'll go first, Mister Grey," Mauve said aloud, taking the initiative.
Mauve swung out one foot to take the first step into the darkness…
She was stopped by a gloved hand…
"Asher?" Mauve blinked in surprise. "What is it?"
"Don't just step in like that!" Asher's helmeted head shook from side to side. He swiveled his gaze between his partner, his teammates, and his teacher.
"Why?"
"You can't see!" Asher cried. "For all we know it's a sheer drop! What if you fell!?"
"He has a point…" Sage frowned. "Hey, Rust? You have some cave experience. Could there be a sheer drop?"
"It's not impossible…" Rust spoke up, rubbing his chin with his brawny fingers.
"You've got cave experience?" Grey interjected, his beady eyes looking up at Rust.
"Some…" Rust frowned. "I used to work a mine shift back in Vacuo - when I was younger."
"Don't phrase it like you're an old man…" Grey chuckled. "I want you on point, we'll need your expertise down there."
"This is all well and good…" Sage frowned and held up his hands. "But it doesn't solve the immediate problem of vision…"
"I have an idea," Asher cleared his throat. "Does anyone have a coin? I heard somewhere that if you throw a coin and listen for the sound of it hitting the ground, you can tell if there's a drop or not."
"Is that true?" Sage raised an eyebrow in interest. The faunus boy swiveled his gaze in Rust's direction.
"Pretty sure that's just a movie myth," Rust waved his hand. "It's the first I've heard of it."
"What the hell are you kids even on about?" Grey looked between the three male members of Team MARS.
"Perhaps I can suggest a more sensible idea?" Mauve scoffed. "Mister Grey, could I see that pack you took from the bullhead?"
Without waiting for a verbal response, Mauve shot out a gloved hand in Grey's direction. She reached her fingers into the flap of the pouch that Grey had taken from the bullhead. From the pouches' unseen interior she pulled out one of the emergency flares.
After a brief scanning of the instructions, Mauve lit the flare. She tossed it into the mouth of the cave, revealing an almost flat looking expanse…
"No drop!" Mauve scoffed, taking the first step into the dark expanse.
Her teammates and teacher followed behind her, each feeling a little bit embarrassed…
"You three really oughta listen to Lightning-Chick more," Grey chuckled, the bell on the end of his weapon producing a jingling echo. "Talk about spunk!"
The flare felt uncomfortably warm in Rust's outstretched hand.
A cold orange light was thrown by the top of the flare, illuminating the rather wide passageway that Team MARS was traversing. The ground, for the most part, was flat; although it was heavily scratched and pockmarked in some areas.
Along the ground, the light trail of fire dust continued, leading the team deeper and deeper…
Rust's fingers curled tighter around the cylindrical body of the flare…
When was the last time he had been this deep? In fact… when was the last time he had been underground at all?
A long time ago… that was the answer. A different cave on an entirely different continent. The old mine near his hometown - by all accounts an almost worthless pit that the town only kept active due to corporate interest…
Now? That dank little hole was just a pile of rubble… and a grave…
Rust felt a little bit of sweat beginning to form on the back of his neck. It wasn't from heat, nor exertion… the cave was as cold and somber as a tomb…
Moving the flare around, Rust glanced at the lumpy walls and high ceiling of the underground passage. They were a chaotic fusing of hard rock and gleaming ice; naturally stable, although Rust still found himself wishing for some better supports than just natural occurrences.
Rust was no stranger to the underground, and he remembered full-well just how loud it could be. Occasionally, there was a shifting noise - the sound of thousands of tons of soil, rock, and ice shifting above his head
Sometimes, smaller sounds echoed down the cave. Most likely, a small rock had come loose somewhere and impacted with the ground, making the noise…
Or what about the sound of blood rushing in his ears? The sound of his heart beating inside of his chest?
Caves were underground, graves were underground… Rust stopped considering the two as separate a long time ago. Back in Vacuo, somewhere at the bottom of a pit, the body of his father lay; his remains would never be recovered…
Would Rust suffer the same fate? Buried alive?
Were the walls coming in? Rust could swear that the passage was narrower than it was before…
A strong hand wrapped around Rust's forearm. The large boy resisted the urge to jump, the sudden contact jolting him out of his growing panic.
"Zephin?" Grey whispered.
Rust followed the hand grabbing him up to its source. Grey's beady little eyes had a twinkling glint in the light of the flare.
"Zephyri?" Grey repeated, someone managing to butcher Rust's last name two times in the span of ten seconds. "You're not losing it on me, are you?"
"Y- Yeah-" Rust quickly stammered out. "I mean, no! Why do you ask?"
"Because you were about to fall on your face…"
Grey pointed his long-fingered down near Rust's feet. Rust lowered the flare to see what Grey was pointing out, noticing a jagged ridge that his boot had become hooked on.
Carefully, Rust extracted his foot from the ridge.
"Thanks…" Rust swallowed.
"Gimme the flare…" Grey sighed, gingerly taking the flare from Rust's hand.
"Huh?"
"Fall back a little bit… I'll take point for a minute or two…"
"Are you sure-"
"No arguing with your teacher."
Rust awkwardly swallowed a lump in his throat that he didn't know had formed. He fell back a few steps like his teacher requested - but not so far that he was away from the flare's guiding light. As he walked, Rust could feel a pair of piercing eyes on his back.
"You're a terrible liar…" Mauve muttered. The lynx girl had quickened her pace, walking perhaps only a step behind Rust.
"What?"
"You're not fine…" Mauve whispered, her boot-clad feet making hollow taps against the stone ground. "You look like you've seen a ghost…"
"I-" Rust felt a shallow breath rattling around in his chest. "I just don't like caves very much-"
"I can understand why," Mauve muttered, abruptly cutting Rust off. "You told us all about your upbringing."
Rust had, indeed, made his story clear to the rest of his teammates. For a time, only Sage truly knew about Rust's experiences as a miner - including the loss of his father. Verdant Bulwark had let the information slip in his team's first showdown with the man. How Verdant had learned such information, Rust wasn't sure… but the cat was out of the bag…
"I don't feel the same fear as you. This place is dark… and freezing… and I don't like it much either…" Mauve whispered. "But stay focused - this is a mission and I need you at your best."
There was an icy undertone to Mauve's words - her manner of speaking was almost as frigid as the cave's still air. Rust frowned and turned his head to hide his face from his leader. Mauve had the tendency to be forward, but she wasn't usually so blunt…
"You'll get no trouble from me…"
"I know that I won't."
Mauve fell silent, the only noise she made being the tapping of her boots against the rocks.
Up ahead, the slight incline that the team was traveling on began to flatten out. No longer were they descending, they were now traveling on a somewhat even plane. The long passage continued to stretch further into the inky darkness. Jagged stalactites made from ice hung over the team members like daggers.
Rust was startled when he heard one of his teammates come to an abrupt stop, the soles of their boots dragging against the ground.
"Everyone stop for a second!" Sage requested, his voice rising in pitch.
"Sage?" Mauve turned her head. "What-"
"Quiet!" Sage hissed, raising a finger to his lips. "I can hear something…"
The small assembly fell silent - even Grey - who was currently narrowing his beady eyes in Sage's direction.
"Sage…" Asher whispered. "What do you hear?"
"I-" Sage murmured, his wolf ears flicking gently. "I think that I can hear… breathing…"
The four team members stopped and listened.
"I hear it too…" Mauve muttered, her lynx ears turning gently. "It sounds like breathing…"
Rust craned his ears again, he could tell that Asher was doing the same.
"I hear breathing too…" Grey whispered, his voice muffled by the crackling pitch of the flare. "It sounds like it's close…"
Rust finally heard what his faunus teammates were hearing. It was a low sounding whistle, the sound of air rising and lowering to a somewhat uneven pitch.
"Could it be a draft?" Asher asked with a whisper, his visor panning around to view his teammates and teacher. "Rust?"
Rust could feel all eyes turn to him.
"No… that's not a draft. Draft's don't rise and lower in pitch like that…" Rust licked chapped lips. "It's breathing…"
"Everyone hold on…" Asher murmured as he raised his rifle. He fiddled with the scope of the weapon, flicking it into its thermal vision mode. "I'm going to take a look around…"
"Hang on…" Grey muttered. The man lowered the crackling flare in his hand so that it wouldn't interfere with Asher's attempts. "Go ahead…"
Asher stayed silent as he peered through his scope, sweeping his rifle in slow circles to get a view of the area…
"I'm seeing something faint…" Asher cleared his throat and lowered his rifle. "Could you hand me the flare…?"
Handing off the flare to Asher, Grey gestured for the rest of the team to fall in behind. Asher, now holding the only light source, led his teammates and teacher in the direction of the heat signature. The sound of weak breathing grew louder… first a whisper, then a murmur…
"We're close…" Mauve muttered. "Asher, raise the flare…"
Asher did as requested, only for a very unmanly shriek to escape his lips. The helmeted boy jumped back the moment he saw a face staring back at him. His teammates reacted to his sudden outburst, all shrinking back a foot.
"Fuck!" Asher coughed, lifting the flare back up.
There was a man hanging from the ceiling…
Upside down from the ceiling…
Asher raised the flare higher, spotting that the man's lower legs were trapped in the mixture of ice and snow that stuck to the cave's ceiling like glue.
Despite his limp condition, the man continued to heave out shallow breaths.
"Is he alive?" Mauve asked, stepping forwards to stand beside her partner.
"Looks like he is…" Asher frowned. "But who knows how long he's been hanging like this. We need to get him down."
"No shit, Disappearing-Act!" Grey huffed. "Give me the flare back!"
Asher yelped as Grey snatched the flare from his hand. The wiry man pushed past his student, holding the flare closer to the man's face.
"Fancy seeing you here, buddy…" Grey made a strange noise. It took a moment for the teammates to realize that Grey was chuckling, his tone quiet and almost somber.
"Mister Grey?" Mauve muttered.
"Zephryn," Grey snapped his finger and pointed in Rust's direction, his eyes still focused on the hanging man's face. "Get this guy down from the ceiling, would you?"
"Uh, yeah…" Rust swallowed uncomfortably. The tall boy stepped past his teacher and gently wrapped his arms around the hanging man - feeling a very faint warmth emanating from his body. Rust began to carefully tug downwards, hearing the ice above beginning to crack. Finally, with one last tug, Rust wrenched the man's from the ice that was trapping him.
The man was heavier than expected, but Rust was careful to keep his grip tight as he gently lowered him to the floor.
"Easy, easy…" Sage murmured as Rust gently placed the man's head against the stones. The man murmured something incomprehensible in his delusions, his body weakly shifting around on the hard stones.
"Well, looks like we found one of them…" Asher muttered.
They had, indeed, found one of the missing members of the convoy. The man the Rust had just pulled from the ceiling was dressed in the whites, blues, reds, and grays of the Atlas military huntsman uniform: a white double-breasted coat and durable blue trousers tucked into knee-high boots. Curiously, a red ascot was tied around his neck - a slight departure from the uniform standard.
"Can he hear us?" Mauve asked.
"Who knows how long he's been hanging here…" Grey shook his head as he kneeled down. "Do any of you have drinking water?"
Sage wordlessly reached towards his belt and removed a small flask. Unscrewing the top of the container, Sage handed the water flask to Asher, who then handed it down to Grey.
"Easy now…" Rust murmured as Grey gently lifted the man's head. He tilted the open flask into the unconscious man's mouth, a dribble of water seeping past his lips...
The reaction was so instantaneous that all four members of MARS were startled. As if suddenly waking from the dead, the Atlesian huntsman raised his hands to clamp down on the flask.
"Woah!" Grey shouted in surprise, finding that he could not move his gloved hand.
The huntsman drank greedily until the flask was empty, his eyes still firmly shut. Finally, he relented, releasing his hands on the flask and audibly groaning in pain.
"Can you hear me?" Mauve called out, her voice bordering on stern.
"Hey, easy…" Sage chastised his leader. "Give him a second…"
"Listen to Ricochet-Kid," Grey held up his free hand in warning. "He's probably a little bit frazzled right now…"
After a few moments, the huntsman began to open his eyes. First just a small crack, then wide open…
Yelping in fear at the four pairs of eyes (and a visor) staring down at him, the Atlesian huntsman scuttled back on his hands and feet like a crab. He abruptly stopped when his back impacted with the rocky wall of the cave.
"Woah, woah!" Asher held out his hands in warning. After a moment's hesitation, Asher whipped off his helmet to reveal his face. "Careful! It's alright!"
"Calm down, man!" Rust pleaded to the huntsman. "We're here to help you!"
Both Asher and Rust's words fell on deaf ears. The Atlesian huntsman was clearly in a state of shock. He had come from retreating to searching, patting around on the ground for a weapon he no longer possessed. Finally, the man's hands settled on a rather sharp looking rock.
"We don't have time for this…" Mauve huffed, withdrawing one of her blades with a metallic screech.
"Mauve!?" Sage coughed. "What are you doing!?"
Pushing past her teammates and her teacher, Mauve stomped in the huntsman's direction. She knelt down to address the man at his level, one hand clutching Nimbus, holding its razor sharp tip in the direction of the huntsman.
"Put down the rock!" Mauve snarled, her piercing gaze peeking out from over her neck gaiter. "I won't ask twice!"
"Mauve!?" Asher cried. "What the fuck!?"
Despite her teammates' moral qualms, Mauve's strategy appeared to be working. Taking a few shallow breaths, the huntsman dropped his makeshift weapon and planted his hands on the ground.
"Now…" Mauve peered closer at the man. "Name, rank, and last known location!"
"I-" The man coughed for a moment and began clutching at his head, pushing around his dark hair. "I- Uh… I don't-"
"Focus!"
"Marrow Amin, Private First-Class, B License Huntsman…"
Mauve grunted when Grey pushed his way past her. Her teacher clamped one of his long hands on the handle of Nimbus, pushing the hybrid weapon away from the cowering huntsman.
"Put away the poker, Tempistira…" Grey mumbled as he observed the quivering huntsman. "I know this one…"
"Mister Grey?" Mauve muttered, lowering the tip of Nimbus and slotting the blade back into her charging pack. "You know him?
"Know him?" Grey chuckled as he dropped the flare to the ground. Without warning, the wiry man surged his hands down and wrapped his long fingers around the lapels of Marrow's coat. He pulled the Atlesian Huntsman to his feet in a fast tug. "Of course I know him!"
"Grey?" Marrow coughed from the cold. "What are you doing here? This must be hell then. I'm not hallucinating… am I?"
Grey gave Marrow a sly grin before rearing up one hand. The wiry older huntsman delivered a sharp backhanded smack to Marrow's cheek, making the younger man yelp.
"Did that feel like a hallucination?"
"Point-" Marrow coughed. "Point taken…"
"It's good to see you, kid," Grey clapped Marrow on the shoulder good naturedly. The wiry man turned his head, his beady eyes twinkling as he addressed his students. "Marrow here is a former student of mine!"
"I think Ironwood mentioned something like that…" Sage frowned.
"What are you all doing here?" Marrow let out several shallow breaths, his eyes wide. "Where… is here, exactly?"
"We're in a cave system," Mauve answered the second part of Marrow's question. "We came to find a missing dust transport-"
"And you…" Grey added, gently dusting off the wrinkled lapel of Marrow's coat with his hand. "And by extension, everyone else who's currently missing."
"Hey…?" Asher stepped forwards, his helmet still dangling from his fingers. "What's the last thing you remember?"
Marrow frowned and gingerly gripped the sides of his head. "I don't really recall… I think that I was sitting in a vehicle?"
"You were escorting a convoy," Rust muttered.
"Yeah… that's right…" Marrow audibly gulped. The man blinked his blue eyes, peering at the members of MARS in curiosity. "Who are you four? I mean, I know Grey… but I don't think I've met your four…"
"We're Team MARS-" Mauve began, although she never got the chance to finish.
"Lightning-Chick, Disappearing-Act, Ricochet-Kid, and the Human-Mountain…" Grey informed Marrow, his finger flicking between the four members of MARS. "Four individual circus acts in their own right - but not important right now."
"Oh…" Mauve's voice wavered, her piercing eyes angled towards the ground. "Alright… Marrow, you said that you last remembered sitting in a vehicle?"
"Yeah, something like that…" Marrow blinked.
"We found the wreckage of your convoy not far from here," Mauve continued to elaborate. "We're trying to find the missing soldiers, as well as the dust transport vehicle you were escorting. Several clues led to this cave, and it looks like our hunch paid off."
Marrow crudely wiped his runny nose and shifted where he stood. He wobbled for a moment before finally finding his balance and standing up to his full height. He was taller than the members of Team MARS realized - almost as tall as Grey was - and in the light of the flare the teammates finally noticed the dog tail nervously wagging behind the man.
"If you're here… then that must mean that everyone else is too…" Mauve theorized. "Chances are that the dust transport is down here as well. Marrow, can you remember anything about what happened? Anything that might be useful?"
"No… it's like there's a blank spot in my mind…" Marrow shook his head. "I wish I could tell you…"
"Can you walk? Do you think that you could help us-"
"Mauve!" Sage cried sharply. "Don't tell me that you expect him to help us!?"
"Sage-"
"For crying out loud! He's been hanging upside down for who knows how long!?" Sage scoffed.
"We should take him back topside…" Asher agreed with his blue-eyed teammate. "It's going to be nighttime soon… and we need to call for backup."
Mauve ignored her teammates, swiveling her gaze back in Marrow's direction. "Can you walk? How much aura do you have?"
"His aura was the only thing keeping him alive!" Asher continued to argue. "Mauve… Sage is right. Rust, what do you think?"
Rust was about to open his mouth, but the team's teacher beat him to it.
"How about we just ask the man himself?" Grey offered. The man turned his head in the direction of his former student. "Well, Marrow? What do you think? Do we go topside? Or do we try to find the rest of your fellow soldiers?"
"I can walk and run… I don't know about fighting…" Marrow weakly shrugged. "But if the rest of my team is down here then I'm obligated to help you find them. Don't worry about me…"
"Where's your gun?"
"I…" Marrow looked confused for a moment. "Hold on…"
The Atlesian huntsman stooped down low and began rooting around on the ground. He sifted the loose snow and ice that clung to the rocky ground of the cave, seemingly in search of something.
"What are you looking for?" Sage asked. "Can we help you somehow?"
"No, no… I-" Marrow stopped, his blue eyes widening as he wrapped his fingers around something large. "Found it!"
From the loose snow and ice, Marrow pulled a large blue rifle. He swept his hands along the length of the weapon's barrel to clean off the last of the ice and snow before slipping it onto his back.
"I think that I was trying to reach for it…" Marrow frowned, a confused look settling on his face. "But I don't really remember…"
"It'll come back to you…" Grey clapped Marrow on the back good naturedly. "Alright! We're goin' deeper!"
Grey reached into his pack to withdraw two more of the emergency flares. He tossed them over to the teammates before taking point, leading the small group further into the darkness.
"So… Marrow?" Sage asked, his voice tentative. "I don't suppose any of your memories are coming back?"
"I don't really know what to tell you…" Marrow answered. "I remember sitting in the front seat of one of the vehicles. I think I was talking to someone… having a conversation. After that… well, I don't really know…"
"Don't stress about it, kid," Grey spoke with an uncharacteristic tone of reassurance. The tall, wiry man gave Marrow a careful pat on the shoulder.
"It'll come back," Asher added, also trying to offer some level of reassurance to the huntsman. The fair haired boy had slipped his helmet back onto his head, his red visor glowing faintly in the light cast by the flares. "You guys up ahead, do you see anything?"
Up ahead, Rust and Mauve were leading the small group. Rust was directly in front, his eyes scanning the ground for further clues - and whether or not they were heading in the right direction.
"We're not descending anymore…" Rust muttered back. "But past the light of the flares I can't see a thing."
"If anything exciting happens up here, you'll be the first to know," Mauve called back. "Stay alert!"
Asher heard Sage grumble something inaudible under his breath.
"You four are 'Team MARS'?" Marrow questioned, his blue eyes inquisitive. "Atlas doesn't really use acronym names much anymore..."
"Really?" Sage asked. "I remember there being a bunch of Atlas teams during Vytal - they had acronyms then."
"It was always an informal thing," Marrow coughed.
"Well, we were a Beacon team…" Asher gestured to himself and his teammates.
"Oh… did you guys transfer up here?"
"Something like that…" Sage muttered.
"Huh?"
"It's kind of a… complicated story… as to how we got up here," Asher cleared his throat. "Not to be that guy… but it's sort of… classified?"
"Classified?"
"Well, I wouldn't go that far…" Sage shook his head. "But we can't, or at least shouldn't talk about it. I'm sure that you understand."
"I really don't…" Marrow shifted uncomfortably as he walked. "But it's fine, really…"
"They're a funny bunch, aren't they? Eh, Marrow?" Grey chuckled. The teacher picked up his pace, advancing past Asher and Sage. "Pff… 'classified'... try taking yourselves a little less seriously…"
Up ahead, Mauve and Rust slowed down to a stop.
"Hey… can you guys stop for a second?" Rust called back. "We found something interesting here…"
Marrow, Sage, and Asher stepped forwards to join Mauve and Rust at the front of the group; Grey stepped past them, the shaft of his long weapon tucked between his neck and his shoulder. It was there that they saw what Rust had found. Lying upon the rocky ground of the cave was a single truck tire. The steel rim was twisted like a pretzel, and the rubber had been slashed open in multiple places.
"It's a tire from the dust transport!" Marrow blinked in surprise. "It's all the way down here…"
"Look at how badly damaged it is," Asher pointed to the twisted rims. "This thing was manhandled..."
"Points to the both of you for your keen sense of observation," Grey groused. "Lightning-Chick, be a dear and hand me the flare."
Mauve passed the flickering flare over to her teacher. Accepting the object, Grey took several steps forwards and held the flare aloft. He squinted his beady eyes to peer further into the darkness, his head moving back and forth ever so slightly.
"It looks like the passage widens out ahead," Grey spoke slowly. The man looked over his shoulder to observe the small group with his beady eyes. "Everybody, fall in behind me."
The small group of amateur spelunkers continued forwards, leaving the trashed tire behind. Grey's hunch was proven correct, as after a few feet the passage widened out into a massive cavern.
"Woah…" Rust muttered as he and his companions observed the room.
The cavern was absolutely massive - its ceiling so high that none of the group could properly see just how far it extended upwards. For the most part the rocky ground was flat, save for the occasional indent or groove caused by erosion. The massive expanse was held up by four massive columns - fusings of ice and rock that had once begun as stalagmites.
In a stroke of good fortune, the team would no longer need to rely on the flares for light. The walls of the cavern glittered with multiple large dust deposits - each a variety of bright colors. Each deposit of energy propellant gave off a faint amount of light; and when combined, this gave the cavern a dim glow.
But all of this was of little interest compared to what sat in the center of the cavern…
"There!" Marrow cried, outstretching his arm to point at one of Team MARS' objectives.
Sitting in the center of the cavern was the twisted remains of the dust transport vehicle. It's chassis was crumpled to the point of being near unrecognizable, most of its wheels were missing, and the large tank which carried the dust had been ruptured; bright red fire dust leaked from the slashed metal, spilling out on the floor and melting the ice and snow in a concentric ring.
"I'm no mechanic…" Grey sighed. "But that's not going to be driving anywhere…"
"And the tank is ruptured…" Sage added. "Fuck…"
"Everyone stick together, we're going to try and find the rest of Marrow's company," Grey instructed. "Richochet-Kid, shield out. Disappearing-Act, rifle up. Human-Mountain and Lightning-Chick, at the ready."
Grey's students followed his commands.
"Marrow," Grey called out to the Atlesian huntsman. "Stick close to those four."
"You do know that I'm a trained, and certified huntsman… right?" Marrow frowned.
"You've also been hanging upside down for who knows how long…" Asher shot back, his rifle lifted up to his shoulder. "We're all just looking out for you…"
Marrow continued to frown, squeezing his rifle tightly in his hands. The Atlesian huntsman fell-in next to Asher, his own weapon held at the ready. Grey led the group, his war scythe held high with its blade angled for a strike.
As a unit, the six approached the ruptured tanker sitting in the middle of the cavern.
"Exactly how many soldiers were you with?" Rust asked Marrow.
"My company had about three dozen," Marrow answered. "We were led by a huntress, I was the new guy."
"Who was your captain?"
"Captain Bisque."
Grey mumbled something under his breath. To the teammates it sounded like he mumbled the word "bitch".
Everyone came to an abrupt halt when Sage stopped in his tracks. The faunus boy had extended his shield into its full form, but he was no longer holding it at the ready.
"Sage?" Mauve inquired. "What is it? Why did you stop?"
"Marrow…?" Sage asked, his tone low. "Did Captain Bisque wear an officer's cap?"
"Yeah… why?"
"Mauve, lower the flare for me…"
Mauve frowned underneath her gaiter and did as her teammate requested.
Lying on the ground, unattended, was a badly rumpled officer's cap.
But it was not the only piece of equipment lying around…
Across the cavern, stretching from the entrance to the center, were metallic armor pieces and scraps of Atlesian uniforms. They littered the rocky ground in strewn piles, with no discernible pattern to their placement…
"No…" Marrow gasped, his voice brimming with emotion. "Oh no…"
"Armor… uniforms…" Asher muttered, looking around the area with his thermal scope. "But no remains, from what I can see…"
"Oh god no…" Marrow clenched his rifle tightly. "What happened to them-"
Marrow was interrupted by the sounds of cracking ice. Six pairs of eyes, and six weapon barrels, swept upwards towards the top of the massive cavern. Curling around two of the massive columns were two massive four-fingered hands. The black flesh of the hands were nearly invisible in the dim light of the cavern, but the white bone plating covering them was reflective.
Above these hands, two massive red lights shone from the roof of the cavern. There was a chewing noise, followed by the sound of rushing air as something fell from the ceiling and impacted with the ground.
It was an officer's saber… the metal twisted into ribbons… as if it had been chewed up by massive teeth…
"That's Captain Bisque's sword…" Marrow whispered in horror, his eyes stuck on the ceiling, from where the sword had fallen.
"So much for a rescue mission…" Grey sighed. "Disappearing-Act, light it up!"
"Roger!" Asher cried. Raising his sniper, Asher charged up a single bullet with a volatile amount of fire dust. The bullet flew from the barrel with a resounding crack, leaving an orange arc as it flew upwards.
For a moment, the glowing bullet illuminated a massive fur-covered face… and a set of impressively large teeth…
The charged round detonated against it's target, eliciting a ground-shaking roar of rage. A massive black figure jumped from the ceiling, impacting the floor of the cavern so strongly that it cracked the stones beneath it.
In the dim light of the cavern, the attacker of the convoy was revealed. It stood at more than two stories in height; its bipedal body swelled with muscle, wrapped in layers of coarse black fur. Atop its massive chest sat a square head, complete with two horns and a set of razor sharp teeth.
Two red eyes, glowing like torches, regarded the ragtag team with a look of pure hatred…
"Grimm!" Mauve screamed. "Fan out! Attack!"
The massive yeti grimm was faster - far faster than any of the team expected. Stooping it's massive body low, the bipedal monster began sweeping the ground with it's lanky arms - kicking up dust and snow. It advanced on its six opponents - forcing them to all break off from one another.
"Oh fuck!" Sage cried as he ran, his shield shrunk down into a more mobile form. "It's fucking massive!"
"That's what she said, Ricochet-Kid!" Grey cackled in amusement. The man was running more or less beside Sage, his war scythe pumping up and down in his arms.
Kicking off of the ground in an aura-infused leap, the wiry man rushed in the yeti's direction. He swiped the serrated edge of his scythe's blade against the monster's right bicep before sticking the landing with practiced ease.
Stopping its sweeping attacks for a moment, the yeti grimm turned its head to regard Grey with a burning look. With the sound of several bones cracking the yeti stood up to full height.
"Alright, you four!" Grey called out to four members of MARS. "What's Rule Seventy-Eight!?"
"When attacking large bipedal targets, circle them!" Mauve cried out.
"Show me what you're made of!" Grey cried. "Marrow, you're with me!"
"Everybody aim for the legs!" Mauve cried.
Mauve's order was promptly followed by her teammates. The ear-shattering crack of gunfire reverberated around the cavern as dozens of rounds were sent flying into the yeti's furry legs. However, the thick fur of the monster negated most of the damage; only Grey's hefty rifle round broke through, but other than a splash of black blood the yeti remained standing.
Roaring in rage, the bipedal monster stomped its clawed feet against the ground. The sheer force of the stomps shook the cavern, with only Rust not stumbling from the shock and vibrations. Taking advantage, the yeti stomped towards the incapicated teammates with frightening speed - it's burning red eyes locked on the flat green form of Sage's shield.
Coming within range, the yeti reared up its arm and curled its four-fingered hand into a fist. The punch sailed forwards with all of the speed and power of a runaway freight train.
Sage yelled in pain as the fist impacted the face of his riot shield. His semblance protected him by rebounding the fist backwards, but Sage still slid back several feet, his aura fizzling. Jumping forwards to retaliate, Sage lowered his shield and swept out Rampart; the bladed end of the gun raked across the top of the yeti's hand but glanced harmlessly off of its coarse fur.
"Sage!" Rust cried, sprinting in to assist his teammate. He ducked underneath another massive punch and poured his momentum into a strike from his maul. The bladed end of the weapon carved a furrow into the yeti's palm, drawing black blood.
The monster reared back in pain and shock, its red eyes glaring down at the blood oozing from its hand. Perhaps, for the first time in its life, the monster had caught a glimpse of its own mortality… if that was even an appropriate word for a grimm…
Comically, its brief moment of cognizance was cut short by a flying boomerang.
"Bastard!" Marrow cried, his eyes alight with rage. "Sage! Rust! Get out of there!"
Marrow reached up his arm to catch the spinning boomerang. Turning his weapon in his hands, he utilized the built-in rifle to cover Sage and Rust's escape, landing inaccurate shots on the yeti's head.
"Lightning-Chick, shock it silly!" Grey ordered as he sprang forwards, his blade angled low.
Mauve did as ordered and pulled her arcing gun out from behind her hips. She imbued the weapon with her semblance and then released the accumulated charge - sending a bolt of lighting into the yeti's still outstretched arm. The monster roared in pain, but was quickly silenced when Asher fired an ice round into its mouth.
"Its fur is too thick to cut!" Sage yelled out in warning as he and Rust retreated to a safe distance.
"That's why I said aim for the legs!" Mauve shouted.
"I've fought these before!" Grey yelled as he sprinted forwards. "Rule Twenty-Three! Immobilize the legs! Disappearing-Act, you're up!"
"On it!" Asher cried. Breaking into a slide, the grey-eyed boy raised his rifle and sent another ice-imbued round in the yeti's direction - followed by two more. All three of the rounds pelted against the yeti's legs causing large ice crystals to bloom around it's knees.
"Marrow!" Grey cried out as he finally built up enough speed. "Bounce pad!"
The words were meaningless to the members of MARS - but Marrow's eyes shone with realization. Rearing up his arm, the dog faunus flung his weapon out like a boomerang.
"STAY!" The dog faunus roared, one hand outstretched towards the creature. To the shock of Team MARS the yeti froze in its place. "I can't do this for long! So hit the legs!"
With his aura glowing around his feet, Grey blasted upwards in an aura infused leap. His first strike was against the yeti's large elbow, the blade of his war scythe slicing a deep groove into its fur and flesh. Grey flew past the arm after the strike and intercepted Marrow's boomerang. Pressing his feet against the flying boomerang's flat surface, Grey blasted off into another aura infused leap, once again dragging his blade against the yeti's elbow.
Rocketing towards the ground, Grey used his aura to cancel out his momentum and blasted off into another leap towards the yeti. He raked his scythe's blade against the monster's elbow one last time - finishing his three-step attack by firing a .700 nitro round into the creature's mutilated flesh. The hefty rifle round served as the final punishing blow, disintegrating flesh and bone.
As Grey landed, the bell on the end of his weapon jingling, Marrow caught his boomerang.
While the teacher and his former student worked in tandem, Team MARS had begun their own series of attacks.
"Again!" Mauve cried. The lynx girl swept her blades out in an arc, channeling her semblance down the weapons to strike the yeti from afar with lightning - an action which elicited a roar of rage from the monster. "Again! Keep hitting the legs!"
"Its fur is way too thick!" Sage cried out, the rounds of his weapon bouncing off of the yeti's leathery flesh and coarse fur.
Asher followed Mauve's orders, blasting the yeti grimm with three more ice shots. Each shot hit true, causing ice crystals to bloom along the yeti's fur-covered legs, but they had little effect. Every time the yeti stomped its feet the ice splinted and cracked.
"At this point I'm just tickling it!" Asher cried. "Sage was right about the fur!"
"Then forget what I said!" Mauve cried. "Aim for exposed flesh! Go for its hands!"
Charging forwards, the lynx girl pushed off into an aura infused jump. She twisted and contorted mid-air, sailing overtop of a sloppily thrown punch from the yeti. While still in-air, the lynx girl raked her electrified blades against the grimm's arm - the charge causing the muscles to spasm.
"Electricity really works!" Mauve yelled as she landed on her feet. The lynx girl pulled off a series of graceful backflips to build distance. She finally came to a stop, articulating her legs in such a way that she could quickly push off the ground. "All of you! Get me some openings!"
"Easier said than done!" Sage cried. The faunus boy slipped his Rampart onto his back and withdrew his grenade launcher. Firing a single grenade at the ground, he richoted the explosive device upwards towards the yeti. It impacted the creature with a fiery explosion, but had seemingly little effect. "Asher!? Do you think your fire shots could punch through!?"
"Good question!" Asher answered. "Could you get it to look this way!?"
Rust wordlessly followed Asher's request. Raising Ruination, Rust utilized the in-built shotgun and fired a crippling shot. The burning hot shrapnel impacted the back of the yeti's knee, most certainly getting its attention.
"Oh, fuck…" Rust muttered as the yeti swiveled its horned head in his direction. "Asher! Get the shot!"
Turning on his heel, Rust began to run. He could feel and hear massive footsteps behind him as the yeti tried to catch up. Channeling his semblance behind him, Rust gave himself a wind-assisted speed boost as he ran in Asher's direction.
Over the sounds of the yeti grimm's stomps, Rust could hear the smattering of gunfire and the sound of grenade explosions. His gaining of the yeti's attention had given the others an opportunity.
"Don't run in a straight line!" Came Grey's strangled cry from somewhere off in the distance. "Zig-zag, Zephin!"
"Asher!?" Rust frantically yelled as he sprinted towards his helmeted teammate, trying his best to zig-zag as he did so. "Get the fucking shot, man!"
"It's hard to concentrate when you're yelling!" Asher yelled back. Having taken aim, the helmeted boy released the fire imbued round. The flaming bullet exploded from the barrel, sailing a few feet over Rust's head.
It smashed into the yeti's flat face and burst into a fiery explosion. But after the smoke cleared there was little more than a singe mark on the monster's fur.
"Fuck!" Asher cried.
Sprinting forwards, the grey eyed boy closed the distance between himself and Rust and grabbed onto his teammates jacket. Activating his semblance, the helmeted boy carried himself and Rust away in a sudden dash of speed - sailing between the yeti's legs and to relative safety.
Mauve sprinted past them in the opposite direction.
Taking advantage of the monster's confusion, Mauve leapt upwards into an aura infused jump; she raked her blades against the back of the monster's left knee, dispelling their electric charge as she did so.
The yeti roared in agony, its shrill screech echoing off of the cave walls and making the dust deposits glow even brighter. Spinning around, it launched a downward punch in Mauve's direction.
"MAUVE!" Sage yelled in horror, realizing that his leader was about to get flattened.
The lynx girl, perhaps expecting her strike to be more effective, looked up in horror as the massive fist sailed closer.
"STAY!"
All at once, the fist came to a halt mid-air. The yeti was once again frozen in place; its ruby red eyes flicked around in their sockets but the creature was entirely stunned.
Four pairs of eyes turned back to spot Marrow. The Atlesian huntsman was pointing a single outstretched finger at the yeti, a look of utmost concentration upon his face.
Grey rushed forwards to fill the space between a cowering Mauve and the yeti's frozen fist. He raked the serrated blade of the Dinner Bell against the monster's fingers, severing several tendons.
"Try sticking closer to your team!" Grey spat in Mauve's direction, his beady eyes narrowed. "You're a leader? Are you not!?"
Snapping to attention, Mauve transformed her blades into pistols. Raising the dual weapons, the lynx girl unloaded their magazines into the yeti's left eye.
A sinister shriek escaped from the stunned monster's lips as its left eye was blown out - the socket going dark.
"MOVE!" Marrow warned. The dog faunus then promptly collapsed from exhaustion, his semblance having been worked to its limit.
Mauve's eyes widened as the massive fist resumed its collision course in her direction. Grey quickly jumped out of the way, but Mauve had no other choice but to try and execute several careful backflips out of the way.
She wasn't fast enough… the yeti was extending its bloody fingers in an attempt to grab her. Mauve's eyes widened as its massive fingers successfully grasped at her jacket.
Luckily for Mauve, someone else was willing to take the hit for her…
The lynx girl's world turned sideways as somebody slammed into her side, sending her tumbling towards the ground. Mauve rolled uncontrollably, her blades clenched tightly in her hands, before coming to a painful stop.
Lifting her head, the lynx girl observed something which made her blood run cold.
Grey was the one who had taken the hit for her; and while he had succeeded in pushing Mauve to safety, Grey was now the one wrapped up in the yeti's massive fist.
"Grey!" Marrow called in shock, his boomerang falling from his hands.
Grey howled something incomprehensible in response. The man's hand flew to the breast pocket of his shirt and withdrew a wickedly sharp looking knife. Snarling like a wild animal, Grey repeatedly brought the knife down on the leathery skin of the yeti's hand.
"Fuck you!" Grey spat, staring straight into the yeti's burning red eyes. "You ugly mug!"
It would be his final act of defiance…
Five pairs of eyes watched in horror as the yeti's other paw grabbed Grey by the legs. With a savage twist and the horrific noise of a cracking spinal column, Crazy Grey was torn into two pieces - each half being flung off into the distance…