I am terribly sorry. This is the first half of Hacksaw Ridge. I tried to keep my story schedule in order, but I cannot afford to lag behind in my coursework. I may have to push back my writings for the time being until I can get some breathing room.
So sorry... Please enjoy the first half of Hacksaw Ridge.
I owe nothing.
Pardon my grammar.
Hacksaw Ridge - The Siege Begins
"I, err. I should be fine." Oscar said with some firm conviction in his voice. He saw some rather gory scenes from previous viewings, and he helped slaughter poultry on other farms before. This viewing should be fine, right? "Um. What about you?"
Ruby had her red hood over her head already in case she saw something she didn't want to see. "I, uh… I'll also be fine. I'm a huntress-in-training after all."
A snort could be heard from Raven. "You might as well make the best of this. The world out there is unforgiving. This would be a good opportunity to get used to what lies ahead in the world."
Her daughter, Yang, shot her a piercing glare before returning her attention to Ruby.
"… I hate to admit this, but Raven is kinda right on this." Tai hesitantly said.
"Glad to see you still have some sense in you."
"Things are about to get messy." Mercury snickered and leaned back on his chair. "Let's see how awful their next world war is."
Emerald rolled her eyes, "Yeah. Keep up that bravado. Don't start looking green on me."
"Oooh. Was that a pun?" He motioned to her green hair.
"Ha. Ha."
"It's starting." Cinder shushed them.
The scene opens up to a barrel of a three-gun turret rotating to the audience's left. Overhead, the sky was sickly gray, foretelling the gruesome battle that will soon take place. With the naval artillery turrets in position, It was time to retake the island from the occupying Imperial Japanese Army.
Bright fiery and deafening explosions reverberated through the air as the naval guns began their bombardment upon the island. The sound of mechanical whirling could be heard over the thunderous blast, dictating the elevation of the naval artillery turrets. The island was now heavily peppered by artillery, laying waste to everything.
Occupying below the island's cliff were the American soldiers tasked with ridding the island of Japanese occupation. They gathered around the cliff, watching thick black smoke and orange explosions thunder overhead. The camera pans up slowly, showcasing the devastation power of the US navy.
"Off to a showcase of power." Qrow raised one finger from his flask and pointed at the screen. "Not saying you could have done a better job with your military display in Vale, Jimmy."
Ironwood raised an eyebrow, "I'm getting a conflicting message here."
Qrow simply shrugged. "Hey, I'm drunk. Partial."
"Would it kill you to address the general properly?" Winter sighed.
"Maybe."
A soldier wielding a flamethrower shook his head, expression unreadable. "Nobody could survive that shit."
"Oh, but they can." Several people turned their heads to glance at the person who just spoke. It was a soldier with a distant and haunted expression.
"Sounds like their enemies are quite resilient." Cinder noted.
"And for a world without aura or semblances, I can hardly imagine anyone surviving an overwhelming attack like that." Port twirled his fancy mustache, looking grim. "That certainly speaks volumes."
Ironwood remained quiet, slightly sympathizing with the haunted-looking soldier. It was the look he saw in many others and himself. A distant look into a nightmare that haunts their mind for months and years to come. A mental scar upon their malleable minds that potentially warps and deforms their thoughts and action.
"James…" Glynda softly shook him out of his stupor.
He merely smiled back at her and nodded. "I'm alright. Thank you, Glynda."
As the bombardment started to die down, it was time for the soldiers to ascend the cliffs. The majority of the soldiers looked down on the ground with a fearful or conflicted expression. Everyone else had their attention numbly drawn to the cliffs where they will soon be advancing through what could be described as hell.
Several more artillery bombardment struck the island, sending debris everywhere. With the last artillery shell landing, it was time for them to advance.
Without a word, the soldiers bravely advanced towards the cliff in columns. A thick netted rope was already established on the rocky cliffside that will serve as their ladder to the deadlands above.
"Into the massive nest of Grimm, they go." Roman huffed. It baffles him that anyone would be so willing to go through harsh training and die just like that. Not a single sense of survival.
Neo nodded, raising her sign. "It's going to be a bloodbath." She flipped it over to the other side. "An ugly one."
"They're going up there?" Yang frowned, "What's the point? They could get their ships to bomb the place away, all day."
"I don't think that's viable," Jaune replied, looking nervous. "I-I mean, they can't hold ground without soldiers going in to control it."
Ironwood and Winter nodded in agreement. Basic that they are, foot infantry is a vital component in all operations. It's a necessity, but life is more precious in the world of Remnant, hence the main driving force behind automating the majority of their military forces.
Hordes of soldiers slowly made their way up the roped ladder, huddling down behind any cover they could find once they made it to the top.
What laid before the Americans was a dusty wasteland. Whatever once stood in the area was now in complete ruin. Burned, withered trees stood stripped of their vegetation and branches; rubbles of demolished structures laid in pieces; a single corpse of a Japanese soldier laid face up on the battered ground.
Everything was stilled.
And everyone was nervous.
"It's foggy." Pyrrha frowned, "Was it from the bombing earlier?"
No one had an answer for that.
"I'm amazed that some of the trees are still standing after all of that." Neptune quietly said.
Sun agreed with him. "No kidding."
"Brown." A soldier with a radio on his backpack whispered to another soldier.
"What?"
The radio operator tossed his fellow brother a field phone. "Give this to Jesse."
In front of them, their commander began signaling them to move forward. An older soldier exchanged looks with the commander as they moved out.
"Moving out." Jaune gulped.
Ren and Nora gripped each other hands, feeling a familiar sense of dread spreading within them.
"Are you two alright?" Pyrrha had a concerned look on her face, along with Jaune.
They nodded. "Just some… Some bad feelings." Nora said, "Like a recurring, awful feeling."
"Nothing we can't pull through." Ren firmly said.
Everyone began spilling out from their covers, slowly moving, crouching. A section of the assault force took up positions behind rubbles, while another section continued moving forward, scanning the area for any threats. They silently advanced through the ruined fields, over the corpses of Japanese soldiers.
One of the corpses had its entrails spilled out onto the dirt ground from a mangled lower torso of a Japanese soldier.
"Urk." Weiss covered her mouth, swearing she could smell the scent of decay.
Winter eyed her sister with a worried look but returned her attention to the screen when Team RWBY and Oscar tended to her little sister's aid.
I'm glad… Winter thought to herself.
The Americans began taking up positions in the craters and trenches. One of them fell into the crater coming face to face with a corpse being eaten by rats and maggots. He let out a small yelp, recoiling in disgust, and scooted away from the pest infested corpse.
Coco gagged, "Me too buddy. Me too."
"Being able to see is both a blessing and a curse." Fox softly muttered to himself.
"They say ignorance is bliss." Yatsuhashi patted a slightly paled Velvet on the shoulder. "But it's best if we open our eyes to the consequences and effects of our actions."
They hunkered down behind anything for cover, wary of the heavily foggy hills just ahead of them. Without any clear visual on the area, it was a potential deathtrap for them. As everyone got into position, a lone soldier crawled towards a large dirt mound with a handful of deceased American soldiers from the 96th Infantry Division who were unfortunately caught up the bombardment.
The lone soldier frowned slightly, unable to see ahead of the foggy environment and decided to get a little bit closer to the dirt mound. He leaned forward, resting his arm on the thigh of the American soldier corpse…
"AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!"
The sudden jump scare startled everyone.
"Good heavens! My old heart!" Maria placed a hand over her chest and cursed.
"Eep!" Ruby yelped and pulled her red hood over her head.
Ironwood eyes widen, realizing what was about to happen next. "Not good!"
The supposedly deceased American soldier instantly sat up, screaming at the top of his lungs, causing the other soldier to scream as well.
A gunshot echoed in the foggy distance, ripping a bloody hole through the 96th infantryman's eye.
"Oh!" Vernal winced.
Blood and brain matters splattered onto the startled soldier's face. Another bullet flew into the soldier's head, taking off his helmet and brain as Japanese machine gunners unleashed a stream of bullets, shredding the soldiers, and kickstarting the beginning of a brutal battle.
All hell broke loose.
Bullets tore through the soldiers' ranks, felling them in doves. Explosions shook the earth, killing those within the blast radius, or staggering the lucky ones. It was a bloodbath. Soldiers dying left and right. This is a battle like many others: Bloody, painful, cruel…
There is no heroic charge or stand. Every single soldier here, no matter which side or who they are, are faced with the dilemma of their mortality.
"Wha…!" Oscar was taken aback by how sudden and gory their deaths were. The escalation of violence and destruction was different in a sense compared to what he had witnessed, even from the Dark Tournament viewing.
"Don't look." Weiss gasped, covering his eyes.
None was impacted the most than Ozpin and Ironwood. The former lived for millennia and had witnessed many devastation and bloody battles. The latter had his fair share of horror and trauma in his military career, but none on a greater scale like this against other humans and faunus.
"Is this what humanity would look like if we were polishing our weapons solely against each other?" Ozpin mumbled to himself.
"Incoming!" Shouted a soldier, aiming for anything he could visually make out from the distance. A loud whistling sound could be heard overhead as a mortar shell fell near his position, killing him and another unlucky soldier.
It felt like there's not a single place on this island that is safe. Mortars continued to drop on the Americans' entrenched positions, bullets continuously whistling through the airs and into skulls. Those who bravely rushed forward were either cut down by swaths of bullets or engulfed in a fiery explosion.
Mercury set his jaw, "These guys aren't backing down."
"It doesn't look like they have much of a choice." Said Emerald, "Ugh. I can't believe they can survive this…"
"Humanity will always find a way to survive." Cinder neutrally watched the carnage, "They always do."
"Down! Down!"
Nobody needed to be told twice, or even once. Through the relentless barrage of bullets and explosive bombardments, the Americans still held their positions. However, casualties are mounting as the fierce engagement dragged on in what felt like hours.
A flamethrower operator hid behind a dirt mound, pointing the nozzle aimlessly over his cover. Nearby, a pair of soldiers barely rushed pass the flamethrower operator, only to be stopped short by Japanese fire support. He only spared them a very brief glance and continued to keep his eyes on what lies before him.
Blake swallowed her salvia, remembering her time with the White Fang. How many White Fang soldiers did she witness die around her during their operations against the SDC? How many times did she glance at their dead bodies and agreed with Adam, that their sacrifice was necessary?
"Are all wars on their world like this?" Blake asked the Hosts.
"Many are like this. Some are worse, some are less so."
"But why?"
"Differences, greed, ambition, hatred… The reasons of conflicts are not always defined but understood. Just like the world you know and don't."
Ruby looked distressed, finding it hard that the people of Remnant could reach this kind of cruelty. Sure, there are the radical White Fang, the SDC with their unethical practice, and Remnant's Great War. However, she always thought that such violence is a thing of the past or would never reach the kind shown on-screen. "You're saying our world is no different than theirs?"
"Perhaps. One would be amazed to find that the others are not so different than oneself."
That didn't sit well with many of the audience members.
In another entrenched position, two American machine gunners were positioned behind a ridge, nested with sandbags, firing into the fog. Their suppressive fire was cut short when a mortar landed right on top of them, brutally dismembering one of the machine gunner's upper and lower torsos, tossing innards everywhere.
Nora felt her stomach churned, feeling somewhat guilty for her love of explosions.
"It's okay, Nora," Ren assured her, also looking uneasy. "It's okay. You're not at fault for anything."
"Where the hell are they?!" Shouted soldier to another fellow soldier while they took cover behind a fallen log. "I can't see nothing!"
The land ahead of them was coated with thick gray fog, populated by skeletal and burnt trees. Only flashes from the muzzles of Japanese firearms were the best they could pinpoint their location, which is difficult enough in this chaotic environment.
"They have them pinned down." Fox squinted his eyes to see if he could see through the thick fog.
"It doesn't look like they have the means of tracking enemies through in the fog," Winter said to herself. "They'll have to eliminate the hostiles from their current position or move forward. Unless they still have artillery support, both options will lead to heavy casualties regardless.
"Beats me, pal!" His partner shouted back, flinching slightly as a bullet struck the wooden log.
"Where the fu-!" A bullet tore through his right cheek, sending his helmet flying and leaving a horrid gash across his face. The soldier's expression was that of disbelief before a bullet embedded himself into the bridge of his nose, killing him.
His partner glanced at his KIA comrade and wordlessly resumed holding his position.
Ironwood shut his eyes tightly and opened them again, remembering some of his deceased friends and teammates during his younger years.
"I… I can't imagine how someone can keep their c-cool when their teammates… Die right next to them." Ruby stuttered, her entire body curled defensively. Team RWBY responded by huddling together on their team leader, easing her nerves.
The camera changed perspective to another American soldier named Smitty Ryker with his back against a tree. He spotted a dismembered corpse with only its upper torso remaining and pulled it up near his face, giving the audience an up-close shot of the bloodied, mangled corpse.
"Oscar."
"I c-can handle this." He said, voice wavering. He'll probably never get used to seeing dead people.
Pyrrha let out a small yelp, "He's not thinking of…?"
Smitty looked hesitant, before gritting his teeth. He heaved the corpse in front of him like a shield and rushed towards the enemy, firing his assault rifle at anything that moves, killing three Japanese soldiers. As he continued advancing, the Americans were also pushing onward, besieging the Japanese positions with artilleries and mortars to which the Japanese returned in kind.
Bullets flew and struck the corpse shield, taking all the bullets for him while he dispatched two more Japanese soldiers. Smitty finally arrived upon a large earthwork to take cover and dropped the corpse in favor of it.
Roman wiped his hand on his fancy coat in disgust. "It was effective at least. Queasy, but effective."
"He must do what he can do to survive." Raven emotionlessly said.
The scene transitioned between individuals and groups of soldiers: A soldier with a small mustache shakily breathing heavily while he crawled over dead logs and muddy ground. Overhead, other soldiers were daringly sprinting through the battlefield, managing to take cover behind logs and dirt mounds.
Two soldiers dashed the shifting frontlines; two bullets struck one of them on the shoulders, causing him to collapse into a ditch.
Qrow shook his head. "Unlucky. Two bullets, two shoulders. What are the chances?"
"He's alive at least, hopefully." Tai tried to push a slightly more positive outlook for his friend. Fortune and misfortune are a touchy subject for the huntsman.
"Guess he is rather lucky, and in pain."
His partner shouted and dropped into the ditch with his wounded comrade, grabbing him by the shoulders and pulling him towards relative safety.
"Come here!"
His wounded companion let out a painful cry, alerting a group of Japanese soldiers to their position.
Four Japanese soldiers let out a war cry and pointed their rifles towards them, but before they could fire a single shot, the flamethrower operator came into range and unleashed a stream of burning liquid onto the Japanese soldiers.
"Oh shit!" The prone soldier yelped, ducking.
Flaming liquids coated the Japanese soldiers, making them scream and flail. Time slowed slightly, switching between the painful screams of the Japanese soldier, to the flamethrower operator lighting up the battlefield.
Cinder smirked, sending shivers down her underlings and reluctant coworkers. An indirect bolstering of the fiery death she can inflict on her enemies and disobedient subordinates are always welcome.
"What a terrifying weapon," Ozpin muttered.
"It is." Ironwood nodded in agreement, "The weapon must be used for clearing out fortified positions."
"It's horrible." Pyrrha covered her mouth, looking extremely conflicted.
Ozpin nodded grimly, "Indeed. It's war."
The soldier glanced back up to see that the Japanese soldiers were taken care of and checked on his wounded comrade. Luckily, a medic was nearby and was called over to the ditch to treat the wounded.
The battle continued to rage on in what appears to be in the Americans' favor. Smitty went full Rambo, running out from his cover with a grin, mercilessly gunning down an enemy. He then popped a grenade from his pouch, ripped the pin with his teeth, and tossed it over an encampment. A Japanese soldier that was lying in wait in an ambush was blown out of cover, allowing Smitty to maneuver behind the dirt mounds.
Winter frowned, "He seems to be enjoying this."
"Considering the overall severity of his situation, he would be under a lot of stress. I would presume that it's his coping mechanism, though I'm not a licensed psychiatrist or psychologist to make that distinction." Ironwood would have submitted every soldier there to a psychiatrist or psychologist extensively. "Every single of one of them will need it..."
"If they survive," Qrow said darkly, then grimaced at his harsh words. "Forget what I said, my mind ain't in the right place right now."
Smitty ducked and laid on his side to the mound, not realizing another Japanese soldier was hidden nearby, prowling towards him with a knife in hand.
Glynda narrowed her eyes, "A potential fatal mistake. Always check your back."
"Oh crap, behind you!" Coco instinctively shouted.
Maria shook her head slightly, "He can't hear you."
Suddenly, Smitty remembered to check his back and did just that, spotting the Japanese lunging towards him. By luck, his enemy's attack was intercepted by Desmond Doss, tackling the Japanese soldier into the ground.
"Get out of the way!" Smitty shouted, aiming his weapons at them.
"Don't just lay there and point a gun at them, help him!" Weiss urgently cried.
"It's a very dedicated and volatile situation they are in." There was a look on agitation on Winter's face. "Who knows what the best action he should take."
Desmond and the Japanese soldier grappled with each other, until the Japanese gained an upper hand and flipped Desmond over to the ground, strangling him. However, this gave Smitty a narrowed opportunity to shoot, and he did just that, unloading several bullets into the backside of the Japanese soldier.
The Japanese soldier went limp on Desmond, who froze for a brief second before pushing the corpse off of him. He and Smitty exchanged glances, the latter's face seemed to be a mixture of gratitude and something… Unreadable.
Without a word, Smitty cranked his gun and got off from the ground to rejoin the fight. Desmond hastily picked himself up and went after him.
"You're welcome," Vernal muttered in Desmond stead.
"It's not uncommon for soldiers to silently thank their brothers and sisters-in-arms," Penny explained to the bandit girl. "Especially in a high-stress environment."
"Right…"
The screen faded into darkness.
"We'll pause here for now to ease your mind."
"It's not over?" Yang said in disbelief.
"This is just the beginning for many."
Oscar anxiously rubbed his hands together and placed them on his lap like a scolded schoolboy. "I don't like the sound of that."
"I wonder why you are showing us this," Pyrrha said tiredly. "What are we here for?"
"Yeah, what are we here for? Can't you give us something aside from 'it's beyond our understanding?'" Jaune spoke up. "Maybe something that doesn't 'render our mind' into… Ah. I can't remember what you guys said way back…" He looked slightly embarrassed for tripping over his sentences.
"Hey, blond boy. Try not to anger our Hosts, will ya?" Roman cautiously said.
"There's not a single way for us to properly explain your predicament, for now. We shall continue this viewing shortly. For now, we recommend time amongst your peers."
"Guess we don't have much of a choice." Sun shrugged.
NEXT: Hacksaw Ridge - The Siege Continues
Pardon my grammar.
