The Last Bastion

by H4mmond

The Kingdoms grew close after the Great War, but they alienated one who stayed neutral. Now, they might need the one the most. With Grimm on the rise, criminals becoming bold, and tensions between Human and Faunus coming to a head, the world needs a savior. He isn't one, but he'll try. His orders require him to. (Warrior of the Lost Kingdom Rewrite, multiple fandom elements used)

4. Episode 4-First Contact

"The Atlesian White Fang has become radical in the face of the changing of the other White Fang branches. They have splintered off, their ranks bolstered by those who share their views. We've been in contact with the White Fang High Leader, and she's decided to help us. I hope EA can deal with him." -99th Hell Divers's Ops Commander.

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Industrial District 4, Glazko Plains

The sound of heavy machinery was a common noise. Smoke poured out from the funnels of factories that worked day and night to produce much needed materials for the war effort. Bullets, spare parts, weapons, missiles, bombs, support equipment, AA guns, engineer robots, Spectres, Titans, Paladin tanks, all sorts of ground forces. Industrial District 4 was specifically producing for the HTC, and it was doing it in a way that allowed for massive amounts of finished products coming off the lines every day.

Surrounding the massive industrial district was a tall wall. Lining the wall's top were numerous turrets. The quad barrelled 50mm autocannons were anti-anything, but were the last line of defense. Outside of the wall, were numerous trench lines. Every single one of them was manned by the 22nd Expeditionary Force, who were part of the 1st Legion. The 554th Engineers, AKA Red Horse division, was part of this force. They had built the defenses surrounding the trenches. Barbed wire lines, pillboxes, mines, artillery pieces, camouflaged machine gun nests, all sorts of defense emplacements to keep the Grimm from reaching the wall.

It hadn't seen much action since the Battle of Glazko Plains, where the 99th showed off their armor for the first time and completely wiped the Grimm out. The defense emplacements had held them off, for a short time though. Soon, the waves of Grimm were on top of the last trench, and the remnants of the now defunct 6th Expeditionary Force were depleted to a couple battalions. The 99th had jumped into combat via airdrop, and wreaked havoc on the Grimm. The Colossus Grimm forms leading the charge were wiped out, and the Grimm started to thin out at that point. The 99th pushed the Grimm back to the Grimmwoods, and the next expedition was planned from there.

The next five expeditions had let the 99th accompany them to the Grimmwoods, the most recent one specifically asked for the 99th to accompany them. Out of the eleven battalions in the division, eight were assigned to the Expedition, while the remaining three were held for quick response. It came in handy, as the Sector Six Skirmish was a victory for them because of them.

On the topic of the 99th and their armor, however…

Factory 24-CL, 4th Industrial District

Tomas Cedril looked at the armor set he had put together. The green suit was under constant tampering from the robotic arms he controlled. They soldered metal plates, fixed wiring, and etched the Hammond symbol onto the chest plate. While Tomas had originally been part of the group that put the plates on the MJOLNIR armor, he had been moved up to the group that put finishing touches on the armor. Each armor was to be checked before going to its next user, then sent to the user for it to be tested.

Tomas knew that this armor was important to the war effort. It fielded an energy shield to protect the user. It was made out of Titanium A Alloy to protect the user if the shield failed, giving substantial protection against difficult enemies and absolute protection against Grimm. It was able to withstand 40mm shots, even direct hits.

But with all that and more , it didn't hold a light to the new vehicles beginning their testing phases.

Tomas was vaguely aware of the whispers around the district. Workers who built the Paladin tanks suddenly started being more secretive about what their days entailed. Tomas had lost contact with friends in Industrial District 5, which made airships, and had begun to worry. Those who had worked on the now defunct Rockhead vehicle/tank project were suddenly called back to work again. Hornets were being turned out at a lesser rate, and some factories that had been building them hadn't turned out any Hornets in the past week.

There also were rumors that a new industrial district was being built somewhere near the main city of Hammond. Many of the scientists and workers that built the experimental Knight titans were called to work in the new industrial district. The Hammond Council had approved many projects in the past, but this one was a new level entirely. Some kind of new mech unit to be deployed to the Grimmlands for the big push that was going to happen in a few years.

"Cedril! The boss wants ya!" The supervisor shouted. "Something about an armor set you made?"

Tomas sighed. "I'm on it." He gave the controls to his supervisor, and ran out to see the oversight supervisor. He ran up a catwalk that connected to the office, and knocked on the door.

"It's open!" The boss called.

Tomas walked in to see his boss sitting in his chair, and a military official standing next to him.

"Good afternoon, Tomas." The boss said, a report on his desk. "Do you know why I call you here?"

"Something about a set of armor I manufactured?"

"Correct. It appears the helmet you coded failed on its operator." The boss said. "The helmet's visor was speared, and the operator lost an eye."

"How is this connected to the coding? Did the shield strength bar fail to properly do it's assigned job?" Tomas asked, worried.

"Not at all, the user got a little careless with an Ursa horde. The helmet is beyond repair, but I have been told the user is now in the hands of Beacon Academy."

Tomas raised his eyebrows. "So…"

The boss looked to the military official. "Sir?"

The official stepped forward. "You are being designated to build two sets of armor. One will be ready in the coming months, the next in the coming two years. We have laid out the blueprints and assembled a team for you to lead while building the armor sets." The official handed the first set of blueprints to Tomas. "Get it done."

Tomas took the blueprints, and unrolled it. He looked at the armor, and was completely blown away by what he saw. He looked at the title of the suit. "HRUNTING/YGGDRASIL Mark I J ADS?"

Beacon

Edler stored Hell Diver's Wrath in a locker in the locker room connecting to the Combat Class arena. He sighed as he stored his armor in the locker as well, he didn't trust that he was putting it in the supposed security of the school. He didn't fully trust the staff here yet.

"Hey."

Edler turned around to see who was talking to him. It was the burnt orange haired kid from his first period class. "Oh, it's you, uh…"

"Winchester, Cardin Winchester." Cardin answered.

"Ah, Winchester. Nice to meet you." Edler stuck out his hand. Cardin shook it. "I'm Adler, Edler Adler."

"You can call me Cardin."

"Then you can call me Edler."

The two let go of each other's hands, trying to see who would back out of the staring contest first. Cardin broke first. "So, I saw your armor. Guess you subscribe to the philosophy that Aura ain't everything?"

"Indeed." Edler nodded. "I see you do the same."

"Your armor is more impressive." Cardin admitted. "I must say, I'm impressed."

"Our armors are similar. We both have an avian on them, and both of us don't use helmets." Edler said. "Though, enough small talk."
"Yes."

"What do you need?"

"Not a need, more like a want."

"Then what do you want?"

"I think both you and I know that you're a cut above the rest of us. We both also know that you're buddy-buddy with the Nikos chick." Cardin began. He ignored Edler's narrowed eyes, and continued. "So, I want you to put in a good word about my team to her. Maybe...specifically about me?"

"You want me to be your wingman?" Edler tilted his head. "Really?" He deadpanned.

"Look, no one can get close to her because of you always with her. I just want some help with asking her out."

"The answer is no. And before you go spreading rumors how she and I are an item, we're far from it." Edler crossed his arms. "I hope you do realize she's actually suspicious of me."

"Suspicious of you about what?"

"Someone of my skill shows up to the same school as her, and doesn't want to kick her ass or have a vendetta to beat her? That's suspicious to her." Edler explained. He sighed. "Look, I'll put in a good word for you. Don't expect much, but I don't have reason to hate you. But I do need something from you."

"Anything." Cardin said, hopeful.

"Curb your racism."

Cardin blinked. "Huh?"

"You know what I mean. I've gathered info about everyone at this school. I know your feelings towards the Faunus." Edler narrowed his eyes. He summoned a B3 Wingman. "I want you to know that where I come from, that isn't looked kindly upon. Pyrrha wouldn't like it either."

Cardin looked conflicted. He was lost in thought for a bit, suddenly very concerned with his shoes. He looked up after a half minute, and looked Edler in the eye. "I'll do my best."

"All I ask. Be wary of your team as well. They are worse." Edler warned. "Now, I can't promise Pyrrha will accept you, but I will put in a good word provided I see you try to be a better person."

"I understand."

"Now, is there anything else I can do for you while you have me?" Edler asked.

"Uh...yeah, there is. Not so much a question, but Ozpin wants you immediately." Cardin answered. He handed him the note with the Headmaster's signature. Edler looked at it, it was a summon to the office.

"Very well, let's see the old bastard wants now."

Industrial District 5

"You hear the news?" A worker said to his buddy as both of them placed metal onto another Hornet fighter-bomber. "The Council approved a bill to build another industrial district."

"You serious?" The two grabbed their machine tools, and began putting small rivets into the holes to align the plating. "What's that mean for us?"

"Well, only a select few of the laborers are being assigned there. Apparently, the new district is for building some kind of new weaponry. They call them experimentals ."

"Experimentals? We're gonna be giving weapons to our military that might or might not work? That sounds...extreme."
Another worker butted in. "It sounds like we're losing the war." She said.

"Then why did we push the Grimm back to the Grimmlands?" The original worker asked. "Industrial District 2 sent out the pieces to build the wall already, so obviously they completed the objective."

"So what are these for then?" The buddy asked.

"Well, it's probably for the push into the Grimmlands. The HTC is up to something." The third said. "And it's gonna be too big for Hammond to hide from the world. This next operation...is gonna bring the spotlight onto us for the first time in Remnant's history."

Hammond Trench Corps HIGHCOM

Supreme Commander Holtis looked at the plans he had laid out for the 3rd Legion. While the 50th Expeditionary Force was being set aside to deal with the upcoming 'event' in the Four Kingdom world, he had the remaining twenty three expeditionary forces in the legion being prepared to have new units join the Legion.

Holtis was nothing special. A white male in his late 40s, a scar ran jaggedly across his left eye, which were both, medical-wise, unexplainably red. He had led a platoon in the 1991st Division, a division in the 3rd Legion. Thankfully, the 3rd Legion was not on rotation to send an expeditionary force to the Grimmwoods. He stood, in his Supreme Commander armor, at around eight feet tall.

The armor was as impressive as Holtis's height. The Primaris Mark X armor was the most expensive armor to make, and was made specifically for the Supreme Commanders of the Military Branches. The armor was made up entirely of ceramite, and could hold up against even Kraber rounds. The only weapon that could defeat this armor was the railgun weapons of the Paladin Mk2 Tanks, if the armor was hit enough times. The helmet that accompanied the armor was sitting on the planning table, next to a rough map of the Grimmlands.

"Sir." Holtis looked up from his plans to see two generals saluting him. Holtis saluted back, and put them at ease. "What can I do for you gentlemen?" Holtis asked.

"Sir, we have the report on the 99th, like you asked." One of the generals said, the other handing him a file with the 99th Hell Diver's insignia on it. "The three battalions currently deployed are still out in Sector Six, but they should be returning to the 50th Expeditionary Force soon, along with the rest of the 99th."

Holtis took the report, the file appearing tiny in his powerfist. He set it down, signalling he would read it later. "Anything else, gentleman?"

"The 3rd Legion is preparing to take on the new forces. Several divisions are currently training to take on their new roles as defense for the new units." One of the generals reported. "The 49th Expeditionary Force has run into trouble, several of their divisions have been depleted to dangerous levels."

"What happened?" Supreme Commander Holtis asked.

"The Grimm attacked Air Base Unity. Many Colossus Grimm were part of the attack. They were repelled, the divisions that have been depleted were part of the outside walls defense. They were the first responders, and had little time to prepare." The general explained, the other general giving another folder. "That folder contains the report."

"Very well. Is there anything else?"

"To our knowledge, no sir."

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"Drive them to fear and rage, and anyone will rebel." -Unknown Attentäterkorps Officer

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Mantle Slums

The door to a poorly kept apartment flew open as two hooded individuals ran into the home. The last one in looked up and down the hallway, and shut the door.

"Godsdammit!" The one that entered first threw off her cloak, revealing a caucasian black haired Dog Faunus wearing a beat up set of Atlesian soldier armor. She had a bow strapped to her back, but no arrows were in sight. "What the hell is Yolin gonna say when he hears that we cocked up the mission?!"

"Probably not congratulations." The other said, pulling his hood down and revealing a light skinned, grey haired Wolf Faunus. "To be fair, we were ordered to assault a very well defended position. Sector Six isn't exactly a civilian outpost."

"Yeah, well we also failed to disable the EMP device that's stored there! We can set up a base on Hammond territory if we can just disable the EMP!" The Dog exclaimed.

"Elise, you need to calm down." The Wolf tried to calm the raging Faunus. "We need to look at the facts. Yolin just had us try to take down a heavily defended Hammond base with nothing more than a division's worth of troops. I'm aware that we had the numbers, but our own intel was wrong."

"And how was the intel wrong, Jax?" Elise asked.

"Didn't you hear the reports from the remaining squads as we escaped? They were being hounded by three battalions from them ." Jax hissed the last word.

"Them? You mean to tell me…"

"Yes, the 99th sent some of their own to deal with us." Jax sighed. "Three battalions took out our remaining four with ease."

Elise scowled. "I don't know whether to be proud that we warranted a response from the HTC's Best or upset because they only sent three battalions."

"Three battalions from the 99th is like saying Atlas only attacked with three battlecruisers. It's three, yes, but it's three battlecruisers . It was only three battalions, but it was three Hell Diver battalions." Jax explained. "And I think they didn't even mean to show up, they just happened to be near Sector Six when we attacked."

"So we were an afterthought? Great…" Elise looked dejected at the thought.

"Don't be so upset, at least they bothered to fight us."

"I think it was more of a 'defend the EMP' and less of a 'fight the Fang' kinda reason." Elise pouted.

"Don't be hard on yourself, we will get through this. Yolin has a plan. We still have several divisions, and more and more Faunus are joining everyday." Jax said. "We should focus on getting back to the base."

Elise sighed. "Fine, but what about Yolin?"

"We'll tell him together, he wouldn't kill both of his best operators in one feiled swoop." Jax reasoned. "At least, he shouldn't."

Ozpin's Office

Edler was taking the elevator up to the office of Ozpin. He was unsure what the man wanted, but it probably wasn't good. Nothing was ever good with that man, but Edler had taken scope of what was going on around him. Everyone here trusted the Headmaster, but it seemed only Edler had caught on that the man had secrets.

The elevator door dinged, and Edler stepped out to see Ozpin talking to-

"Taurus?" Edler asked, more confused than anything. He looked to Ozpin. "What's a White Fang commander doing here?"

"Mr. Taurus here is enrolling in Beacon, Mr. Adler. The High Leader of the White Fang asked us to let him in. He has proven himself in taking down Grimm and non-Grimm targets with ease, so there's no need to run another initiation for him." Ozpin explained. "He'll be joining you, it is Team AE after all."

"AE...Adam and Edler...You sneaky bastard." Edler narrowed his eyes. He turned to Adam. "I have no ill will towards your branch."

"So, you don't mind having a 'terrorist' with you?" Adam asked.

"You were hurt by those who believe they are superior, and you are reacting accordingly. Misguided, perhaps, but words failed long ago." Edler explained. "I have no ill will towards Vale's White Fang branch, only Atlas's."

"Why Atlas's-" Ozpin started, but was interrupted by Adam speaking up. "It is good to hear that."

Edler stuck out his hand, and Adam shook it. Edler leaned in. "Ozpin doesn't get to know about Hammond, capice?"

"Capice."

The two leaned away. "Ozpin, I'm gonna help Adam get set up with his room. Have a good day." The two left a dumbfounded Headmaster in his office.

"What does he mean…" Ozpin muttered to himself.

Beacon Grounds

"So Ozpin doesn't know about your little piece of the world?" Adam asked quietly as the two walked to the main campus. "Why?"

"If he found out that an entire Kingdom was dedicating itself, every man and woman, to fighting the Grimm, he would immediately try to assume leadership of the Kingdom. Hammond can not have that." Edler answered. "We've seen this before. Another man had tried, and we had a whole mini coup about it."

Adam was thrown off how Edler just waved off a coup , of all things. "No coup is mini, Edler."

"Well, we lost the 5th Legion, but they were shit anyway." Edler shrugged. "Not like it was a big loss anyway."

"A legion tried to defy Hammond, only seven thousand against all of Hammond?" Adam didn't seem like Elder was telling the truth.

"Oh no, a legion is not the same as the historical term. An HTC Legion compromises...24 expeditionary forces."

"So…"

Edler shrugged. "It was a small coup, brutally put down by the KoHA and the KoHN."

"But how big is an expedition?"

"A question for someone else, my guy." Edler sighed. "It's not something I know."

"I see." The two walked into the dorms. "So, my stuff has already been moved to your room."

"Guess we'll go there. You don't mind rooming next to a full team of girls, do you?"

Adam looked at Edler with an arched eyebrow. "You serious?"

"Very much so." They stopped in front of a door. Edler took out his scroll and pressed it against the lock. The door chimed, and the two entered the room. The sight of a new bed and two beat up suitcases greeted the two. "Guessing that's yours?"

"You guess correct." Adam said, and began unpacking. Edler helped where he could, the two making small conversation as they did. They put the suitcases away when they finished, and the two headed down to put Adam's weapon in a locker. As they were, Edler's phone dinged. When he brought it out, Adam looked, and slightly tilted his head.

"What the hell is that?" He asked.

"It's a tablet phone, it's what Hammond uses to stay off the radar of the CCTs. I get my orders from my superiors from this thing." Edler explained.

"And you're telling me this why exactly?"

Edler tossed the phone at Adam, who caught it. He looked down at the screen, and read the message.

It read 'In order to foster better relationships between the Non-Atlesian White Fang forces and the Kingdom of Hammond, Commander Taurus and Captain Adler will be working together on operations in Vale. These range from sabotage and objective recovery to weapon capture and criminal suppression. Good luck to you both. -HC'

"What's HC?" Adam asked after he finished reading the letter.

"It's how HIGHCOM signs their letters. It makes it seem like it's a singular member and not an entire command structure. It also eliminates any possibility of knowing who sent the order or letter." Edler explained. "Now, look further down."

Adam did, and read the attached message. 'Several criminal gangs have gotten their hands on some weapons that do not belong to them. They will use them at first chance, unless they are in our hands. Take the weapons, and kill the gangs, the ensuing criminal power vacancy will keep them distracted for the time being. Location and info will be coming shortly.'

"It's a cache grab." Adam noted.

"Yep, that it is. Someone's got toys that don't belong to them." Edler slightly smiled. "You wanna go wreak havoc on some criminals tonight?"

"Gladly."

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"Arms dealing is a complicated profession. But don't worry, I'm a complicated person!" -Some crazy arms dealer in Hammond

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The Club, night time

Hei 'Junior' Xiong was polishing some glass cups as his underlings worked to move some very suspicious crates around. So suspicious that he closed the night club for the night. The metal boxes had weird symbols on them, symbols Junior didn't recognize.

On the long grey metal cases was the symbol of crossed broadswords and an arrow pointing upwards at where the two swords met. One of the cases was open, but two goons were inspecting the case's contents. Junior was tempted to walk over there and see what they were transporting this time. He decided not to, not like him to question what his customers wanted him to move. He just did what he was asked if paid the right amount.

Until he saw one of the goons inspecting the open case faint, while the other stared at the contents in pure shock.

Junior jogged over to them. "Hey! What do you two think you're do...ing…" Junior's voice died when he looked down at the case. Fear flooded his body, his nerves shut off, his face went pale.

In the case was a small warhead, the yellow and black triangles in a circle on the warhead denoted it's status.

"WE'RE MOVING NUCLEAR BOMBS!?" A goon shouted.

"Explains why the client paid top dollar…" Junior mumbled. "I think I'm gonna break the personal rule of mine. Open the cases, we need to see what we're dealing with exactly here."

Goons started opening cases, some finding weapons that would be used by the rank and file soldier, others finding armor or large amounts of ammo.

One goon opened a case and found an anti-tank rifle with the words Kraber on it. He grabbed one of the bullets, if it could be called that, from the case. "Gods above, this is some firepower…"
"Boss, who the hell is our client?" A goon asked.

"I don't know…" Junior answered. "I don't know what the destination is either…"

"Hey guys…" A goon started. "There's a note here. It's got a White Fang sigil on it-"

There was a crashing noise as two entities fell from the ceiling, landing on the dance floor. One was wearing green armor, a helmet with a cracked visor, and was carrying a chainsword. The other was-

"Adam Taurus!?" Junior shouted.

Adam unsheathed Wilt , while holding Bloom in his left hand. "That is my name."

"Did you-"

The armored figure raised his hand.. "Surrender the weapons, Xiong."

"Okay."

"...What?" The armored figure tilted his head, Adam looked surprised as well. "That easily?"
"The case behind you has a nuclear bomb in it."

Adam turned around, and realized he had almost landed on the warhead. "Oh…shit."

"And to think, we almost wiped Vale out." The armored one mumbled. "Well, we'll take the nuke. We need to dispose of the rest of these somehow…"

"Where did all of these come from?" Adam looked around, most of the club's space was taken up by weapons.

"I can answer that." Junior, Adam, and the armored figure turned around to see a pale woman with snow white hair to rival the Schnee's walk in. "Guess base didn't send you the memo, huh? Good to see you again, Edler."

"Koko Hekmatyar. What a pleasure." Edler dispersed his helmet. "What brings you to Vale? And why are you selling weapons to the White Fang?"

Koko mocked being hurt by the questions. "A member of the 99th, questioning what I'm doing?"

"Touche." Edler mumbled. "Doesn't explain the nuke, though."

"Oh, that? It's a dud. There's no blast cap nor any plutonium in it."

Junior and all the goons let out a sigh of relief. "Thank the gods above." Junior mumbled.

"So...what does bring you to Vale? You don't show up for no reason, your strategic mind is thinking of something right now." Edler narrowed his eyes. "Don't dodge the question."

"Alright, you caught me." Koko shrugged. "I am planning something. None of these weapons are actually being given to the Fang."

"I figured that." Adam said, walking to stand next to Edler. "The White Fang doesn't want to start a war."

"Your White Fang doesn't. Atlas's does." Koko tilted her head at the Bull Faunus. "You know that, don't you Commander Taurus?"

Adam scowled.

"Koko, please. The question?" Edler maglocked Hell Diver's Wrath to his back, sounding tired and annoyed at the same time.

"Okay okay. The weapons are ploys, I made contact with a high ranking Atlesian White Fang member to sell weapons to his little division. You're gonna capture or kill him." Koko explained.

Edler and Adam turned to face each other. "So...these weapons aren't going anywhere?"

"Nope."

Edler suddenly had the urge to slap someone at HIGHCOM. Or maybe Koko. Possibly both.

"Well, I guess we should get in position then." Adam sighed.

Edler turned around. "Yeah..hopefully we aren't tricked again."

Koko ignored the thinly veiled jab at her, deciding to walk up to Adam. "Keep an eye on him, someone back home demands that he lives."

"Why? I'm not his bodyguard."

"A certain Snow Leopard Faunus back in Hammond doesn't want him dead." Koko said. "You two have something in common, what's with cats anyway?"

Adam slightly recoiled at that. "How'd you-"

"I know things, don't worry about it."

Adam shook his head. He went to stand by Edler, sheathing his weaponry. "What's the plan?"

"We wait for the Fang to show up, and once they start demanding the goods we strike." Edler explained. "I can deal with the rank and file, I assume you want to go after whatever asshole is leading this little excapade of theirs?"

"With pleasure." Adam smiled.

"Hey, they're on their way!" Koko shouted. "Might wanna do your thing or whatever!"

Edler and Adam nodded to each other. "Let's raise some hell."

Beacon

Ruby was trying to do homework in the Team room, while Weiss was cleaning her weapon. Blake and Yang had gone out to buy some stuff in Vale. Ruby had wanted to go with them, but she had been told by Yang to get a head start on the homework for history. While trying to do so, she had heard someone with Edler in his room. They seemed to be discussing something for tonight. She had wanted to warn Yang and/or Blake, but she was waved off. She had seen Edler in action, so if he was planning something with someone...the team probably needed to know.

"Ruby, are you still worried about Edler?" Weiss asked. "Don't deny it, I can see worry in those eyes."

"Well...Edler did seem like he was talking to someone in his room. Was he receiving a roommate?" Ruby asked.

"Ozpin didn't mention anything about new people, though if someone proves themselves they can enter and join a team." Weiss put down Myrtenaster . "Perhaps someone to go with Edler?"

"Maybe…"

Suddenly, Ruby's Scroll rang. She looked at the caller ID, and saw it was Yang. "Hello?"

"Ruby! You were right, something's going down at The Club!" Yang shouted, sounds of gunfire could be heard in the background. "It's a whole battle out here in the slums!"

Weiss was already preparing to leave. Ruby shot out of her chair, and the two began running to the Bullhead docks. "Who is it? Who is fighting!?"

"There's White Fang here! They're shooting at The Club! It's criminals and some woman who looks like Ice Queen's sister fighting off an entire company of these guys!"

"Hey Weiss, do you have a sister?" Ruby asked the girl next to her.

"Yes, I do."

"Is she here in Vale right now?"

"No, why?"

"Yang, it's not her sister."

"Blake owes me 40 lien!" Ruby heard a small "Dammit!" in the background of the call.

"We're on the way! Hold tight!" Ruby exclaimed. She ended the call as her and Weiss got to the Bullheads. The pilot was finishing refueling the bird when the two ran up to him.

"Vale?"

"Vale." The girls answered at the same time.

The Club

Edler hated when a plan went sideways. And the one he had planned for today? Sideways almost instantly.

The Fang had come in, asked to see the weapons, and immediately pulled guns on Koko after they were satisfied. Adam and Edler had tensed, but did nothing until they were told to. Koko tried diffusing the situation, but it was clear to both her and Team AE that these Fang members had no money. One of them charged with a saber, only for Edler's Kraber to cut him down immediately. Adam jumped out, Edler followed suit, and it spiralled downwards from there. He wasn't even fighting criminals anymore!

Now, Edler was with Junior's goons. They were taking cover behind police cars White Fang kept firing at them. At least they hadn't had the chance to grab the weapons. The regular grunts had been forced outside fairly quickly by a combined force of Edler and Junior's goons. The police had tried to help, but they were forced to retreat after sustaining heavy casualties.

Edler looked out from behind the wall he was using as cover, summoned a Hemlock Rifle, and fired at the Fang members closest to him. The first burst ripped through a Fang grunt with a Dust Pistol, the white suit becoming stained with the Faunus's blood. The next burst impacted the Aura of another grunt, which got the attention of said grunt.

"Oh crap." Edler mumbled. "Aura user."

The grunt pulled out a grenade, and threw it at Edler. Edler rolled away, the grenade exploding the cover he had once used. Edler dispersed his Hemlock for a Longbow DMR, and quickly scoped down sight and fired a round straight through the Aura grunt's head. The bullet pierced through the Aura, and killed the grunt instantly. Edler dispersed the rifle, and low crawled to a police car. A goon was spraying and praying with a SMG, but was doing a good job of keeping up a suppressive fire. Edler summoned a R-201, and looked to the goon.

"How many are left?"

The goon looked over the car, and ducked down right as some bullets impacted where his head just was. "I saw sixteen."

"Damn, we only have three people out here right now." Edler grimaced. "The rest were taken out, right?"

"Yeah! When did the Fang get so good?!"

Edler leaned against the car, lifted his rifle over his head, and blind fired. He brought it back down after the mag was spent. "Because these guys are from Atlas. They have to be good at shooting or the Atlesian Military would cut them to shreds." Edler explained. "I expected a fireteam not a whole damn company of these fools!"

More rounds impacted the car. The tire next to Edler seemed to slump as a bullet went through it.

"Okay, I'm gonna do something rash." Edler looked to goon next to him. "I'm gonna go out into the killing field, and kill as many as I can. You and your friend are gonna head back into the club and wait till I either kill everyone or I die, clear?"

"Crystal!" The grunt shouted.

"Then do it!" Edler shouted, dispersing the R-201 and summoning a Charge Rifle. He ran from the car cover, and fired a laser at a grunt. The laser shot went straight through the grunt, and Edler quickly ran to the middle of the enemy line. Bullets impacted his shield, but he used his precious seconds to quickly think out a plan. He pulled out his chainsword, and went to work.

He lunged at the nearest Fang grunt, Hell Diver's Wrath protruding out the back of the grunt. Edler revved the weapon, and pulled the weapon to the left, ripping the grunt apart. He spun around and decapitated another grunt. He switched from two handed to one hand, and summoned a B3 Wingman in his right hand. He jammed his chainsword into a grunt, and fired the B3 into the skull of the grunt. Edler ripped the sword out of the grunt, blood spraying from the body as it fell. He fired another round at a charging grunt, the round laying the grunt. His inertia makes his head rock back and his body fly forward slightly. Hell Diver's Wrath sliced another grunt in half, as Edler jammed his B3 into the mouth of a grunt. He fired the revolver, and ripped it out of the destroyed mouth, ripping the rest of the head apart, to smash the revolver into the head of another grunt. The grunt fell to the ground, and the head was curb-stomped. Edler dispersed the B3, going back to two-handed chainsword tactics. He revved the sword, and sliced through a grunt. The swing's momentum got Wrath stuck in another grunt. Edler tugged, but felt the weapon stuck in the body.

"Fuck it." Edler mumbled.

He swung the chainsword, the body flying and hitting another grunt. Edler summoned an EVA-8 shotgun, and without looking, blasted a grunt behind him, destroying the body and leaving a new body cavity in the chest. The quiet that followed signalled to Edler that he had won.

"What do you know? The plan worked." Edler maglocked Hell Diver's Wrath . "Guess I should head back-"

A body flew through the doors of The Club, landing next to Edler.

"-home." Edler finished. He looked down at the body of an unconscious White Fang lieutenant. "All this for a lieutenant?"

Adam walked out. "That's a first lieutenant. They're the second to the commander of the branch."

"Really?" Edler looked confused.

"White Fang ranks are different from the average military. A captain controls patrols and attack groups. Lieutenants have more power, but a first lieutenant is the second to the commander." Adam explained. "My lieutenant, Marlowe, is my second."

"I see." Edler said. He produced a pair of Aura-inhibiting cuffs, and slapped them onto the wrists of the lieutenant they captured. "Guess we better bring this to-"

"I'll take him." Koko walked out. She walked through the carnage Edler had made, pulling out a P2020 and putting a round into the skull of a still alive Fang grunt. "Base will want to talk to him."

Edler nodded. "Better with you than Beacon. He might spill about-"

"WE'RE HERE!" Yang shouted, running into the scene, quickly surveying the carnage, then lost her dinner.

Edler looked around at the carnage, and shrugged. There had been worse battlegrounds he had been on, worse scenes he had caused.

Yang continued to throw up on the ground as Blake turned the corner. "Yang! Are you…" her words died in her throat as she caught sight of Adam, sheathing Wilt into Bloom .

"Blake…" Adam said, seemingly in a trance.

"Adam…" Blake said with equal emotion.

"Edler…" Edler said, mocking the two. "Okay, eye screw later. Back to Beacon, now ."

Yang recovered slightly. "What about.. urp ...all these bodies?"

"They'll be dealt with, we need to go before more cops show up." Edler explained. He turned back to see his new partner still staring at Blake, who was also staring at Adam. "God-Can you two deal with this back at Beacon?"

"Blake…"

"Adam…"

"URP!" Yang threw up again.

"Jeez Edler, you got some interesting friends." Koko chuckled as she called HIGHCOM on her phone.

/-/

"Why the hell is Hekmatyar requesting the Fire Eaters again? And why is she in Vale?" -Unnamed HIGHCOM Officer