A/N: I claim no ownership of either RWBY or Titanfall. They belong to their respective license holders. Now that thats over with. I wanted to get a chapter out a week, looks like I still suck at deadlines. other than that I hope you all enjoy.
The Room was lit by a solitary light, casting deep shadows that shifted as it swung. This being in direct contrast to the plate of cookies and mug of hot chocolate that Steele was fully enjoying. Across from him sat a man with white hair, dressed in green and carrying a cane and an ever-present mug. They had been discussing the nature of his arrival on this world that this 'Professor Ozpin' had called Remnant, Steele was surprised by just how hard it was to get anyone to take him seriously. Ozpin simply had him explain how he suddenly appeared during the initiation trial for his school, Beacon academy.
"so, Mr. Steele. You claim that you have saved this world from enslavement at the hands of a brutal corporation, and that in the process you were brought here, to our world. You claim to be a veteran mercenary, yet you are the same age as most of my first-year students." There was no skepticism in his voice, no doubt, just calm even questioning. "As incredible as your story is, I find my self believing you. Many parts of your story are easily verified, I have surveillance throughout the forest in which you arrived. Your arrival was noted by Vale ATC as an anomaly on their Radar systems, your weapons and armor are not of any make found on this world. I am a personal friend of the leader of the only formal military on Remnant, they are working on a project alarmingly similar to your partner, yet they are no where near his level of advancement. I am curious about a few things. You claim you arrived alone, if that is so; then why is it, during the anomaly Vale ATC detected five signals? Each roughly the size of your partner."
Steele didn't like the sound of that, that meant there were likely other Titans and Pilots on this world. They would likely be the rest of the mercenaries from Apex, meaning there were a batch of psychotic mercs running around. "that's a problem; best case scenario, its just a bunch of wreckage. Worst case: you have a group of Apex predators running around on your world, not something I would wish on most."
"Who are these… Apex predators?" Ozpin leaned in towards him, setting his mug down for the first time since they had started talking.
"Merc company run by a mean piece of work by the name of Kuben Blisk. They work for the IMC mostly; the Militia won't hire them. Blisk is a wanted war criminal, he pays well and gets payed even better. The Apex crew are always the best killers he can get his hands on, he has a habit of hiring the real nasty people; psychos, trophy takers, experimenters, and die hard professionals who don't care what they do as long as there is a healthy pay check at the end. Good news is; if you find them first, you can in fact buy their loyalty. Bad news, they usually really like killing. I'm legit now, Ill hunt them down on my own if you don't do something about it."
Ozpin was unflapped by his statement. Simply sipping from his mug as he mulled things over. His device- a strange glass phone thing called a scroll- beeped. "I need to take this, please wait here I have a few more things to go over with you before we decide how to proceed." He left Steele with the cookies and hot chocolate.
Steele had never been on this side of an interrogation room, the ones he was familiar with had far more bloodstains in them and far fewer cookies. He set to cleaning his R-99 while he waited, he had cleaned the rest of his gear in the wait before he and Ozpin had begun their conversation. He was glad they hadn't disarmed him; he would have gone along with it as long as he could keep the armor, as long as he had the AWS and jump kit, he would be able to escape.
He had a mystery of his own to solve, his pouches were always full. He had dumped a number of missiles and magazines at what he had learned was called a Nevermore. When he went checked his pouches, he had discovered that all his mags were accounted for and full. His missile tubes were all in place, even his satchel charges were there. It wasn't the AWS, XR had no explanation either. He had trouble believing that his pouches were magically refilling themselves, something was doing it.
The door opened once more, Ozpin standing in the entrance with a blonde woman with green eyes behind him. Steele looked up; cookie clamped fully between his teeth as he cleaned his weapon.
"Mr. Steele, this is my associate Professor Goodwitch." He gestured towards the woman. "Now, I have a proposition for you. First though I would like to ask you a few questions."
Steele had nothing to lose and everything to gain from playing along. "sure, what do you want to know?"
"First, you speak about being a Pilot. You say it like you find it to be something special, what exactly does that title mean to you."
"Pilots are the dominant force on the battlefield. Fast and agile, graceful yet devastating, perceptive, resourceful, relentless. We see the world differently, Sheer walls become flanking routes. We fight differently, experienced in deception and maneuver, even overwhelming odds shift in our favor. But what truly separates us from all the grunts and machines of the battlefield, is the bond between a Pilot and a Titan. When linked to a Titan a Pilot can only be stopped by overwhelming force, or an equal. We are elite special forces; it takes years of training to become a Pilot."
Ozpin seem satisfied with that answer, a small smile playing at the corners of his mouth. "and what about you? Where are you from? How did you end up as a mercenary at your age?"
Steele reached over and started rubbing his right arm. "I was born on a small frontier colony world, Unity. We weren't famous or even well known. I never knew it before the IMC took over, they killed everyone who resisted and enslaved the rest. I was eight- I think- when the Militia came through and rescued us, my parents had already died by that point. One of the mercenary groups that had joined in on the attack took me in. At some point we joined up with the Angel City Elite. I don't remember much from before the rescue, I did a lot to try and forget. I started training to be a Pilot as soon as they would let me. That good enough for you?"
Ozpin considered him, looking him dead in the eyes. "You are a warrior, you set your self against what you see as evil. You left everything and everyone you knew as a mercenary to join a legitimate organization to fight this IMC. I would like to offer you as a position at my academy as a first-year student. As well, I think you have as much to teach as you have to learn. I would like you to act as an assistant to Professor Goodwitch in combat classes, perhaps an extra curricular class in what you called 'Advanced movement'.
Steele thought it over, this was perfect. He needed to survive long enough for the Militia to figure out how to get him back, this would teach him to survive in this strange new world, it would give him a safe base of operations. "I need an obstacle course, a firing range, and an arena. Ill get XR to draw up a set of blueprints. I have no where else to go. By the way, you are giving me way too much credit about the honour of my cause."
"In that case, Professor Goodwitch will take care of your administration. We do have one last issue, teams. You see, teams are normally composed of four individuals. You will live with and attend classes and missions alongside your team. Now, we have an issue in that there are no incomplete first-year teams; instead I believe that the best course of action here would be to assign you to one of the two teams you worked with during initiation. Of course, this is as unprecedented as allowing you to form a team with your partner alone, I believe that having you join a team will allow them to introduce you to this world properly. I think that it would do more harm than good to have you on a separate team. Glynda, could you bring team RWBY in please?"
She turned and left to retrieve his new teammates; Steele took full advantage of the time by shoving another cookie in his mouth. He hated to admit it, but these were the best cookies he had ever had. He hurried to assemble his R-99, determined to at least be presentable for his new team. Ozpin watched him with amusement, Steele would admit that shoving a plate of cookies into your face one at a time wasn't exactly professional, hell he was from ACE they didn't even pretend to be professional most of the time.
"Your new team leader can be… enthusiastic. She was quite pleased when I proposed having you join her team."
Steele had a feeling that he knew who his team leader was. "Little red riding hood? Fuck." He pulled his flask out from his jumpsuit with some finagling. He waved it in Ozpin's direction. "you like moonshine? Got some genuine Haven backwoods brew, only off world alcohol on this planet." He took a deep swig, knowing he would need some fortification to deal with the overly energetic redhead.
"I tend to avoid alcohol, as it stands the Beacon grounds are completely dry. I am willing to make an exception for you in this single case. In the future may I recommend Juniors club in Vale, one of your teammates has a storied history with that establishment and can guide you to bars that are willing to serve an underage huntsman." No concern or reproach crossed his face or entered his voice, it was disconcerting, like he was talking about the weather or what was being served in the mess.
Steele decided that asking more questions right now would be counterproductive, the best idea was to go along with it and see where he ended up. From the sounds of things, he would be staying firmly planet side, that meant actual beds and food that had more redeeming qualities than it being hot, the good things in life.
The door wasn't opened so much as blown through by a red ball of energy. Steele's only warning was a stream of high-speed gibberish before the ball impacted his thrown-out arm. Sure enough, it was little red that he was holding off the ground. Again. "So, I'm guessing you're our team leader. Lieutenant Forrest Steele, Marauder Corp, Militia SRS. I can introduce you to my partner if we head outside. Speaking of, is there anywhere I can store him. I feel bad leaving him outside or in phase if I'm going to be sleeping inside."
He put her down as he spoke. She seemed completely unaffected by being held up by a heavily armed individual, he really didn't know what to make of that. She held out her hand for shaking, a friendly smile on her face. "Hi Forrest, I'm Ruby. The rest of the team is just behind me… or, well they were. Hehe. I may have left them behind. Hey! Your weapons are really cool."
Steele wasn't really ready for that transition, energetic was one word for what was in front of him. He had to raise an eyebrow at the awkwardness of this girl, strong first impression, then… what ever that was. On the plus side, his weapons were pretty cool, he was glad someone had noticed. "That they are. How far behind did you leave the rest of the team?"
She shrunk down just a little, putting her index fingers together. "well… uh. Back at the dorms? I got really excited, and then I used my semblance, and then I was here, and I don't really know."
He sighed and looked over at the headmaster whose face was still completely passive. "Well, I guess we should go meet them mid way. Is there a large outdoor area nearby where no one will mind a Titan moving around?"
She looked up at him, full of energy and excitement once again. "we can use the main courtyard; I don't know about anywhere to store a giant robot though."
Ozpin finally spoke at that. "There is a hangar where we keep our aerial transports, I am sure that your partner would be safe there. Oh, and before you go. I have arranged for a scroll to be delivered to you tomorrow before your first class, a new bed and a school uniform will be in your dorm by dinner. I am sure that your teammates can help you find a store in Vale to purchase some more personal attire, before you ask you will be provided with a small sum of Lien, the local currency."
"alright then ruby, lead the way." Steele followed behind he as she led him out into the main courtyard. They were standing in front of a large statue when they met the rest of the team. It was three of the girls from the fight with what Ozpin had called a Nevermore. The ones in white, yellow, and black were identified as Wiess, Yang, and Blake, respectively. Steele sent a called for XR, a sliver of euphoria slipping in. "Standby for Titanfall!"
He ran towards the open field in which XR was projecting his LZ, he turned and faced team RWBY with his arms out just as XR landed behind him keeling on one leg with a fist to the ground. "Team this is XR-03, my partner and this teams sixth member. XR, say hi to the team, this is Ruby, Weiss, Yang, and Blake." He pointed to each in turn as XR stood and faced the team.
"it is a pleasure to meet you. Pilot, I am still experiencing the system error. Requesting Pilot assistance."
XR kneeled down and removed his AI pod, passing it down to Forrest. He pulled a data-knife out and inserted it into one of the ports. Nothing looked off to him, but he was no AI tech, he reinstalled the core before inserting it into XR's chassis. "problem isn't your systems buddy; we'll figure it out." He turned back to the girls. "so, what now? I need a place to leave XR, but after that I have no idea what to do."
Yang waved towards Ruby. "Well… I think my little sister wants to spend the rest of the day learning about your weapons. I can take you to the garage though; I keep my bike there, so I know where it is. We can sort the rest out once that's taken care of, I don't think the teachers will appreciate a 20ft robot stomping around. Say; Ozpin said you were some kind of special forces where you come from, you any good in the ring." She threw a few punches in the air, completely unsurprisingly considering how fought the nevermore; shotgun gauntlets if he remembered correctly.
"I know my way around a fist fight, plenty of time in the ring and on the field. You in need of a sparring partner?" If she wanted to go a few rounds in the ring he would be more than happy to oblige, more practice was always a good thing when it came to combatives. She didn't fight with all that much skill compared to the Pilots back home, she made up for it with brute strength and speed. The shotguns on each fist likely helped.
Yang lead them down towards the air pads at the end of the walkway, there was a cargo elevator on the pads that lead to a hangar that was large enough for the airships. Steele looked around and found a corner that was pretty much empty, as soon as he noticed it XR moved in. XR set his XO-19 and the rucksack down on the floor before stepping into the corner.
Steele decided that as good as it would be to have a proper inventory count, he could check the rucksack later. "I noticed that none of you are carrying weapons, is there an armory on campus?"
It was Blake who replied. "You should have been given a locker. Ruby, did Ozpin give you locker number for him? There are no rules around students carrying weapons, but most don't have them unless their heading out or to combat class."
Ruby was checking her scroll, a look of confusion on her face. "uh… oh! Here we go. Your locker is number 419, passcode is 7274"
Wiess looked annoyed at something, her brows furrowed and lips tight. "We still need to move into our room you know. We haven't even started unpacking, and dinner is in an hour, I for one would like to be ready in the morning."
He thought that she made a good point, squaring yourself away to be ready in the morning was a good idea. "you can go ahead; I just need directions to the armory and the dorm. Actually, mess hall as well."
"Oh! I can take you to the armory, can you tell me all about your weapons?" Ruby was all too enthusiastic about that point; he wasn't quite sure where her fixation on weapons came from, but he could deal with it. the rest of the team broke off to move their stuff in, he had almost everything he owned on his person.
She led him to a hall with walls covered in blue lockers that she explained had rockets in them, acting sort of like a Titanfall but for your weapons and armor. In exchange he explained the details of all his weapons and being a Pilot, what life on the Frontier was like, what life on a ship was like; she explained a bit about Remnant while they walked, about the gangsters she had fought to get into Beacon, about the Grimm, the White Fang, and her own weapon. Steele was interested in the hybrid weapons that this world was fond of but figured that changing his fighting style to fit this new style would be unwise.
He put all his weapons except for the 2020 in the locker, he had trouble fitting the AWS in but kept the jump kit so he could do some maintenance before bed; there had been a slight flicker in left thruster on a double jump. He had to smile at the passcode; he had met Cooper and BT once, the amazing coincidence of his passcode and the Titan's serial number was a welcome reminder of home.
He tucked the 2020 into a pocket in his jumpsuit and fastened the jump kit to his back. They were just about to leave when Yang and Blake showed up. "I thought it might be a good idea to make sure we didn't need to rescue you from my sister. Dinner is in a bit… what'cha got there?" She was looking at the flask that he had pulled out, he gestured towards her.
"Ozpin said that Beacon grounds were dry, so I have to finish this off by end of day. You want some?" He was more than willing to share, drinking alone was lame and the road to dark places in his trade, drinking with a friend was just a good time in general.
"No one tell Ozpin. I will happily join you in a drink." She took a few small sips, grimacing at its strength. "I usually like my drinks a little sweeter, its got a good after taste though, Blackberry?"
"good guess, we picked it up last time we were out towards Harmony. I'm surprised you guys have Blackberries, I guess our realities are close in a bunch of ways. Hey Blake, you want some?" her bow twitched in an interesting way when he offered her the flask. She looked around to make sure they were alone before taking a small sip herself.
"ugh… you're like uncle Qrow. No drinking on weekday's! go into town on the weekend!" Ruby was not impressed with him as he polished off the flask, warmth spreading throughout his chest.
"Relax Ruby, Ozpin made it clear to me, just today as the exception. I am not letting this go to waste, last taste of home…or well… something close to home anyway." Steele put the flask away, reminding himself to give it a wash; perhaps he could use it as a water bottle, or juice, they probably had that around here somewhere. He had won the flask in the same game that he won the moonshine in -poor Barker had nothing but shit hands- he wasn't going to give the flask up anytime soon.
They made their way to the largest mess hall that Steele had ever seen, the roof was tall enough to fit a small carrier in. the food was excellent, turkey, steak, multiple varieties of potatoes, heaping trays of vegetables. Steele really wasn't sure what to make of the variety; last time he had seen so much was at some yearly festival on Heaven.
The hall was surprisingly quiet for the amount of people in it; Steele was familiar with the kind of fatigue that had settled in on the students, moving, fighting, and winning. Contrary to popular belief, most people didn't throw a party right after having won a battle, normally you just relaxed the best you could and tried to find a place to sleep.
What little conversation passed around the table was all comparing life on Remnant to the Frontier, Steele was happy to find that things were mostly the same. Sure, there was the rampant racism around the Faunus- which he suspected Blake to be, the bow looked a lot like cat ears- and the whole thing with the Grimm, but things were mostly good for the average citizen of the Kingdoms.
The thought of a bunch of Blisk's crew running around the Kingdom made him nervous, there was a powder keg ready surrounding the White Fang that would be the perfect grounds for a group of mercs to flock too. The only reason he wasn't worried is it sounded like the Fang would never resort to working with humans, worst he had to worry about was them going to the Torchwick gang. He would keep his eye out for them, no point in hunting them if he had no leads.
He was more than ready for bed by the time they made their way to the dorm; sure enough there was a fifth bed tucked into a corner of the room, Steele dropped his jump kit next to it while he fell on to the bed. He stared at the jump kit before pulling out a small selection of tools from his jumpsuit, equipment always came before personal needs. It was a quick fix to one of the fuel pipes that was a little loose, reassembling the jump kit was harder than fixing it. Sleep was calling him, and he fell blissfully into its grasp.