Chapter Six- The Ambush
Southwest ruins of Vale...
The ruins were deathly silent. Buildings were abandoned and either were falling apart or covered in dust. In fact, there were a couple of tumbleweeds rolling down the lonely streets. The drone of a Bullhead suddenly started to get louder and louder until the craft hovered over the street. Nine figures jumped down from the aircraft and set up various positions all across the street.
Greg, armed with the XM8 Assault Rifle, was on his knee aiming down the street while leaning out of a corner. Leland was prone, aiming Leadstorm down the street as well. Randi and Velvet aimed their weapons up at the rooftops, Jaune and Pyrrha stood back to back with their respective weapons drawn while Nora and Ren did the same. The only person not taking up a stance was Professor Port who had his Blunder Axe resting on his shoulder, casually walking up to Greg.
"Young man, I understand that these actions are part of your military training and experience, but we are hunting Grimm, not fighting enemy soldiers. In fact, this area is quite free of any souls here." Port started off until Greg raised a fist in the air. He made a motion using his left hand to tell Batista to move forward. The explosives expert did so cautiously, Leadstorm aiming over everything as he moved.
Batista reached the end of the street and looked around the corners. When he confirmed it was clear, the pyromaniac gave a thumbs up and Greg made the all clear motion. The eight students got back up and started to move forward again.
"Look, Mr. Pineda. I understand the tactical use of urban fighting but I could hardly expect that we would encounter any hostile for-" A sniper round striking the pavement cut off Port as the students scrambled into cover. The nine came under fire from the rooftops and the buildings at the end of the street.
Southeast ruins...
A bullhead was flying over head outside the outskirts of Vale. Team RWBY and RADR were standing in the aircraft as they flew towards their destination; the southeast ruins of Vale.
Yang sighed as she was still in her girly dressing but managed to get the makeup off her face for this mission. "I doubted that you would be able to fight yourself, Dr. Oobleck," she commented.
"I did fancy myself more of an intellectual, but I can assure you, as a Huntsman, I've had my fair share of tussles," Oobleck replied for Yang's question.
"You mean mushrooms?" Alex inquired with his sniper rifle in hand.
Raiden leaned over to him. "That's truffles, bro."
Ruby was also confused as well. "Like the sprout?"
Yang leaned over to her sister. "Those are Brussels."
"Besides, given my expertise in the field of history as well as my dabblings in the archaeological surveys, our dear headmaster saw fit to assign me to this particular... assignment!" Oobleck proclaimed.
"What does history have to do with this?" Rick asked in boredom. The Korean wasn't much of a history nut.
Oobleck turned around to look at him sharply. "My, what a preposterous question, from a soldier. Why, history is the backbone of our very society! And the liver! Probably the kidneys, if I were to wager."
"And that means..?" Weiss asked.
"The southeast quadrant outside of Vale is home to wild forests and deep caves, but it is also the location to one of the kingdom's greatest failures!" Oobleck pointed out.
"Mountain Glen," Ruby answered.
Derrick nodded. "I read about that. It was an expansion of Vale... but in the end it was overrun by Grimm and fenced off from the rest of the city to today."
"Correct! And now it stands abandoned as a dark reminder."
"And a likely place for a hideout," Blake said.
"Precisely!"
The bullhead made way into the ruins of the southeast quadrant of a fallen part of Vale. They past by a tall tower which came to mind in Alex's mind. "I can keep overwatch here and keep tabs on our surroundings," the sniper suggested to their professor.
"Very good idea, Mr. Williams! I'll allow you to do so!" Oobleck answered back.
They hovered by the tower and Alex held onto his rifle and got ready to jump. He felt a hand on his shoulder and saw it was Raiden looking at him. "Stay safe."
Alex just grinned at him. "When am I not?" He then jumped off the bullhead and landed on the rooftop. "See you in a bit!"
The bullhead flew down above the streets and that's when nine figures jumped out. The girls fell on the street with ease while RADR dappled down to the street weapons ready. Raiden had his rifle up and pointed it forward. "Area clear!"
Miguel stepped down from the craft and looked around the area. A frown was across his face as he looked at the watch on his wrist. Weiss notices this and turns to the gunslinger.
"Whats the problem? Why aren't you readying yourself for combat, you dunce?"
"They should have been here by now. Dammit." Miguel curses to himself before hearing something from the west. It sounded like gunfire but very distant from here. Miguel, however, recognized these sounds and facepalms, groaning. "Why did they get the location wrong again."
"I dunno man... And I see a Beowolf," Alex said in radio making everyone look down the street to see a lone Beowolf on the streets. "Permission to take out?" He asked looking through his scope.
"Don't," Oobleck ordered.
"Aw, how come?" Rick asked with his hands ready for a fight.
"There are a number of reasons why Grimm will congregate in this particular area, the most likely of which will be their attraction to negativity: sadness, envy, loneliness, hatred. All qualities that are likely held by our hidden group harboring ill intent."
"Hey, guys. I just received word from the group that was suppose to meet us here had to reroute due to an ambush set up by Claudia's forces on Team's GRVL and JNPR. So I ordered them to rescue them from Claudia's ambush before they assist us." Miguel announced pulling out Quickdraw and levered a round into the chamber.
"Um, guys, there's a whole pack of ten down there now if you're wondering," Alex added in the radio. Everyone looked down the street to see a large pack of Beowolves entering the desolate streets. "Oh, and now they've spotted you guys."
"What?!" Weiss exclaimed.
"And now they've spotted us!" Oobleck shouted.
One of the Beowolves charged for one of them an lunged. Rick was about to punch at it until a loud crack went off. A bullet pierced through it's head through one of it's eyes and it fell down dead. "You're welcome!" Alex shouted from the tower as he started to lay down suppressive fire.
"To arms!" Raiden shouted and unslung his M4A1 rifle. Derrick took out his shotgun while Ruck merely brought up his fists.
RWBY did the same thing as well and prepared their weapons. "Show me what you got!" Oobleck shouted.
Back with JNPR and GRVL…
"Batista! Lay down suppressive fire on the second floor of the building at eleven o'clock! Jaune! Pyrrha! Use your shields to create cover in the road to allow the others to get across the street to our cover! Nora! I want grenades on the building down the street, two o'clock on the third floor! Make sure that fire stops else we can't have the others get across the street! Port!...Just stay there..." Greg trailed off when he realized that he had no idea what the professor's skills were other than using a Blunder-Axe. LeadStorm rained fire on its targets while Jaune and Pyrrha rolled into the street. They slammed their shields into the ground before Pyrrha used Milo to start firing at the hostiles down the street. Meanwhile Jaune unslings his new rifle which was designed after the Springfield Rifle, courtesy of Logan Somers, and started to lay down fire as well. Nora lobbed grenades from her grenade launcher and the attackers sheltering in that building fled before it could collapse on top of them.
The firefight raged on with high intensity as the others managed to regroup inside the abandon store on the ground floor. An explosion rocked the building and pieces of the ceiling rained down on the nine below. Fortunately they weren't huge chunks so no one was hurt.
"What are we going to do now, Greg? We're surrounded first of all and now they brought in rocket launchers! This isn't the best of days, man!" Batista voiced out his opinions, leaning out of the window and releasing a burst of fire from LeadStorm. Before Greg could tell the pyromaniac to be quiet, the sounds of loud steps, engines revving, and new rifle fire filled the air along with battle cries and shouts.
"Lopez! Hostiles en los tejados de enfrente! Segundo piso!" (Spanish to English Translation: Lopez! Hostiles on the opposite rooftops! Second Floor!)
"Sí! Los veo, Carlos!" (Yeah! I see them, Carlos!)
"Conduzca de nuevo, chicos!" (Lets drive them back, guys!)
The nine pop their heads out to see a new group of arrivals fighting their attackers. Some of the fighters were wearing jeans and white collar short sleeved shirts with a black armband while others were dressed in the style of old Texan soldiers. They were mounted on either horses or trucks with MGs on the back, firing weapons that were either Old Western weapons like Miguel's or modern day firearms. One of the newcomers spotted Greg and waved to him.
"Greg Pineda! No te preocupes! Estamos aliados con Miguel! Hemos venido a rescatarte de las fuerzas de Claudia!" (Greg Pineda! Don't worry! We're allied with Miguel! We came to rescue you from Claudia's forces!)
"¿Se puede hablar Inglés por favor? Nadie más en nuestro grupo sabe español, pero me. (Can you speak English please? No one else in our group knows Spanish but me.)" Greg asked which the newcomer on his horse nodded.
"Of course, senor! We know both English and Spanish! Anyway, we came to rescue you guys from the Los Tejanos Claudia controls! Exit through the back door of the building and grab a mount or a dirt bike! As for the fat one, he can sit in the bed of the Little Mule!" The newcomer pointed at the truck with the MG in the back, causing Professor Port to mutter something that no one could hear except Greg and Velvet.
"Jaune! You and Pyrrha take one of the horses! And take this with you!" Greg orders, tossing his M1911 to Jaune. The blonde knight looked at it before looking back to Greg. "Thanks, Greg!" He turned and climbed onto one of the horses with Pyrrha holding onto his back.
"Thank me later and don't lose it! Nora! Ren! On the dirt bike! Leland! Randi! Take the other bike! Velvet. You're with me on the horse." Greg replied helping her up before climbing on behind her and grabbing the reins. Professor Port was thrown into the back of the Technical by the newcomers before the group moved out of the area. Port had the unfortunate experience of having hot brass rain down on him by the Machine Gunner, who fired his weapon to keep the attacker's heads down.
"Plomo comer, bastardos! (Eat lead, bastards!)" The Machine gunner cursed as he fired along the buildings to the left of the group. The rescue group charged down the street when suddenly a bunch of drones appeared, firing bullets at them. The drones were a flying platform with four rotors and a small gun on the under belly.
"Tenemos compañía, chicos! Drones subiendo en nuestro flanco trasero! (We have company, guys! Drones coming up on our rear flank!)" Shouted one of the rescuers on horseback, pulling out a lever action rifle from his saddle holster and turned around in his saddle. He started to fire at the drones, taking two down before turning forward to look where he was going.
The radio on the Technical was blasting Mexican Polka music (AN: The one that the reds play on their Warthog in RvsB.) while the Machine Gunner turned around and fired at the drones chasing them. Greg handed the reins to Velvet momentarily and pulled out his .357 Revolver. Taking aim, he fired a couple of rounds into some other drones, destroying a few of the drones himself. One of the rescuers on horseback turned to another pair who were on an ATV.
"Pablo! Tenemos que destruir el edificio más adelante para bloquear la ruta de acceso para los robots! (Pablo! We need to destroy the building up ahead to block the path for those robots!)"
"Entendido! (Understood!)" The guy on the back of the ATV shouldered an RPG and aimed at the building's support beams. As soon as they were clear, he fired, his aim striking his true target. The building toppled into the street, destroying most of the drones and allowing the group to escape.
Back with RWBY, RADR, and Miguel…
Raiden and Derrick started shooting at the charging Beowolves, unloading their shots into each of them. Derrick slid towards one of them and placed his shotgun below it's mouth. "Goodnight!" He pulled the trigger and the head was shot off the body, chunks of it flying in every direction. He saw one coming up behind him and slammed his foot on the ground. A wall of stone jutted up from the ground and stopped it in it's tracks. He then crushed his hand together making the wall fall on top of it crushing it to death as he added pressure.
Rick kicked one in the face before placing his hands on it's face. He then started shouting as he started burning it's head as flames flickered from his hands.
Raiden ran up to one and loaded a round into it's face. It fell on him and he pushed it off and kept on running. He then brought his hand up and punched it forward. A gust of wind came out and penetrated it's way through a group of them, making them fly to the sides.
After the Ghosts have dispatched their attackers on them, they looked up to see the RWBY killing the last Beowolf. Ruby giggled as she looked at Oobleck. "Easy."
"Don't be so hasty. There are many more bouts up ahead."
Later...
Derrick was reloading his shotgun after unloading the last shell into the gut of a Beowolf. He then kicked it in the face down into the ground and stomped his foot down. A piece of the road broke off and floated above the injured Beowolf before being squashed from it. "Mr. Haven! Why are you attending Beacon to become a Hunter?" Oobleck suddenly said along with appearing out of nowhere.
Derrick turned around and looked at him. Loading the last shell in, he slung it to his back and crossed his arms. "Ever since Jamie took me in, he taught me that I should help people. After the Federation hit, I wanted to keep his memory alive by fighting in the war. I wanted to keep people safe. Then coming here, seeing nothing to do for a fellow soldier, I took Ozpin's offer along with my squad mates who are like brothers to me."
Miguel was firing his pistols Quick and Draw at the horde of Beowolves that charged at him when Oobleck came to his side.
"Mr. Pineda. Why are you attending Beacon to become a Hunter?"
Miguel finished off his last Beowolf before turning to Oobleck. "Because its the right thing to do and my only choice. My aunt, Claudia, has ruined the Los Tejanos' name due to her corruption so I aim to fix it. That and also because I heard that there was a guy named Greg that looked exactly like me." Miguel replied, raising his arm over his head and fired a round into the Beowolf behind him without looking. The Grimm toppled backwards dead as Miguel reloaded his pistols.
Rick created a fireball in his hands and threw it at one of the large groups of Beowolves heading towards them. It made contact with one of them and it engulfed them in a huge area of flames bursting outwards. "Mr. Grimes, why do you want to be a Hunter?" Oobleck sped up to him.
"Well... There is always evil in the world and it can never be truly eradicated. And that evil makes suffering. I think that me and the guys back on earth were fighting for a cause much bigger than our own. Freedom for people, from suffering."
Alex was unloading round after round into any Beowolf that was in his sights. Transitioning magazines, he pulled back the bolt and looked back in the scope. For his surprise, he yelped loudly as he fell backwards on his back. Oobleck was on the rooftop of the building he was on. "Geez, what are you-?!"
"The youngest of team RADR, a bit of a hothead, and stubborn, why did you join up in Beacon?" Oobleck asked him.
'What kinda question is that? Oh well, might as well answer it.' Getting back up to his feet, he dusted his pants off and looked at his instructor. "I guess... I guess I need a purpose in life to fight for. Innocent people for everyday, and we could've done something to save them. But we need to try our best to save as many as we can while fighting off the enemy."
"Quite interesting."
Later...
Raiden had his M4A1 slung on his back as he sat on the edge of a fallen building as he looked beyond the nearby cliff. Everything felt cold. There was no life among them. It was gloomy rather than the usual sunshine they see all the time back in Beacon. An unlight ciggarette was in his mouth with a lighter in hand. He kept on trying to light the lighter but it wouldn't flare open. Soon after awhile, a small flame formed and he lead his hand to his smoke.
"A bit to young smoking, is it?" Oobleck commented from behind.
Raiden quickly spun around to look at him. The flame died out with the smoke still in his mouth. "Can't blame me." He sighed as he took out the ciggarette and flicked it away even though it hasn't been lit yet. "I know what you're doing to my friends, and you want to know why I want to be a Hunter, right?"
"Indeed."
Raiden was quiet for a moment. It has been awhile since someone has asked him about the reasons why he fought. They always changed from time to time. But he was stuck now. "I... I really don't know..."
"You must have a reason why..."
"I... I just want to make a change, sir. Not just in fighting on the battlefield, but also in daily life. I've been here long enough to see that Remnant is a wonderful place. But while there's something outside lurking in the shadows, people are always throwing dirt onto the Faunus. I want to help change the hearts and minds of people, I want to have them see that we are weak when we are divided. For we are strong when we are standing united. For unity brings strength. I found out that brotherhood is very powerful, that it binds men together both on and off the battlefield."
With the convoy…
"That was awesome!" Leland shouted, him and Randi zooming past Velvet and Greg on their dirt bike. The convoy stopped once they were in a small park that was in the center of the abandon town. The newcomer on horseback dismounted from his steed and ran over to Greg's horse. Now that they were no longer under fire, Greg was able to get a good look at the group's rescuers.
The horse rider that greeted Greg walked over to the two teams to meet them without having to worry about any fighting. The newcomer was actually young, maybe thirteen or fourteen years old, with tan skin and brown eyes. He had a slight high pitch voice and looked sort of feminine to Team GRVL. It wasn't until the newcomer took off his cowboy hat when they realized why.
"Carlita Pena at your service, Greg." She greeted, her long black hair flowing with the breeze.
"Wait! You're a girl!?" Jaune exclaimed in disbelief, earning a glare from everyone else who was a student. However Carlita giggled at the blonde knight's reaction while some of the other Rebel Tejanos were roaring with laughter.
"Yeah. I get that reaction all the time. I still think its funny how people tend to think I'm a feminine boy at first. Never gets old." Carlita replied while one of the older teenaged Tejanos walked up behind her. He had the same hair and eye color as her but was masculine and definitely a male Tejano.
"Well, Carlita seems to like you guys and I do to. I'm Juan Pena, one of the co-leaders of Miguel's group and brother of Carlita." Juan introduced himself, shaking hands with Greg.
While the Greg was talking to his new Tejano friends, Port took the opportunity to speak with the students about their reasons of becoming Hunters and Huntresses. Port walked up to Leland who was thinking about adding an under-barrel grenade launcher to LeadStorm and decided to ask him a question.
"So, Mr. Batista. Why did you decide to become a hunter?" This causes the pyromaniac to pause and think about it.
"Truthfully I figured if I wanted to do something right with my life it was this choice. Back home, before the academies, I was a punk with a serious pyromania issue. I was always disobeying my parents, disrespecting the elders and teachers, and, of course, blowing things up that shouldn't have been blown up. Finally one day, my self-realization that I should change my life occurred. However the cost was the life of one of my friend's life and my dad's use of his own legs. The other guy swore it was an accident but it still changed me. I started to be more polite, respectful and wanted to become a hunter like every other good kid in the village. So that's why I joined Beacon."
Port thought about the story Leland had told him. At first, he would have thought that the pyromaniac had gone to the academies to blow things up. Now he knew that there was more to it than having fun. The Grimm Studies professor turned to Randi Jackson who was looking at Batista with hearts in her eyes.
"Miss Jackson, can you explain to me why you wanted to become a huntress?" This caused her break focus and furrow her brow in thought.
"Mainly to be alongside my friend, Leland. He was guilty for being a complete jackass to his family and felt like it was his fault that his dad will never walk on his legs again. I came along to help him realize that it isn't his fault and that he should stop blaming himself for it. That and the fact it seemed like a good idea to become a Huntress." Port just nodded at this before turning to Velvet, who was petting the horse with Greg.
"Miss Scarletina, what made you decide to become a Huntress?" This made Velvet frown while thinking about her answer.
"I want to make a difference in the world by being a Huntress. Most Faunus are discriminated and I figure the best way to stop it is to become one of Humanities protectors." This answer was satisfactory to Port who turned to the only person who hadn't been asked the question.
"So, Mr. Pineda. What made you become a Hunter? I know that you were trained as a soldier, but why pursue this path instead of your old one?" This caused Greg to sigh, shaking his head slightly as he turned to face the professor.
"First of all, I'm not a soldier. I'm a Marine. There's a difference there. Second is that the reason I chose this path over my past path was because of my experience. Port, you may be a veteran Hunter, but you have never experienced anything like war between your fellow man. In war, you have to take away lives of men and women who are just like you. They have family to care for, a place to defend, and pride in the beliefs they follow. However what makes war horrible is its effects. Places are turned into ruins, families are either killed or caught in the crossfire, people abused because they are the enemy. Some seriously messed up stuff. I did some things which to this day, I regret and have to live with that guilt for the rest of my life. I was tired of being the sniper, the life taker, the eye of God. I want to protect people against evil creatures and other humans without killing them. The humans. The Grimm can all go die or fall by my hands. Anyway so that is why I chose to become a Hunter."
Unknown to the group down in the clearing, a familiar enemy watched them, aligning their cross hairs on one of the elderly Rebel Tejanos. The figure slowly pulled the trigger when it caught a glimpse of something. The Apache eye's widen as she saw Greg holding up the middle finger with his left hand while firing the Barrett .50 Caliber Anti-Materiel Rifle at her. The same one she had lost to him along with her eye and soul since she made a deal with the Terror Swarm. The round punched through her scope and her head exploded. The Rebels and Teams GRVL and JNPR back away as the headless corpse and its weapon slide out of the fifth story window and fell down to the street below. Greg, feeling satisfied about this accomplishment, walked up to the body and dropped the Barrett on it.
"Looks like we finally screwed up, Miss Apache. That was for my dad and mom, you sick human being." This last statement caused Juan to shake his head.
"She is a Terror, Greg. Terrors, even hybrid's, have no soul. They are pretty much Grimm anyway."
With the other teams…
Alex was standing on the edge of the building he set up a long time ago. The building was right across the building his fellow teammates and Team RWBY were held up in. His sniper was strip apart into pieces with only the scope in hand. He was currently on his own watch as he scanned around for any strange activity.
He let out a long yawn as he rubbed his eyes from being slightly sleep deprived from his recent nights of barely sleeping. "Man, did I end up becoming an insomniac awhile ago? I better get a couple pills then."
A small static went off in Alex's ear. He grumbled slightly as he tapped his right ear on his earpiece. "Yeah?" He answered tiredly while yawning.
"You on watch?" Raiden asked him with a yawn of his own.
"Yep. This place gives me the creeps." He looked across the the street with his scope and looked at the hidden fire that lit up the small desolate room they were in. He grinned slightly when he saw Yang asleep with Raiden sitting beside her. His M9 Beretta pistol was in his reach if anything happened.
"I know bro. We should just be here at least a few more days. Not that bad considering the time we spend in No-Mans Land, huh?" Raiden brought up. This made the two brothers laugh softly not wanting to attract attention to themselves.
"We almost got killed by that sniper lady that keeps going after Greg. I wonder why they keep going at it?"
"Well, it's kinda long story. And a not very pretty story to bring up," Raiden replied back.
"Whatever, man. Look, you should get some sleep. I'll keep watch and let you guys know if anything is up." The older just grunted in agreement before closing the communications. Alex sighed as he went backwards and laid himself on the roof. "I can't get the feeling we aren't alone."
A loud boom of a rifle was heard off in the distance, startling everyone outside and inside.
"Got scared there, amigo?"
Alex quickly turned around and saw Miguel standing there in the shadows. "Just a little bit. That was a sniper shot. I know that thoom anywhere. I hear them all the time while fighting the Federation."
"The girls are uneasy. Oobleck asked them to why they want to be Huntresses. The only one who didn't answer was señorita Rose."
Alex chuckled at him. "I see you have a thing for her, no, mi amigo?" Alex joked around with the Gunslinger.
"Si. I hope that she likes me back. I mean shes pretty and quirky like Jaune's girlfriend, Pyrrha." Miguel points out just as another thoom echoed throughout Mount Glenn. This was followed by the ringing of Miguel's scroll ringing. The gunslinger answered it before turning to Alex.
"Greg called, saying he finally got some Apache. Those two shots were his."
Alex quirked an eyebrow at him when he heard that. "The Apache?" He then blew out a relived sigh and stretched his arms out. "Finally, that damn bítch is dead. She and Greg always had this rival thing. I don't really remember why. She's also a sniper. But I guess that fight is over now."
Miguel was confused at what the Airborne Sniper said, but soon widened his eyes when he saw Alex's left arm on fire. "Um, mi amigo, your arm."
Alex titled his head at him before he smelled smoke. He looked at his left arm and shouted in horror at the flaming arm. "Get it off me!"
Alex was running around flailing his arm around trying to snuff out the fire. He soon dropped on the ground and started rolling around on the ground in desperation. "Get it off me!"
"Alex! Stop! I think it's the Dust in your blood that's making it go on fire!" Miguel shouted at him.
"So how am I supposed to take it off?!" Alex shouted. Surprisingly enough, the flames weren't hurting him.
"Calm down! Just calm down!" Miguel told him, trying to ease him.
"How am I supposed to calm down if I'm on fuckjng fire?!" Alex screamed at him.
Miguel grabbed Alex by his other arm and stared straight into his eyes. "You're a sniper. You remain calm whenever you're behind the scope. You can remain calm even in the heat of battle. Now, calm yourself down. It should go away."
Alex looked at Miguel and slowly nodded. Adjusting his breathing, he hesitantly began to slow it down at first and started to breath in deeply. He closed his eyes as he breathed in more calm and slowly. Miguel saw that the fire was soon dying out right in front of his eyes. Soon, it was snuffed out and a white smoke was rising up from his arm. His clothing was burnt away, but the flesh was still clean looking, not a single hair singed.
Alex slowly opened his eyes and looked down at his arm. "It's gone," he muttered. He raised his left arm up to his face and looked at it. "I'm surprised it didn't hurt."
"Well, some say that when you infuse red Dust into you, you sort of take on the traits of a dragon. Iron scales to deflect fire. Iron lungs to breath fire. You maybe a dragon right now," Miguel told him.
"So what, I'm some sort of dragon now?" Alex asked the Gunslinger.
"Well, sort of. Not like what señorita Aria is. She can be a bit of a pain, but she's actually really nice when you get to know her," Miguel replied.
"I don't know why she's being so bitter to me. Did I do something?"
"Uh...Not exactly. Lets just say that she dislikes young hotheaded humans for a personal reason." Miguel explained before a loud explosion went off from the other side of the abandon city.
Alex looked in the direction the explosion came from. He instinctively reached for his pistol but Miguel shook his hand at him. "It's probably Greg's teammate blowing up a city block. I think it's nothing."
"Nothing you say?" Alex chuckled. "You should know that Leland is a very crazy guy. He strapped a paint bomb on Derrick once when the guy was walking towards his locker. The locker is still covered in that bright blue paint. It hurts the eyes sometimes."
"Alex? What was that explosion?" Raiden asked in the earpiece.
"Nothing, bro. Just Leland blowing something up. Nothing to worry about," Alex replied calmly.
"Well, we're on a mission looking for a hideout. That could alert them. Stay on you toes, alright?"
"I hear ya. Out."
Moments before explosion…
"Who's laughing now, bitch? Who's laughing now!" Greg shouted as he began to shot up the remains of the Apache with his XM8. He did this for a while until Leland walked up to him and grabbed his shoulder.
"You can stop now, Greg. She's dead. Besides her body is disappearing like the Grimm do." Leland pointed out, true to his word. The Apache's body evaporated into thin air, leaving her two weapons behind.
Just then the group heard a door creak, causing everyone to aim their weapons at the source. Standing in an open doorway was a small girl holding a teddy bear.
"Stand down, guys! It's only a little girl!" Carlita shouted as the Rebels and Team's GRVL and JNPR lowered their weapons slightly.
"Why is a chica doing here in Mount Glenn? No way can she be a survivor from the city!" One of the younger Rebels exclaimed, causing some of the others to agree. Greg frowned as he approached the girl with his XM8 slung on his backpack. The girl was small, about 4 ft 5, with doll like features. She had emerald eyes and silver hair that went down to her neck. Greg crouched down in front of her, holding out his hand.
"A little bit lost are we?" Greg asked softly, the little girl nodding in fear. Greg notices how scared she was and continued to talk to her. "I'm sorry about the loud noises. We had to remove some Grimm from the area. Don't be scared. No one is going to hurt you."
The girl reluctantly accepted Greg's hand and the young Marine lifted her onto his shoulder. Greg walked over to the others and handed the girl to Randi.
"See that she is okay and unharmed. I don't want to travel if we have her suffering from internal injuries. Batista, level this building to the ground. Lets leave a warning for the rest of the Terrors who coming looking for the Apache." Batista grins crazily as he pulls out a bunch of C-4 from his vest. The pyromaniac rushed inside and began placing C4 all over the place. On the fifth floor, he just finished placing the last C4 charge when he spotted something on the floor near the sniper's nest. He picked it up and looked at it before his eyes widened in fear. He rushed out of the building towards Greg who was about to pick up the girl again.
"Greg! Drop the girl! She's the Apache's partner!" Leland shouted before the building erupted into a ball of fire that could be seen for miles. Greg turned to Batista to retort when the girl jumped out of his arms and pulled out a pistol and a katana. The girl held her sword in front of her while aiming an MP-443 Grach at Greg.
"Alice will eliminate all Ghosts here in Remnant as well as Lance Corporal Gregory Anderson." The girl states robotically causing everyone to look at each other before looking back at Alice. Then everyone aimed their weapons at the girl, not taking kindly to the threat.
"Alice huh? Maybe we can talk this out instead of fighting?" Greg asked, to which the sound of the Grach's hammer being pulled back answered. Velvet, being recently distracted elsewhere, turned to the others and spotted Alice for the first time. There was a delayed action before Alice found herself disarmed and being held in a tight hug by the brunette rabbit Faunus.
"Oh my Monty! She's so tiny and adorable! Look at her, Greg! Isn't she so cute?" Velvet practically squealed, causing everyone's jaws to drop along with their weapons being lowered. Alice tried to squirm from Velvet's embrace, but to no anvil.
"Alice orders you to release her at once! She must eliminate Greg and the Ghosts for Rorke-sama! She cannot be hugged into submission!" Alice tried to state out loud but was confused by Velvet's affection and was blushing.
"Rorke isn't here, sweetie! You don't have to listen to that mean man anymore! In fact, you could become friends with Greg and I!" This caused Greg to look at Velvet in shock.
"Oh no! No no no no no! We are not taking her with us..." Greg started off, relieving Alice and making Velvet frown. However his face changed into a grin as he continued. "Not until we get her some new clothes and lock up the weapons she has."
"No! Alice doesn't want to be here! Alice wants to go back to Rorke-sama! Release Alice at once!" Alice began a temper tantrum as Velvet happily walked over to Randi and Carlita to discuss her new clothes. Gre smiled at the sight, picking up the weapons laying on the ground. Leland began to snicker as he talked to his team leader.
"Looks like another addition to our misfit family, eh?"
"Pretty much, Batista. Pretty much."
"So, Greg. Shouldn't we move since the explosion would clearly attract negative attention?" Batista asked as the two dumped the weapons into the truck bed. The Marine nodded before turning to the rest of the group.
"Alright. Since the explosion was very loud and not very discreet, we have to regroup with Teams RWBY and RADR soon. We can't allow the White Fang or Los Tejanos to find us. We leave in five. Get ready for it." Greg announced causing the people to scramble around, packing up their things and loading up vehicles and horses.
Moments later, the group moved out with Port thrown into the truck bed again along with Alice, who was tied up for safety reasons. Greg and Velvet took lead as the convoy moved towards the other's location. Unknown to the group, dark figures trailed them everywhere, watching them with their red glowing eyes.
Back with RADR and RWBY…
Raiden was trying to get some sleep as his back was against a wall. His Ghost mask was over his eyes covering them. But he couldn't bring himself to slumber. He then felt something moving beside him. He lifted his mask up and saw it was Yang leaning on him. "You can't sleep?" Yang asked him.
"Sorta. Just can't find a comfortable position," Raiden replied as he straightened himself out.
"Perhaps I can assist in that," Yang told him.
"Perhaps you can," Raiden said along with a chuckle.
Miguel climbs back down to the others and sits near the fire while the girls were resting. He turns to Raiden and Yang, holding out his scroll to the Ghost leader.
"Greg sent me this awhile ago. Figure you should know about this."Miguel stated, showing Raiden a picture of Greg kneeling next to the Apache's headless body. There was a caption below the photo that said, "The Apache is confirmed KIAed. Beat that $1,000,000 High Valued Individual kill, Ghosts! -Lance Corporal Greg Pineda, USMC Force Recon, 1st Marine Division". "Seriously though. Who is the Apache and why did she have a million dollar bounty on her head? Also what was the rivalry between her and my twin?"
"I don't think this is a place to discuss such things. It'll bring up too many memories... Painful ones. And that'll draw more Grimm into the area. You don't mind if we tell you another day?" Raiden replied to Miguel.
"Yes, I don't wanna hear the time she almost killed Alex when a round went through his stomach." Rick got up from his spot and looked at the Gunslinger. "Whoever is in the way of her target, she'll kill. Alex is lucky he's still alive."
"Painful memories? I'm surprised you aren't celebrating Greg's kill though. After all, we did spend most of our field trip in Forever Falls trying to corner her and she still got away." Blake points out, waking up from her sleep.
Rick nodded at his girlfriend as he held hands with her. "I know we should be. But this was back on Earth. She killed countless officers of our military. Many of those officers were our friends. And what I just said earlier, Alex was almost a mark of hers. But Blake is right, we should be happy her run is over. Now we can relax without her on our asses."
"Though I wonder how she screwed up to allow herself to give away her position. I mean why did she show up now when she could have stayed hidden like she always does?" Yang points out causing the three Ghosts to think deeply about this thought.
Moments later...
Alex was still up as he was sitting on the edge of the building. His hand was outstretched in front of his face. He was concentrating hard. He wanted to try to control this, "powers" of his, by making a small fire in his hand. "C'mon. C'mon," he grunted as he started to sweat from it.
It was pain for him.
Raiden was now up with his M4A1 in hand. He was giving orders to his teammates as the girls were still asleep a bit while Ruby was on watch. "Alright, heads up! Team GRVL and JNPR is coming here! They're rendezvousing with us! Make sure the perimeter is secure prior to arrival!"
"On it!" Rick and Derrick replied back together as they grabbed their gear and got to the edge of the opening of the room they were in and attached cables to the sides. They made sure they were secure and started to rappel on down to the street.
Alex heard the news without needing to be contacted by Raiden. He quickly got up and ran over to his striped down sniper and began to piece it back together quickly yet caringly. He fumbled to himself as he was attaching the barrel with the component of the body. "This is good timing."
The Convoy nearing RADR and RWBY's position…
One of the Elder Rebels notices the convoy's hidden followers and whispers to a younger Rebel who was also on horseback.
"We have company. Could be Terrors." The younger Rebel nodded and passed this to the others quietly. They didn't want to alert their stalkers so they kept their talking to near silence as they traveled. The plan was to wait until they were halfway to the other Hunter group before Carlos on the .50 Cal would open fire on their stalkers.
However before they could reach the halfway point, disaster stuck. Lopez was tackled off his horse and disembowelled by a Terror Wolf, the elder leader screaming in pain and horror. Another elder was taken down when a third had his head squashed between two clawed hands. The younger Rebels panicked and began to steer the convoy out of danger. Teams GRVL and JNPR lead the way, desperate to reach safety for the other's sake. Terror Wolves chased after them, purposely killing off the elders along the way. Carlos, the Machine Gunner, let open with the Fifty Cal, starting to tear their chasers apart.
The four heard screaming and quickly went into position. "Looks like they made contact! Let's welcome the invited in!" Raiden shouted as he got his assault rifle ready.
Alex slid over to the edge of the building and laid down on his stomach as he took aim in the direction of the havoc that was happening. "I got them in my sights!"
Alex was starting to breathe more slowly as he observed the situation that's going on. He gritted his teeth when he saw the Terror Swarm. "We got company! Let's make a welcoming invitation for them!" Alex shouted before he squeezed on his trigger, letting a round fly out.
Due to the horses being scared senseless, many of the remaining horse riders were thrown off as the animals fled the area. The motorcyclists made it to the defensive area while the horseless riders began to run. Many of the remaining elders were drastically decreased as more and more Terror Wolves ripped them to sheds. Suddenly a Terror Wolf tackled Juan and raised its claws high. A blast of fire from the Dust AK-47 threw the beast backwards, revealing Juan holding the smoking weapon. He got back to his feet and managed to make to safety with the rest of the younger Rebels. Meanwhile Carlos was reloading while Port used his Blunder Axe to defend him and Alice.
Meanwhile, Rick and Derrick were placing charges around critical points of the abandoned city. Derrick got his com link on. "Greg! If you could get them into the center square, we could catch them off guard! Me and Rick set up charges to ambush them!"
Derrick nodded at him while he muttered something into the com link. "Miguel! Go help your brother and friends! They're in big trouble!" Derrick shouted, his voice echoing through the blocks of the city.
"Got it! On my way!" Miguel shouted back and started running towards the chaos.
Raiden sighed as he attached his own cable to the side. "I'm heading down to help out! Make sure no one will break through!"
"Being bait while these guys need us!? I'm busy keeping these monsters off the younger generator of rebels! These things are purposely killing the older rebels! Send Miguel down here now to help out his allies!" Greg shouted, firing at the Terror Wolves. The beasts were down to the last three elders and closed in on them. One of them made it to the wall but suddenly the other two accidently set off an explosive charge. The explosion annihilated the two while sending a shovel straight at the last elder. Its shovel blade pierced through the elder's back and pinned his dead body to the wall. Upon this, the Terror Wolves retreated into the night leaving a massacre of the elder leaders of the Rebels.
Alex slowly pried his eyes away from the scope of his rifle and his face was filled with pure dread and horror. He just watched an entire small group of rebels get slaughtered in a matter of mere moments. And he tried his best to help. But that didn't matter. No matter how many bullets he fired into those monsters, they weren't enough. Something burned inside him. Something was growling within him. And it was forcing it's way to get out. He wanted those vermin to pay. And they'll all burn for their actions.
The Technical arrived into the base and Carlos slumped to the floor of the truck bed exhausted. Most of the rebels were tried and dying for sleep now while others wanted to mourn the fallen elders. A perimeter was set up and watch duty schedules were created. Finally most of the people fell asleep once they laid down in a sleeping bag or a cot. Tomorrow they would see the full extent of the damage the Terror Wolves extracted on them.
The members of RADR didn't know what to say for the fallen Elders of the rebels. The men were young. They needed leadership. And the Elders were the source of that. Now, it seems like they are now wondering around aimlessly.
For respect, the four members of RADR helped those who wanted to mourn the deaths of the Elders by helping them make graves for them.
Rick could to help but vomit when he saw one of the Elders with his insides ripped out an his face clawed apart. The rebels knew why he did so, so they forgave him.
Slowly lowering each of any of the Elders they could retrieve, they buried them alongside each other.
[English translation from Korean]
"Neomu manh-eun jug-eum," [So much death] Rick muttered as he clenched his stomach.
"Ulineun neomu manh-eun, lig-eul suhaeng hal su issseubnida," [We can only do so much, Rick] Raiden answered back to him.
"Geuleona geudeul-eun uliga jeojang han su salm-ieossda!" [But they were lives we could've saved!] Rick shouted back in anger. His fists were clenched as his teeth gritted. "Jigeum-i salamdeul-eun gotong-eulhaeyahabnida. salanghaneun salam-eul ilhgo seulpeo. Chingu ... Gajog..." [Now these people have to suffer. Mourn in losing loved ones. Friends... Family...]
Raiden placed a hand on his shoulder and sighed. "Naneun geudeul-ui gotong-eul algoissda. Uli moduneun anhseubnida. Geuligo geudeul-eun jasin-ui bogsuleulhaeyahabnida. Hajiman jigeum, ulineun geudeul-ii sungan gwageoleul eod-eul doum-idoebnida. Geudeul-eun jigeum pil-yolohaneun modeun jiwon-i pil-yohabnida." [I know their pain. We all do. And they'll have their vengeance. But now, we help them get past this moment. They need all the support they need right now.]
Rick nodded as he tried to calm himself down. He was experiencing similar pain to them. Before joining the Ghosts, he befriended many of the officers in his squad of the 101st Screaming Eagles Airborne division. But he soon lost them in battle. He wanted the rebels to find their peace, even though he could barely contain his right now. "Oleunjjog ... geudeul-i pyeonhi swisibsio. Geudeul-eun yeong-wonhi manh-eun salamdeul-ui saengmyeong-eul byeongyeonghago geudeul-i gyeolko ij-ji anh-eul geos-ilaneun jeom-eul han geos-eul algo." [Right... Let them rest in peace. knowing that they have forever changed the lives of many and that they will never be forgotten.]
"Greg. I hate to disturb you, but there are a couple of Elders that are not among the dead. I fear that the Terror Swarm has them instead." Carlita walked up to the Marine, who threw the shovel down and walked over to the Technical. He picked up his XM8 and grabbed a couple of Batista's Big Boys, much to the protest of the pyromaniac. Greg walked over to the motorcycle and started it up. Velvet rushed over and talked to him.
"Greg, you can't be going out there alone! It's dark and thats how the Terror Wolves picked the Elders off." This caused Greg to sigh before he looked at his girlfriend.
"I can't go after them now, but I sure as heck can become a thorn to their side. I'm going to find their cave and blow it sky high. But not tonight." Greg placed the Big Boys in the bike's saddle bag and drove it to a different area so no one could take it by mistake.
Unknown to Greg, surprisingly, Alex was nearby when he heard Greg talking to Velvet about doing his feat. His orange eyes now flared when they showed rage burning inside him. Even when he had his pale blue eyes, people knew that Alex was angry when they looked into his eyes. Something burned within him. It grew hotter with each passing moment that went on. He wanted to help. And he'll do so by joining him.
Taking in a deep breath, the Airborne Sniper walked up to Greg and nudged him softly to get his attention. He knew that he was under a lot of pressure and stress, so he wanted to ease in. "Greg, can I have a word with you in private? Sniper to sniper?"
Greg looked around before turning to the Airborne Sniper.
"We can talk later. Right now, we all need some rest and besides, we have other matters to deal with." Greg replied, walking back to his team mates and the tied up Alice, leaving Alex alone.
Alex sighed to himself as he turned around to walk back to his team. 'I want to help. The Terrors will regret what they have done. They made them watch their Elders die... I'm gonna have them watch each other burn to hell.'
The next morning...
One of the Rebels woke up from his sleep and got off his cot. He had the need to go so he made sure to inform the watch before stepping outside and into the street. He leaned his weapon against the wall and then unzipped his fly. The Rebel relieved himself, a streaming arch of urine striking the wall. Once he zipped up his fly and grabbed his weapon, he was almost home free when he spotted something. Down the street were two White Fang soldiers talking about the commotion last night. Interested by this, the Tejano Rebel crouched behind some nearby rubble and listened to their conversation.
"So what was with all that fighting last night? I couldn't get much sleep with the explosions and gunfire as well as the screams of pain."
"Terrors attacking a Tejano Rebel group last night. Killed off their elders with no difficulty really. However they have been a nuisance to both our sides and the enemy. I wish we could get rid of them instead of letting them attack our patrols."
"Well ever since the Rebels moved into the area, the Terrors have been attacking them instead. We should be thankful for that relief."
The Rebel remained silent as they passed by him. He let out a quiet sigh of relief before continuing to follow the two WF soldiers. Suddenly he heard a yap of a Corgi behind him and dove to the ground as the two WF soldiers turned around. They stood there for a moment before they shrugged and continued forward. The Rebel looked over his shoulder and glared at Ruby and Zwei, the girl looking apologetic. The boy motioned the girl to stick close, since he couldn't speak at all.
The two trailed after the WF but suddenly the ground gave away under their feet. The young Rebel let out a yelp as he fell in while Ruby dropped her Crescent Rose and clinged to a piece of rubble. Zwei looked at Ruby as she told him to go get help. He ran off back to the others just as Ruby lost her grip and fell in.
At the same time this had all occurred, Alex had been observing it from his post on the rooftop. When the two teens disappeared from view, he tried to follow them, climbing down the staircase. Alex was already down on street level when he heard something loud. He felt the ground rumble slightly as he set feet down. "Shit, that ain't good."
He then saw Zwei running towards him and started jumping on him whining. "What's wrong, Zwei?" He asked the Corgi.
The Corgi just whined as he started running up the steps of the building. "Hey, come back here!"
One of the Tejano rebels rushed into the room everyone was sleeping in and started to shout.
"Wake up, amigos! Rico and Senorita Rose is missing!" This sudden announcement caused everyone to jump to their feet and storm out of the building with weapons at the ready. Miguel stormed out of his private area with QuickDraw in hand and a look of fury on his face. It was clear that he wasn't too happy about one of his men disappearing along with Ruby.
"Cortez! Set up a recon patrol around the area! Make sure that there aren't any hostiles nearby! Dominguez! Tell me what happened!" Miguel demanded as Cortez grabbed a few Tejano Rebels and moved beyond the wire.
"Hey! Don't leave us out of this!"
Everyone looked to see RADR already locked and loaded with their gear ready. "Ruby's in trouble? Then I guess we're coming in to clean up her mess," Raiden said as he pulled the bolt of his assault rifle.
"Yeah," Derrick said as he pumped his shotgun. "We ain't getting left outta this."
One of the Tejano Rebels points at Derrick and tells his friends something in Spanish, earning a laugh from the Spanish speakers. Greg and Miguel snickered at this, although the later stopped and looked serious again quickly.
Derrick gritted his teeth behind his mouth but Raiden placed a hand on his chest. "Not now... This isn't the time, man."
"Yeah, we got some people to save," Alex told him as he punched his fists together.
"Sorry about that, gringo, but we couldn't help it. Besides it seems like you're compensating for something if you're using a shotgun." The rebel replied earning a couple of snickers from the others. Miguel frown at this and shook his head.
"Look. We have new things to do and I want them done now. Team RWBY and the Ghosts. Look for any evidence of where Rico and Ruby may have ended up. Oobleck will be with you. Team GRVL. Get some answers out of Alice. She may know something we don't. Team JNPR. Go with Pablo's team and scout out a new defensive position we can hold up in. Port. Just stay here and don't do anything stupid." Miguel ordered, setting things into motion. Moments later in the interrogation room, screams of laughter and begging could be heard outside the door. Inside, Alice was tied up around her arms, hands and legs, laughing so hard as Velvet and Randi tickled her feet to extract information.
Rick could sense that Alex was flaring. Even heat was emitting from the Airborne Sniper as his fists were clenched. "Alex, it's gonna be okay. Look, we're gonna find them," Rick told him.
Alex snapped his head towards Rick. His eyes were now burning brightly as he looked at him. "Rick, innocent lives are at risk. We have to get to them. Plus, I want to save Miguel's rose before any of her petals are plucked off. Now shut up and let's get going!"
"Yesh! Okay! Calm down, Natsu!" Rick replied. He remembered watching an anime when he was a kid and saw something that seemed awesome to him. And Alex was acting like the guy with pink hair and reckless grin.
"Alic-Ha ha ha! Alice will never- Ha ha! Submit to your- Ha ha ha! Torture!" Alice shouted between laughs, her face red and hurting from laughing so hard. Velvet was giggling at this while she and Randi used feathers to tickle the girl's tiny feet.
"Oh well then. We won't stop tickling then until you become a good girl and answer our questions." Velvet replied innocently, increasing the rate which she tickled Alice's left foot. Alice, only laughed harder before finally giving in.
"Alright! Stop it please! Alice will confess everything she knows! Please stop this cruel torment!" Velvet and Randi grinned and left the poor ex-Federation assassin's feet alone. Greg stepped into the room with a scroll in hand. On the screen was a video feed which somehow managed to connect between Remnant and Earth. The man on it however was known other than a bloodied and tied up Rorke.
"Guys, turn your scrolls to frequency five. You will not believe what is happening on Earth. I don't even know how this footage is getting through!?" Greg spoke excitedly on his comms while showing Alice the live feed footage of Rorke's execution by USMC Force Recon Team One, Greg's former team before becoming a Ghost.
RADR decided to hold themselves up in a warehouse and made sure the cost was clear before they pulled out their Scrolls. Their eyes widened in almost disbelief as they saw something they never thought they'd see ever in their lives.
"Guys, when we get back, drinks are on me," Raiden said as he looked closely at his screen.
"Today! We cheer! For too long have we been under attack by the Federation! But no longer! No longer! Today, we rejoice! We are taking the fight to them now! On their homeland! Make them know how hard it is! They made our soul be covered in our blood! Now they know what it's like. And today, we have captured someone who has been taken by the Federation! Rorke! Former leader of the Ghosts, turned his back on his suffering country! But no longer!" A familiar figure was speaking. None other than Hesh Walker himself speaking while Rorke was at gunpoint by the Marine team.
Hesh looked into the screen and noticed five different faces of the Ghosts and the Force Recon Marine.
"Well looks like you guys aren't dead after all. Looks like all Ghosts are accounted for except Nate, Charlie, and Logan. Anyway, I got some news for you guys. Greg, the Ghost and USMC Higher Ranks held a conference recently and due to your acts of bravery and courage under fire, saving your platoon members by dragging them to safety at the Battle of Fort San Monica, you were posthumously awarded the rank of Captain in honor of you and your father as well as receiving the Congressional Medal of Honor. Seeing as you're still alive, it will be changed to make it correctly stated that all of you were MIA instead. Raiden, you and your boys are awarded Silver Stars for your risk taking mission behind enemy lines and all been ranked up with Raiden becoming a First Lieutenant and the rest of your men becoming First Sergeants. And by the way, Logan was rescued before Rorke could twist him. Anyway, since you're all gathered around, I'm giving Rorke one last chance to speak to someone named Alice. Apparently he wants to give her some new advice on finding a new home and career."
Raiden almost dropped his Scroll when he heard Hesh say that. Him? A First Lieutenant? And his friends? First Sergeants? Plus, Logan wasn't turned when they found him. The Walker brothers were once again reunited. Raiden just have Hesh a salute in respect for his new rank that he was given. "It's a honor, Hesh. I'll wear and show my rank proud," Raiden said to him.
Hesh nodded with a small smile on his face. "Now, where's this Alice of yours, Rorke?" Hesh demanded to the Ghost Killer.
"Shes right here, Hesh. We just finished getting her to comply to give up some info about her mission. Who knew she was a deadly assassin with a weakness of feathers touching her feet. Oh and by the way, I killed the Apache yesterday so don't worry about that bi- I mean that sniper anymore." Greg added before turning his scroll to Alice. The girl looked at the beaten up Ghost Killer and started to tear up.
"Rorke-sama..."
"Alice, I know you miss me and I wanted to say I'm sorry. I should have treated you better than before. Truthfully you were like a daughter to me, always looking up to me, asking me questions about things you weren't quite sure about. I know you will miss that, but you must understand this. You are now a free person. The Federation no longer owns you. Go start a new life, Alice."
"But Rorke-sama-"
"Alice, just let go of it. I know this sounds strange coming from me, but your new orders are to start over your life. Make some friends like the bunny girl or the big chested brunette or even with Captain Anderson."
"Its Pineda now." Greg interjected.
"Shut up, Leatherneck. I love you, Alice and I'm sorry." Rorke finished, Hesh aiming his M9A1 at the the back of Rorke's head while the Marine Captain of Force Recon Team One aimed his new .45 Combat Pistol as well. Greg moved the scroll out of Alice's sight just before the two pistols fired.
While it was a moment to celebrate, it was also a time of silence and respect. The U.S wasn't going to turn into the Federation. Even if Rorke was the enemy, he was a hero for a long time to the United States. So the soldiers who attended the execution, in hospitals, or the ones in Remnant, they bowed their heads in silence and respect.
"Rorke-ui jug-eum..." [Rorke's dead...] Rick mumbled to himself.
"After all these years, he's gone now... Forever... How many Ghosts has he taken already?" Derrick mentioned to his team.
"Far too many to count already, man. Far too many," Alex whimpered back.
"That doesn't matter... That's in the past now. While Rorke was our enemy, he is to be respected, even in his death. We're not the Federation here," Raiden whispered to them. He had his mask off with it in both hands as his head was bowed.
But what shook the Ghosts, Rebels, pretty much everyone who could hear it, was Alice's screeching sobs.
Hesh looked at Greg, wiping off Rorke's brain matter from the screen.
"Captain Pineda, from now on you're in charge of the Ghosts on your end. I don't care if you have left the Ghosts, which I can see you did. I need someone to keep them in check and to lead them. Make me proud, Greg, and I'm glad you guys did survive. We'll find a way to bring you boys home." Greg frowned at this and decided to do something that threw off the Ghosts.
"With all due respect, Hesh, but Remnant is my home. I'll allow the others to go home if they want to. However I'm staying behind. I've found the rest of my family, made a lot of friends here, and have a person who loves me as much as I love her. So sorry, Hesh, but I'm staying." Greg replied before putting down his scroll to comfort the crying Alice with Velvet.
Hesh nodded at Greg's decision for wanting to stay. You can't force a soldier what to do, especially a Marine.
The Ghost then looked at Raiden who was pondering. "First Lieutenant?" Hesh said. This brought Raiden out of his trance and paid attention to his screen. "Captain Pineda is wanting to stay... Wherever you guys are. I'm asking you if you and any of your boys want to go home."
Raiden was silent for a moment. He loved his country, his father, and Earth. But he has found more in Remnant now. He had found new found friends that'll last a lifetime thanks to this. And maybe a fiery blonde to spend his life with. Looking at his teammates, they all nodded with the same looks. "Hesh, I ain't going. Neither of us. As much as we love the U.S, we want to stay here. This is where we get to make a change in our lives. Some of us have even found love when we thought we couldn't. Remnant is our new home now. And we're staying here."
"I can respect that, but we may need you four guys for the final push. If we manage to get a portal to open connecting Earth to you guys, I really wish you would fight alongside us for the final push. This Hesh signing off." The scrolls went static before the Ghosts and the newly promoted Marine Captain closed them. Team RADR turned to Greg and started to salute him.
"What are your orders for us, sir? We fall under your command now, Captain, and don't you deny it. Even if you aren't a Ghost anymore, you're still our friend and an excellent leader. We trust your judgement and so does Hesh." Raiden stated, everyone on Team RADR agreeing with their squad leader. Greg couldn't help but smile at the cheekiness of the Ghosts. The same smile Captain Deuce Anderson smiled when he admired his subordinates and fellow brothers-in-arms.
"Raider Two-Five, you are to stick with the rest of Team RWBY and Miguel on their mission to rescue Ruby Rose and a Tejano Rebel named Rico Esparza. Requip your weapons for Close Quarter Combat and Urban Firefights. I want daily updates on every single thing you find thats connected to Ruby, Rico, or even both. Now move." Greg ordered, the new responsibility feeling somewhat natural to him. His father always told him that he would not always be a follower but a leader like him, Hesh, or even Raiden. Team RADR rushes out the door to catch up with Team RWBY and Professor Oobleck. This left Greg left with his team and Alice who was crying into Velvet's shoulder as the rabbit Faunus gave her a hug.
So what is up, guys? Marinerecon here with chapter six of GOR Season Two. Just want to let you guys know that there is a Halloween Special of GOR coming up soon so be on the lookout for it. Also we have OCs that belong to other people. Alice belongs to Enzero501 and Aria the Dragon Faunus goes to ZirconiaEmber. Also I will write a one-shot on what actions Greg Pineda did that made the Marines believe that he earned the Medal of Honor later. Anyway I hoped you enjoyed and I'll see you in the next one. And, as usual, TheAssassin'sMentor is still the main author. We just published Season Two under my account. Marinerecon out.