Chapter 21: Everything wrong, part 5
AN: I didn't realize until this chapter that there's a real life XM series weapons. The ones in this fic are completely unrelated.
[Delta-Four, Patch]
Reassigned? Yes reassigned, I was happy that Lt's wrath was no longer focused on me and we were getting back into the action but….there is five of us and this damn car is cramped! Like really how hard would it be to get a different car? I could feel myself being pressed into the door by Leo on my right who smelled like old military equipment which I guess he sort of is.
Bitching aside, this isn't a joke anymore. No half assing it or lagging behind. This was the real deal. I doubt any of the missions we had ever been on together would even come close to the literal shit storm we were about to go into.
Erwin wouldn't be alone; no he would have an army of his best with him. His most experienced men, maybe even that red haired guy and that very VERY sexy girl with the bow. Hey when you've seen enough crap that your mind registers it just another normal day you got to learn to forget the finer details and focus on the beauty of things, and that girl possessed a lot of 'beauty'. Make up your mind Four are you agitated or are you in puppy love?
The ride was quiet only adding to the thick atmosphere. Right now I found myself wishing for one of Three's stupid pervert remarks so he and Two could slap hands and proceed to piss everyone off. Sadly no perverted remark was made and no slapping of the hands.
It was bone rattling cold in Vale today, something the forecast predicted would resume all week. Our breaths exhaled clouds of visible air.
I could remember the first time I felt like this, agitated, my nerves a wreck, feeling like I was about to walk off a cliff. It was right after basic back when I was still in the Army. A couple hundred fresh faces with haircuts to match, just a bunch of boots who possessed a misguided notion pride. A couple hundred fresh faces no longer fresh so more rotting in the unforgiving dirt of Ruben fields. What a way to go.
[Delta-Four, Trainee graduation]
"When I first laid eyes on your sorry lot I could see a great many things. Wasted energy. Wasted potential. Sad waste of oxygen. Now….." Master sergeant Anthony Cassada trailed off looking through his ranks "I see only soldiers before me" he said "You're soldiers; your duty is no longer to yourself. Your will is no longer your own. Your body is no longer yours. You serve every citizen of every Vale with a will and body of steal." He finished, saluting us
My heart picked up pace and my chest puffed out a bit more as his words washed through me. Soldiers. That's what we were. Not orphanage kids in old dress clothes. Others like me could be seen with fire in their eyes roused from our ex torturer's speech. Pvt. Snow. I had to restrain a giddy smile at how good that sounded.
"Haji, riflemen" Cassada's role call brought me to attention "Laxton, riflemen. Watkins, assistant automatic riflemen. Snow, Riflemen." Anything after my name didn't matter. Wasn't the most glorified position in the Army but it wasn't complicated either.
"Return to your barracks soldiers" It was weird to hear him not call us anything belittling or something that is a synonym of 'shit'. That night I doubt any of us got a lick of sleep with the adrenaline rushing through our veins. Something that we would soon regret.
I smirked as I put my feet through the cracks of the bunk bed above me and slowly raising it in the air. When it was as high as my feet could reach I pulled my feet away all at once and dropped a disorientated Jayden who awoke with a start. I could hear his muttered curses and growls before a head poked over the side. "Why thank you Julia"
"Hey I'm saving you money that you would have to use to buy an alarm clock" I mocked hurt "I try and do something nice and you're still an asshole"
"Oh I'm so sorry; I didn't know you were undergoing such a selfless task. Let me say it with more sincerity this time. Go fuck yourself Julia"
"Bad form Doctor. Watkins oops I mean 'lugs around ammo. Watkins'"
He groaned as he hopped off his bunk "Dust don't remind me" it was weird seeing my wimpy friend with muscles and abs. It was kinda like seeing a guy with boobs…..well maybe not. It wasn't uncommon for us to wrestle back when were in school but it was always me who started it and it was always me who ended it. Now I doubt I could take him anymore. "I must be doing pretty well if I've even got lesbians checking me out"
"Congratulations I'm now one-hundred and fifty percent lesbian" We both laughed loudly much to the annoyance of the others sharing the bunkhouse with us.
"Hey Julia do you think y-"
"Up! UP! UP! On your feet!" yelled the Staff sergeant or Cassada's third ball as we called him. "It's your lucky day you shits, from boiler right into the frying pan" he laughed cruelly "Prepare to pop your combat cherries ladies!"
[Delta-Four, Patch]
We did more than pop our cherries. Our training regimen was split into two groups and from what I heard the other half fared worse than we did. Ten soldiers from our company survived. Me obviously and the other nine had been sent away the day before due to their injuries. The other company was completely wiped out.
It was an embarrassment to the Vale military as a whole. We were almost completely beaten down by a handful of Fang long with a few rough huntsman and their hijacked machines. In the end we had to resort to using the Rammerlock gun. What a mess we made.
"Well I guess it's only proper to end it with a bang" declared Leo, gaining everyone's attention "I've decided not to re-enlist after my enlistment ends. This is my last rodeo"
"Wh-hy?" I asked before anyone else
He heaved a sigh "I've given a lot for this kingdom including my youth. I think it's high time I spend a bit more time with my family. Don't look at me like that you brats; you're going to get me all chocked up"
"Good for you man" Three clasped him on the shoulder "As long as you've been in you deserve a peaceful retirement, how long have you been in anyway?"
"How old are you?"
"25?" said Three hesitantly
He smirked "Since before you were born"
"Holy shit!" exclaimed Two "Yeah let's get you out of here before you go senile and start thinking we are White Fang"
"You better not start calling The Old Man after he goes "From the lack of surprise Lt exhibited I'm sure he's known about this for a while. I'm sure it must be the hardest for him seeing his closest from who he had known for decades leave. "I can't believe you're going to dump all of them on me."
"I think you'll manage…..old man" He laughed at his own joke by himself while lighting a cigarette.
"That was cheesy" I deadpanned calling him out on it.
It went on like this for the rest of the ride making the whole thing a lot less stressful. Brothers in arms picking fun at each other and saying their goodbyes. Leo had been a sort of a mentor to me back when I joined the Headhunters five years ago teaching me the ropes and helping me cope with losing my only family at Ruben Field, well he didn't know the second one and I would never admit to it. Leo was sorta of the team's easygoing best friend dad while Lt played the strict no going out to parties and having fun dad. Now that's not to say that Leo hasn't given us his fair share of lectures but his were definitely much easier to sit through.
The moment ended just as soon as soon as it began with us pulling into our temporary residence with the super comfy beds that I had yet to enjoy to their full extent. Sometimes I feel that the military does this on purpose, dangles a piece of meat infront of you and then snatches it away when you go to grab it.
Our time here no matter how short could actually be called….fun. The weird part was that for a while I started to believe that we actually were a vacationing family. From the perverted informant snipers to the little girl in red who invites strangers in her home so she can rap- I mean 'tickle' them this whole escapade has been fun, lots of fun.
Entering our room the Lt instructed us only to take what we need that we would be properly armed after we left and that the other operators in the area would be sent to get rid of everything. Wasn't much for me that fitted into the category of 'need' as I didn't own a single piece of property. This left me with a little time to for some very overdue exploring. The wonderfully soft beds set on the left wall just begging me to fall into their blissful trap. They weren't the only ones; the Jacuzzi beckoned me over to take a dip into its relaxing trap. Everything in this room was out to get me.
I excused myself from the tempting room to go outside in the freezing cold. Very smart aren't I? I think I was actually hoping for Ruby to show up. I wanted to say goodbye to the little red ball of energy, she was a nuisance but at the same time she did a tremendously great job at cheering you up. I hope she makes it into Beacon as she told me she wanted to on the bus; she would make a great huntress.
'A huntress did what she believed was right. A soldier did as she was told' I thought bitterly. I was a stark contrast to what I was when I first enlisted. Being a soldier use to mean a lot to me, the glory, the pride and most of that warm fuzzy feeling that you get when people congratulate you and give you their thanks. Years had passed though and I had seen the corruption within our own. The underhanded deals committed by officers and those who took sick satisfaction at their own skill every time they killed…
I'm not sure when it happened; maybe after Ruben or during my Headhunter training or maybe it was I like that all along. Regardless of when it happened I was a monster. The pleasure I feel every time I pull the trigger or when I get close enough to carve into my enemy. I could understand why Fletcher thought of me as a murderer, I was. Does it make it right just because it's the enemy?
'Enemy?' They were just misguided faunus who had been pushed too far, I'm sure we could even help a lot of them by just sitting down and talking to them. Most of them weren't evil or anything of the like they had just simply had enough. Maybe….
A grim smile engraved itself on my lips. Am I really taking up for the White Fang? Julia the girl who's glad they are around so she has something to shoot at. Dust, what am I even thinking? What am I a faunusitarian? I think that's enough self-pity for one day.
"Want a smoke?" Leo's voice came from behind me. I turned to the old man who wore a worried expression on his aged face.
"I don't smoke"
"Neither did I" he said running a hand through his grey hair "Look kid I don't know what's going through that thick skull of yours but I do know your type, I've seen it a hundred times."
"Care to clarify?"
"You're a section eight just waiting to happen. You aren't cut out for this as much as you think you are. At first it'll seem like you can just switch off and just become numb to it all but every time you get a moment to be left to your thoughts it'll hit you. Every second you aren't fighting you'll be killing yourself on the inside. Listen to me. Get out of this while you still can"
"Dramatic much?" I laughed. I quickly stopped as I seen hurt wash over his face "Thank you for concern but it isn't needed"
"Just think about it, ok?"
"Ok?"
He made to walk away but stopped himself a retch into his pocket. My hand moved on its own to catch the 'death sticks'. "You'll need them"
[Later]
"This is it, this mission can either make or break Vale" finished Jacinto on the comms "Leave no room for errors" I feel officers have a knack for motivating speeches before they sent you straight into death.
The Stealth Hawk felt like an old friend whenever I rode in one. It flew smooth enough that most of the time you couldn't even tell you were flying. Twenty men could fit into the graceful craft and today we were making sure we got our moneys worth. All seats were occupied as we shared the back with every Headhunter team part of Saber Company minus Alpha.
I had started using the XM-13 sniper rifle after my slapping match with the Beowulf so long ago had ended the use of my M24. Something I was still sour about but the military had almost full converted to the XM series so getting another was out of the question. The XM -13 was pretty much a XM-10 with a longer barrel and a bigger bullet.
The guy across from me was giving me the stink eye for some reason only known to him. It was very unprofessional to piss of someone with a gun who you'd be spending a lot of time with. Ignoring him I looked down at myself, it felt good to be back in uniform. The familiar weight of my machete strapped to my hip and the light armor that instilled fear into any that beholded it. The feeling was coming back, the thing in my mind telling me that I was invincible.
"Get ready to disembark!" feelings gone. The craft touched down on the sand, the side doors opening for its occupants to get out.
The sand made a crunching noise as my boot sank into it, the sun felt hot on my back a contrast to the chilly air. The beach was beautiful even during this time of the year. The pure white sand complimented the green forest well. If one looked closely they could see animal imprints in the sand and footprints of humanoid origin.
The Marines according to Jacinto were two hundred yards away from our position blocking off any escape on land or to finish our job if we all meet an untimely demise.
We crept through the deep brush keeping to the shadows, not like that helped much when your enemy could see in the dark. I patted the Headhunter's shoulder in front of me signaling him to move forward as we played 'leap frog'. I covered him until the same gesture was made to me and I advanced repeating this action over and over.
As older style buildings came into view my squad broke off from the main unit to scout ahead and flank left. The mansion was actually visible now over the weed infested houses putting everyone on their toes, where were the sentries?
I leaned into a slightly agape door swinging around it as I entered with Five behind me clearing the right side. Nothing but dust and long forgotten possessions. The wood floors decayed just like its overhead counterpart. A large pile of curtains and other sheets were thrown into a pile in the corner of the room. This place was in desperate need of room service. I peered through the yellow stained window at the mansion that was no farther than seventy yards. Barley visible were what looked like stone creatures perched on the sides giving it a 'dark age' look.
Movement at the corner of my eye had me spinning around to take aim at the rocking chair that had been caught by the draft. My heart raced as I watched it slowly go back and forth. The floor boards groaned around the hallway corner and stopping as if they feared being caught.
"Five?" I whispered. No answer "Five?" I said once again but a bit louder but still no answer. My own feet made caused the floor to squeak as I crept down the hallway. My heart was ready to give out when I turned the corner only to witness an open door a few feet away from me slightly open more. Mother fucking drafts. I pulled the door against the wall so I could see farther inside. Empty.
I moved inside the room and found the instigator to all of this, an open window. I'm an idiot really I am. A metallic shine caught my attention by the window seal. A picture of a very grumpy man standing a equally grumpy family. I'm not a prude like this am I?
Just as I was about to turn away I noticed something on the bottom of the window. I ran my gloved fingers across the deep cut marks in the wood. I looked deeper into it; the window seal was slightly bent in the middle most likely due to the weight of whatever was here…multiple cuts in the same place as the owner rapped its claws in anticipation.
I spun looking around the small room that might possibly being harboring a killer. Faster then I should of I retraced my steps until I was back in living room where I started. I leaned my back against the wall trying to shake the tickling sensation in my nose but I couldn't stop the myself from sneezing.
Black. A single black hair strand floated past my face to fall on the pile of cloths below. Black. Hundreds of black hairs littered the spot. Another movement just out of sight and my gun was trained on the offender. The offender was an old man with gray hair and blue eyes.
"Shit are you alright?" Five asked. I couldn't find words to explain or describe what I saw next. It should have been simple but I wasn't a simple bystander. I was in this mess "What it is it"
"They are g-one" I stuttered
"What's gone?"
I took a shaky breath as I looked out the window in horror "The statues"