Hey everyone, I apologize for not posting in awhile. (Insert real life issues) But I present to you the next part of this exciting story!
Disclaimer: I sincerely don't own RWBY.
Anyways please enjoy reading this chapter, and don't forget to read, and review!
The Soldier's Battleground
ザー・ソールジュズ・バタルフィールド
Chapter VI: Why We Fight
A few seconds passed as the Imperial forces made their way across the bridge, completely unaware of the danger right below their feet. As soon as a fair amount of them had made it to the other side, Jaune lowered his hand and Blake shoved the plunger down quickly before covering her ears. The explosion never came...
When silence was their only answer, Jaune hastily checked the wires attached to the plunger before raising the handle up once more and shoving it down only for it to fail again.
"What's wrong?" Blake hissed at him.
"I don't know, the wiring is on correctly, something must have broken the connection to the explosives." Jaune said with a tense tone as he reached for a pair of binoculars lying near him. Raising them to his eyes he scanned the general area where he had buried the wire into the road. About halfway to the bridge he discovered a rut in the road where a truck tire had sunk into the muddy road.
"The wire was crushed by one of the trucks that passed earlier. We'll have to wait until the Imperial forces cross so we can repair the line." He lowered the binoculars and glanced at Blake whose expression was impassive.
"No we need to destroy the bridge. The Atelsian forces are relying on us to get this done." A resistance fighter urgently added to the conversation.
Jaune shook his head. "I know how important blowing the bridge is, but if we head out there now it will only end in slaughter. We need to wait until this group has passed and we have some breathing room. I need two people to provide covering fire from that building over there." He pointed towards a house about a hundred meters to his left.
"Organize three groups of four, spread out in the area and cause a distraction. Draw their attention away from the bridge as best you can." Jaune quickly gave out his orders as he unslung the rifle from his back and smoothly slide the bayonet onto the muzzle. Everyone in the group nodded their heads as the Imperial forces continued to cross the bridge. About fifteen minutes later the last of the enemy had crossed and were a sound distance away from the resistance group. Sun decided now was the best time to act and snatched the plunger before anyone could say anything and started to sprint towards the bridge.
Seeing the blonde man take off slightly surprised Jaune before he pointed towards the bridge. "Dang it! Everyone move out, give him some cover!"
Jaune gripped his rifle as he sprinted after the reckless resistance fighter. Even though the plan was made up on the spot, the definition of subtlety was not to cause a commotion. Running out into the middle of a street with a plunger in your grasp was definitely not subtle.
Even though he had said to wait until the Imperial forces had passed, that didn't mean another group of them wouldn't appear. Which soon proved to be true, as a lone shot rang out in the cold air and a cry of agony could be heard as a response. The element of surprise was destroyed and a plethora of gunfire filled the air. Jaune took cover as a bullet whizzed a bit too close to his face. He grumbled under his breath as a few of the fighters joined him in taking cover.
Laying down cover fire, he fired off a round before ducking back as a few enemy bullets came screaming back as a response. He waited a few moments before peering around the corner of the building and searched to see where Sun had fallen. Surprisingly the young man had made it all the way to where the truck tires had probably crushed the firing wire and was now currently writhing on the ground in pain as the enemy continued firing from across the river. Taking a deep breath, Jaune closed his eyes and exhaled slowly before opening his eyes once more.
'I really love how plan's come together so perfectly.' The sarcastic thought passed through his mind as a really stupid idea started to form in his head. He turned towards the person taking cover next to him and saw that it was the mask covered young woman. Internally brushing off that fact, he handed her the rifle before pulling out his sidearm. He cheekily grinned at her before simply stating. "Cover me."
Dashing out of cover he was soon faced with crackling of enemy fire whizzing by his body as he quickly made his way over to the injured man lying in the middle of the street. Jaune raised his pistol and fired off a few rounds before looking down at Sun.
"Where are you hit?"
Sun let out a pained laugh. "I got hit in my ass, what are the odds."
Jaune snorted as he pulled out some bandages from his pouches. "How'd you manage to get hit in your scrawny ass?" A small shrug was his response as he started to treat the wound.
A bullet struck the ground near the two of them and Jaune grumbled once more as one of the rolls of bandages now had a decent sized hole due the round passing through it.
Now in an optimal situation, he would have pulled Sun into cover before treating his wounds, but time was short and since Sun's injury was non-life threatening, the plunger would have to come first as his choices and cover were limited. Soon a glint in the sky made Jaune pause in his repair to look up and see a grenade coming their way. Without a second thought he shielded Sun with his body as the grenade went off and showered both of them in mud.
Blake was surprised when Sun had dashed off recklessly, but she was even more surprised when the Lieutenant had given her a cheeky grin and proceeded to brave enemy fire to treat a wounded Sun. When she saw the grenade being tossed in their direction, she opened her mouth to warn them only to see the Lieutenant immediately cover Sun with his body and shield the injured Faunus from the blast. Granted he could have done it because it was in the heat of the moment, but seeing a human risk their life to not only treat a Faunus but shield said Faunus with their own body to take the brunt of the deadly blast amazed her. She aimed the rifle she had been given and shot the Imperial soldier who had thrown the explosive.
Meanwhile, Jaune felt himself flinch when a few sharp pieces of shrapnel grazed his back. He grunted as he lifted himself off of Sun, before turning towards the crushed wire and the plunger. Pulling out Crocea Mors he cut the bad part of the wiring before hooking it up to the plunger box. Blowing the bridge from this distance was not really his cup of tea but it had to be done. He glanced at Sun and smirked. "Sorry about this buddy." He shoved the plunger handle down for the third time and the ensuing explosion made the bridge fall into the river in pieces as the supports holding it up were destroyed by the dynamite.
Now that their mission was complete, Jaune discarded the plunger and hefted Sun over his shoulder as he made his way back towards better cover and the rest of the resistance group.
Seeing this, Blake raised the rifle in her hands and provided cover fire for the two males as they made their way back to cover.
Even though the young woman was protecting his back, said back was screaming at him due to the extra weight on it, he ignored the pain as he was not about to abandon someone just because he was lightly injured. Then again the injuries he received would more than likely leave scars on his back, but that thought could wait for later as he finally got the two of them behind the building where another fighter helped him get Sun off of his shoulder. Blake handed his rifle back and nodded towards him.
"Thank you for saving him." She calmly said as she drew her pistol from its holster.
"No problem, but first we need to get out of here before the retreating Imperial forces trap us between the river and the rest of their forces. Our mission is done, it's up to the Atelsian soldiers now."
Blake nodded before whistling to the two fighters who were in the building giving the group covering fire. As soon as the two fighters made their way back to the group, the resistance group disappeared into the shadows and left a destroyed bridge in their wake.
Now that his mission was complete, Jaune internally breathed a sigh of relief. The plan itself was rather risky and had multiple aspects that could fail, which not surprisingly some did. But overall it was a success. No one was killed, and they had struck a critical blow to the enemy. Or at least that's what they were going for. In the end, if the Atelsian military couldn't push back the Imperial military and take control of the area around the destroyed bridge, then the entire mission would be meaningless.
As the resistance group made their way back to the safe house, the sounds of warfare were growing louder the closer they got to the frontlines. That was to be expected, but now the danger the group faced was getting caught in between the two opposing forces. The resistance group was, unfortunately, ill-equipped to engage in an all-out fight against the enemy. Thus they stuck to the shadows, but now that it was day, Jaune couldn't help but feel a bit vulnerable as the small group had very little cover crossing roads and farmlands. Fortunately for them the safe house was now in sight and there were no enemy soldiers in the area.
Once everyone made it inside, Tukson locked and barricaded the door it before turning towards the group.
"Get to the basement now." He pointed towards a door inside the house. Everyone hastily made their way down the stairwell into the darkness below.
As Jaune was heading down the stairs, a bullet smashed through a window and struck the back of his helmet with a resounding ping. The force of the round made him lose his balance and he tumbled down a few steps before he grabbed the hand rail and stopped himself from falling further.
While a helmet was meant to help protect your skull from injury up to and including a screaming piece of metal, The after effect felt as if someone took a bat to your head and swatted a home-run. Jaune may have survived a scrap with death, but the headache he was experiencing, made him momentarily consider dying to escape the pain.
'That shot came from the front line, which can only mean I was hit by friendly fire. What the heck man! I survive countless battles only to be almost taken out by an allied soldier. Had to have been a private. Stupid little…'
As Jaune internally grumbled to himself. He crawled back up the stairs and closed the door behind him, before reaching up and removing his helmet to survey the damage. There were a few flickering light bulbs hanging from the ceiling which gave him enough light to see a large dent in the Brodie helmet.
"Nice, this is coming out of my paycheck for sure." He quietly whispered to himself as he made his way down the stairs.
Having seen and heard what happened to the Lieutenant moments ago, Blake made her way over to the young man and raised the mask from her face.
"You alright?" The Lieutenant gave a thumbs up as he rubbed the back of his head.
"I feel as if I was flung off a cliff and smacked into a tree. But hey, at least I wasn't stabbed by anything." She raised an eyebrow at his odd answer and mentally shook her head at how he brushed off his close call with death.
Their conversation ended when more bullets and the like started to strike the sides of the house as the conflict crept closer towards their position. Dust from the basement ceiling was shaken loose and started to fall slowly to the ground as the ground started to shake from nearby explosions.
"You know it would be a shame if an artillery shell landed on this house and we get trapped here." Now it was Jaune's turn to raise an eyebrow as the young woman said the line with a monotone voice and expressionless face. "Yes, that would be a shame, so I hope you didn't just jinx us."
She lightly smirked at his reply. "Don't lose your head over the comment Lieutenant."
'Cheeky little…' Jaune didn't quite know how to reply to the obvious jab at how he had almost lost his head quite literally moments ago.
An artillery shell landed nearby causing an explosion that made the entire house shake violently as it took out a corner of the building.
Jaune's face took on a deadpan look. "You jinxed us." Nervous laughter passed through group at his statement. The uneasy mood was cut short when pounding could be heard against the house's door. Blake flicked off the lights and pulled out the knife attached to her left boot. Seeing in the dark was not an issue for anyone in the room as they had night vision. Well, besides the Lieutenant who was, as far as she could tell, a human. There were many downsides to being born a Faunus, but it did come with its perks from time to time, this being one of those times.
Silence reigned over the group as the barricaded door was breached and the thudding of boots could be heard above them. The shouts of enemy soldiers could be heard as they spread out to take cover from the advancing Atlesian soldiers. So far, none of the soldiers had gone downstairs but that could change at a moment's notice and Blake wasn't about to die in an underground musty basement.
While Jaune couldn't see at all in the darkness, that didn't stop him from also drawing out Crocea Mors from its sheath. Everyone waited with baited breath as the sounds of battle could be heard directly above them. But fate deemed it necessary to issue a challenge to the hiding group, as the sound of a machine gun could be heard firing directly above.
Blake weighed the risks in her head. If they stayed here than they were relatively safe from danger. But that meant allied soldiers would no doubt be killed in an effort to knock out the weapon. Or they could come out of hiding and take out the machine gun themselves and hopefully save some lives. She looked over at Tukson to see what he thought on the matter, he just nodded his head at her. Even though he couldn't see her face, she glanced towards the Lieutenant and paused to look at the knife in his hands. The blade looked as if it gave off a pale ethereal white glow in the darkness. But that couldn't be right, as the room was pitch black and no metal she knew of glowed. She brushed the thought to the back of her mind as there were more important things to think about right now.
"Lieutenant, we should take out the machine gun above us."
"We have no idea how many enemy soldiers there are in this house, I hope you're prepared for the consequences." Jaune turned his head to the sound of her voice as he also readied his pistol. Knowing roughly where the staircase was to his position, he slowly felt his way over until his hand touched the bottom stair and he started to make his way up. There was no point in looking back as he couldn't see anything anyways so he trusted that when he busted the door open there would be people behind him to help.
A few moments later he felt the basement door in front of him, he reached for the doorknob and carefully cracked open the door. Daylight streamed through the crack and Jaune peered through the opening to see three Imperial soldiers taking cover from incoming fire. He turned back to see a few people behind him on the stairwell looking at him. Gently setting his pistol down to free his hand, he raised three fingers and then pointed in the direction the soldiers were at. Getting a few nods he looked forward once more and picked up his pistol.
The basement door burst open as he charged towards the unaware figures. Just as he was within arm's reach, one of the Imperial soldiers ducked behind cover and saw Jaune charging at him. With no time to react, the soldier felt cold steel digging into his chest right before he slumped down to the ground dead. In that moment the two other soldiers noticed the Atelsian soldier and the element of surprise was shattered. Jaune raised the 1911 and fired off a round point blank into the Imperial soldier on his right before doing the same to the soldier on his left. A sickening squelch could be heard as both of the rounds sunk into the enemy soldier's skulls. Sounds of gunfire could be heard coming from inside the house as the resistance fighters cleared out the first floor.
Hearing the distinct sound only made by a machine gun coming from the ceiling, Jaune hastily made his way to the attic staircase as bullets tore through the building threatening to end his life as they whizzed by him a bit too closely. He ran up the stairs and saw that a corner of the roof had been destroyed and was now being used as a place to shoot from. Raising his pistol once more he fired off three more rounds and killed the machine gunners. Not wanting to get his head blown off by friendly fire, he pulled the machine gun away from the hole and raised his knife in the air. A few more shots splintered the wood around him before the firing on his position stopped and he slowly raised his hands above his head as he stood up to identify himself.
When the Atlesian soldiers below saw that it was a friendly, a small cheer went up as the enemy machine gun had been silenced. Not wanting to give up the momentum, the allied soldiers continued to fight and push back the retreating Imperial army. With no ground taken or lost in months, the prospect of getting out of the muddy wastelands and into cleaner grounds made the Atelsians soldiers fight with renewed resolve.
Jaune wanted to join the fight alongside his comrades, but he had orders to help the resistance group he was with, and even though he had completed the mission, the prospect of just leaving them in this conflict didn't sit quite right in his mind. So, doing the next best thing, he pushed the captured enemy machine gun back to its original position and turned it towards the Imperial troops who were fighting a losing battle.
Aiming down the sights, Jaune narrowed his gaze and locked on to a group of enemy soldiers pining down a group of allied forces. Once again the air was filled with the ominous sound of a machine gun spewing out deaths call, but this time it was against the enemy. Spent casings started to litter the floor as he fired the weapon.
Now when it comes to the machine gun, it is meant to be manned by at least two people, one person fires the weapon, while the other holds and guides the ammo belt into the feed. So the weapon won't jam which, in turn, allows you to continue to fire longer without stopping. Fortunately for him, Blake had made her way up to the attic as well and upon seeing him firing the machine gun, quickly made her way over and assisted him with the ammo belt.
He yelled over the din of battle. "Thanks for the help!" She pointed towards an area to his right. "Focus your fire to the right." Taking her word, he turned the machine gun and saw a group of Imperial soldiers trying to charge at a few Atelsian soldiers who were being pinned down by enemy fire. Not wasting time, he fired off a rather long burst towards the advancing enemy. Within a few seconds the last bullet in the cloth belt was fired and Jaune quickly popped open the machine gun to load another belt. By this time, Tukson had come upstairs as well and and as he assisted Jaune with the reload, he informed him that the rest of the resistance fighters had retreated and were heading back towards friendly lines.
Blake took a step back to get out of their way and pulled out a pair of binoculars to survey the battleground. As she was gazing through the lenses she heard what Tukson said to the Lieutenant had to ask the question. "Then why are you still here?"
He shrugged, "I couldn't just leave my favorite customer now could I?" She just shook her head at his excuse before continuing her searching.
With the weapon reloaded and Tukson taking Blake's place, Jaune once again opened fire on the enemy forces. With Blake as spotter, the small group made quick work of any unfortunate soul who was caught in their sights.
But, no matter how much resolve one possesses, when facing a superior enemy and equipment the odds are more likely than not, not in your favor. This came into play when the sounds of whistling could be heard coming from the sky. Hell was about to be unleashed upon the scorched earth.
Blake's eyes widened slightly as an artillery shell landed on a group of Atlesian soldiers and vaporized them from existence. She dropped the binocular she was looking through and saw what soldiers on both sides feared. A massive artillery bombardment started to pummel the earth, and any Atlesian forces caught in the blasts were erased from reality. They may have destroyed the bridge, but that didn't mean they destroyed the enemy artillery emplacements located further behind enemy lines.
Having little to no cover, many Atelsian soldiers found themselves being blown to pieces. Seeing the allied soldiers being slaughtered, Jaune stopped firing the machine gun and started to yell at them to find cover. He knew that it was pointless but the feeling of helplessness spurred him to do something. Above him an artillery round sped its way towards his position and hearing the ominous sound whistling its way to him, Jaune quickly turned around and shoved Blake backwards away from the opening. She found herself tumbling down the attic stairs when the shell landed near the house.
Jaune felt himself become airborne from the blast and was thrown out of the building to the muddy ground below. Darkness engulfed his vision as he hit the ground and he felt the air leave his lungs from the impact. As he lay in the mud, his vision swam and his ears rang from the explosion. With unsteady arms he pushed himself off the ground and rolled over to see what was left of the house.
What he saw didn't look good at all, the shell had caused major damage to the building and only two sides of the house still stood from the hit. Even though the chances of there being any survivors were slim, he sluggishly made his way towards the ruined building and saw the mangled body of Tukson slumped down against a wall with blood pooling around him. Jaune shook his head a few times to try and get rid of the dizziness as he made his way over to see that the older man was barely breathing.
"I'm so sorry, when I heard the whistling I just shoved the person behind me..." A bloody hand came up and laid against his chest.
"S-stop blaming yourself kid." Tukson mouth filled with blood and it dribbled out of his mouth. "G-get her out of her, t-take her home..." Tukson's hand dropped from his chest and dropped to the floor. He quickly pressed two fingers against the older man's neck and found no pulse.
"I understand sir, I'll get her out of here." Even though the shells continued fall around him, Jaune ignored the explosions and started to search the building for any signs of the young woman. When he reached the partially destroyed staircase, he saw to his relief a groaning but alive Blake laying under some rubble. He hastily made his over and started to remove the rubble from her body, only to find that a beam had her legs pinned. The big piece of wood barely budged when he tried to move it.
Blake jerked awake as the pain started to register in her muddled mind. She tried to focus her blurry vision and saw the Lieutenant trying to move a wooden beam that was lying across her legs. 'So that's why I can't feel my legs, wait where's Tukson!' She let out a haggard cough which caught the attention of the Lieutenant.
"Hey stay still, I need to get your legs free." Jaune continued to try and budge the heavy piece of wood.
"Where, where is Tukson? is he alright?" The look that crossed the Lieutenants face was all she needed as an answer.
"I'm sorry, he was killed in the blast." Frustration was laced in his voice as his hands curled into fists. A distance battle made the two of them look up to see the remaining Atlesians forces that had survived the bombardment in full retreat as enemy reinforcements started to retake their lost territory. Jaune grumbled at the scene as he tried once more to move the beam from Blake's legs.
"Get out of here, there's no point in you staying as you'll just get killed as well!" A steely gaze meet her own and she paused in her yelling when she saw the face staring down her own.
"No I won't leave you. I'll get you out of here if its the last thing I do." His eyes narrowed. "You have my word." With no response, she just nodded at his statement. After a few more minutes of him trying to move the pillar, Blake couldn't help but come to terms that she could very well be killed in the next few minutes.
"I'll be right back, watch your back!" Jaune quickly stood up and ran out of the room leaving a semi surprised Blake behind.
She sighed internally, the fact that he had stayed so long came as a bit of a shock to her. But all good things come to end at some point and even though she would be dying by the hands of the enemy, didn't mean she wouldn't go down fighting for her life. Drawing out her trusty pistol she aimed towards where the enemy would be coming through and waited.
The fighting outside grew closer and soon thereafter an Imperial soldier came charging through the house only to be gunned down by the trapped woman. After shooting down two more soldiers a tossed grenade filled her vision and she closed her eyes, bracing for the cold grip of death to take her. The pounding of feet and a solid thwack made her open her eyes to see the Lieutenant had returned and was holding a long piece of wood in hands. Seeing that the grenade had not killed either of them, she came to the conclusion that the sound she heard was him swatting the explosive away from their position.
Seeing that the immediate danger was gone, Jaune turned back towards Blake and hurriedly stuck the board underneath the beam and started to push against the smaller piece of wood.
"Don't think your going to die that easily on me! I couldn't save Tukson but I can save you!" His muscles started to strain as he pushed against the board.
Seeing the amount of resolve on his face and how much he was risking by staying behind with her. She knew deep down that this was a man she could trust. At least in this situation, if they ever made it out of here then maybe she could get to know the young man better. But that thought would have to wait as another Imperial soldier came through the house and she quickly shot them before they could fire off a round.
A sudden light headiness made her blink rapidly in an effort to clear her vision. But instead of clearing up, her vision started to swim and darkness started to flicker at the edge of her vision. Right as her vision grew dark, she saw the Lieutenants face hovering over her own. Darkness quickly engulfed her mind and the world went black.
Blake woke up with a jolt and hastily looked around the unfamiliar surroundings she was in. A sudden stab of pain made her reach up to her head only to find it wrapped in bandages. A chill went through her body as the bow she always found herself wearing was not on her head. Before she could locate her black bow a person pushed aside the flap covering the door and stepped inside. Moving on instinct, she bolted towards the unknown person and pinned them against the wall.
"Whoa there, its alright I'm not your enemy." She took in the soldiers uniform and saw that it was an Atelsian one. Her grip slightly loosened but not all the way as she still had some questions.
"Where am I?" The man gave her a calm stare and spoke in a peaceful tone. "Your in the Atelsian trenches, Lieutenant Arc came back here all beaten up carrying you in his arms. He told me to bandage you up as he needed to go talk to the Major." Upon hearing the familiar name she finally let her arms fall to her side and stepped back from the young man. "I see, sorry for treatment I gave you." he raised his hands in surrender. "No need to apologize, perfectly understandably considering you woke up in an unknown environment." Just as the young man finished talking, another figure pushed the cloth flap aside and skipped into the room.
"Hey Ren, how's the...Oh she's awake!" The rather short woman paused in her questioning as she noticed the raven haired female was standing near her childhood friend. Maybe a bit to closely to said friend if she were honest. But that thought was immediately put on hold when she noticed the pair of cat ears on the young woman's head. She squealed at the sight.
"Oh my god they are so cute! Can I touch them!" She started to lunge at the other young woman only to find Ren blocking her path. "Whoa, calm down Nora, she just woke up, don't go scary her now with your actions." The young man turned his head towards Blake with an apologetic look on his face. "Sorry about that." Not quite sure what to make of the situation Blake just accepted the apology and saw the two other people face her.
"We should introduce ourselves, my name is Corporal Lie Ren and this here is..." The rather peppy young woman snapped to attention. "The names Corporal Nora Valkyrie! I enjoy eating pancakes, and being together with Corporal Ren, I mean not together-together as were not like that...anyways whats your name!" Blake noticed how the energetic woman started to fidget after mentioning their relationship or lack thereof? with the young man beside them. She put aside that thought as the two people were waiting for her to speak.
"My name is Blake Belladonna, its a pleasure to meet both of you."
End scene! I hope you enjoyed reading this chapter, it took me longer than expected to finish...way to long, but the cast is slowly coming together! Once again I am looking for an editor for this story. If your interested please PM.