I HAVE RETURNED!
The usual applies, I own nothing RWBY is property of Rooster Teeth and Monty Oum
Also to all of you, any suggestions? Or if anything any opinions on how the story is going?
I'll see you at the bottom.
Ozpin strolled across the room , a steaming mug of coffee in hand as he approached the table. One baron stood and walked to the offside of the table allowing the headmaster of Beacon a seat at the table.
Grimoire nodded to the man in greeting as Althea smiled. "Evening Oz, what might we owe this visit to?"
Ozpin shook his head as he placed his coffee on the table. "Cinder is not the leader of our foes, she is simply another lackey to a greater threat, one that threatens to overwhelm the kingdoms and snuff out civilization."
"Figured that, the grimm were avoiding attacking the fangers as much as possible during the battle though that didn't stop a few of em." The table seemed to rise to murmuring for a solid few minutes as the barons theorized about the occurrences before they hushed themselves.
Althea rapped her knuckles on the table leaning forward as she did so. "So this means there is a playing moving their pieces? Interesting. We will have to strain our ears lads, especially since this will be the first challenge in a while that needs some more⦠quiet approaches." The Barons agreement was unanimous, Althea being the head authority on intelligence gathering and operations that would have to be off the book meant that she was probably going to take control of the intelligence network regardless so that they could connect whatever needed connecting.
The conversations continued with various barons putting forward information with Ozpin occasionally interjecting information that assisted in filling in blanks that the Vampyres did not have on hand until they had made a rather solid intelligence map of Remnant with various contacts spread around the world, a majority of which were hiding out in the mess that was Mistrel.
"So it's decided. When the school is repaired I will depart for Mistral, who knows maybe there will be some people who will join me in that but I want you all to focus on Vacuo so they can join in on this." The room was quiet for a moment as those assembled thought on what the meaning of the Lord in Vale leaving Vale to go to Mistral. They knew as well as he what was at stake and if the information they had was solid then Mistral, however corrupt it's peoples were was still a place of humanity and was due for some protection and as such would need more people to go there and help with it's ongoing war against the corrupted Fang. So with the final notes of the meeting concluded the Barons as though they were one stood and exited the room, going their separate ways to either their own lands or to some other places leaving only two people in the meeting hall after Althea had departed to check on her own vassals.
Grimoire and Ozpin sat at opposite ends of the table with Ozpin leisurely drinking his coffee as Grimoire idly sharpened his boot knife. "So, anything you want to add Professor?" Ozpin seemed to scoff slightly before leaning forward. "Autumn is gone, someone took her from her pod while we were distracted with recovering from the attack." Grimoire pursed his lips before standing.
"Well then, what's our move, chessmaster? What do we do now? We lost our maiden. So where are the others?" Ozpin seemed to think for a moment. "We can't tell anyone about the maidens, no one other than those who already know." Grimoire sighed leaning against the table.
"Well shit on a stick, Vampyres are not secret anymore and that will mean people will be watching from all the angles just to find out what we do, I can't move on this subject not anymore, but your hunters in training? They can go anywhere, and we both know where the whispers are leading us."
Ozpin nodded. "I see, you want me to send my people to Mistral, to counter this threat?"
Grimoire nodded. "I can deal with Vacuo, that would be acceptable to the eyes of those who are watching especially our more talkative observers."
The two men stood in the room a minute longer thinking in the silence. "This will come to a head, I feel it, we just need to be ready for it." The two men stood and exited the room going their separate ways, with the headmaster to his command and the lord back to his weapon and armor for another war.
Jaune was bored for a majority of the march, and it wasn't for not trying to do anything either. He had been tasked by Ashford to screen the column with his team and had done such keeping good pace for the two days they were separated until they entered the foothills on the third day that forced them to regroup with the column as they approached Caldam which they could already see do to the small group of airships that hung over the distant hill.
He knew they would probably have to fight their way into the fortress since it was under siege by grimm that had flooded over the border from Vacuo but other than that the mission should go as planned. He turned towards Ashford who was talking to his officers as they marched. " ? I think we should form a vanguard ahead of us to clear a path for the rest of the column." Ashford turned to look at the hunter and after a moment nodded.
"Grand idea, how about a group of our lads and a team of hunters?" Ashford responded. Jaune knew that it would be preferable to have both groups contribute to the push so he nodded and went to talk to the team leaders about the plan.
He encountered Sun first, which immediately got him one team on board as Sun was more than happy to drill his team in some Vanguard like maneuvers [regardless on how 'improvised' they were]. Sun had actually gone to Jaune and Ruby respectively on several occasions to ask about team formations and the like and had ended up talking to Jaune more since Ruby was busy with Vampyre business that required her attention.
After his briefing with Sun, Jaune went and spoke to each team leader, picking up most of Vale teams as volunteers as he went. Then he came to team CRDL, his and Cardin's agreement still stood and since the appearance of the Vampyres he hadn't seen much of the bully or his team.
" ." Short, professional, and straight to the point just as Krieg had taught him during his impromptu leadership classes.
Cardin looked over to Jaune and nodded. "Jauney Boy? What's up?" Alright time to get down to it.
"Hey, I'm gathering a group to act as the Vanguard and I was wondering if you and your team were-" Cardin held up a hand while pinching his nose. "You can say no if you want to stay with the main column." Cardin seemed to be raging at himself mentally so Jaune looked to the rest of team CRDL, only to see them smirking. To this Jaune's eyebrow rose.
"Mind explaining?" Russel smiled as he stepped forward and brought Jaune off to the side.
"We had a bet going, and Cardin just lost since the bet was whether you were going to ask us to help or not, he thought you would be to scared, and now I get to choose sooo I guess we can join the Van, right boss?" Cardin muttered under his breath before straightening out and rolling his shoulders.
"Where should we go?" Jaune smiled as he pat Cardin's shoulder.
"The left is looking barren of any of our teams so how about you go meet up with the Chains Gate troop and make sure that side holds. We will be making the push in a bit." Cardin nodded and gestured for his team to follow as they jogged up through the column to the front.
Jaune returned to his team at the front of the column and waves over to the left and right flanks taken by teams CRDL and SSSN, CFVY respectively. Jaune cleared his mind, first they need to scout out the front so he looks over to his team and gestures forwards. "Shall we?" The group's advance with JNPR holding the center backed up by other Hunter teams and a small band of Vampyres.
They march through woodland for several minutes before first contact is made in a flurry of claws and blades leaving an entire pack of Beowulf's dead in the path. He raised his shield as marched forewards guarding forewards as Pyrrha advanced next to him, he could hear the sound of gunfire and explosions from either side and he see quite clearly where Nora's grenades were landing as he witnessed Ren scouting ahead in the treetops where he was locked in combat with a spider like Grimm that was crawling through the branches lashing out with it's stinger and mandibles as Ren continued to pepper it with fire.
Jaune had little time to worry as he blocked a Beowulf and bashed its arms aside with his shield before planting Crocea Mors into the beasts roaring maw ending its attempt of a roar. He pushed the corpse off of his sword with his booted foot, and advanced forward, keeping pace with the rest of the line as the Vampyres charged past them to act as the tip of the spear and the hunters the shield. Jaune saw the signal that Ashford had told him about, a blue flare, being launched from the base of the mountain and Jaune turned to the other hunters and waved his blade forward. "The way is clear! The way is clear!" The surge of hunters and huntresses along with the others visiting from their respective kingdoms surged forward , shattering through the already mangled grimm lines and reaching the safety of the cliffs of Caldam which were covered in grimm corpses and vigilant sharpshooters who rained down fire upon the grimm horde as it thinned.
Team JNPR reached the gates and turned about as one, facing the oncoming swarm of remaining grimm that were doggedly pursuing the tail end of the hunters as they withdrew into the castle. Jaune checked the flanks of his formation and saw that the platoon that had stayed near them for so long had stuck to their flanks and had prepared themselves with a shield wall. Jaune saw Coco and team CFVY take up positions just inside the doorway, preparing to charge out in case of a new threat.
Those who remained outside seemed to have fallen into a trance as they carved their ways through the Grimm with laughter as they dance. This disturbed Jaune to a degree, especially since they were all Vampyres who were still out there.
"Close the gate." Jaune turned with shock, Ashford had ordered the gate closed? On his own men?! Ashford turned to the hunters in training and shook his head.
"They will return, give them time." And so the gates closed and the students and hunters from the other kingdoms began their exodus to the peak of the mountain to where their way home laid. Jaune said goodbye to those he had befriended and watched each airship leave towards their kingdoms, leaving one lone airship for transport back to Vale.
Jaune mentally prepared himself for the ride back as the Beacon students loaded up onto the airship and Jaune noticed a particular head of brown hair hunched over a trash bin. "Tristrem?" Jaune and team JNPR walked over to see that the young man was indeed Tristrem, granted he was vomiting his guts into the trash bin much to Jaunes expectations.
"Hey Jaune-" The young man dumped his head into the can again vomiting more fluids into the can before shakily getting up and walking away from the airship. "Tristrem." The young man turned a blank look on his face. "Yes?"
"We're going back to Beacon." Tristrem twitched once and fell unconscious standing for a moment before he fell back nearly onto an unsuspecting team CFVY. Coco, simply caught the you young man and held him for a moment in surprise before Jaune picked the boy up and put him over his shoulder.
"Cousin?" Coco asked an eyebrow raised.
"Yeah, How'd you know?" Coco smirked and gestured towards the trash bin.
"Very similar opinions on air travel, and weapons, all old fashioned. Tacky even." Jaune nodded in understanding as he attempted to carry Tristrem into the airship only for the exhaustion from the mission to catch up with him and force him to collapse into a seat. The rest of his team took their seats and Pyrrha sat next to Jaune and pat his shoulder a reassuring smile gracing her tired face.
Two days, two days of little sleep, two days of spontaneously fighting Grimm, two days of no showers or freshly made food. The comfort of simply being able to rest on a cushion was almost enough to knock the young Arcc into unconsciousness with his younger cousin. If not for the fact that they were on a gods damned airship.
Well I will be honest, not my best work though I do hope you are all enjoying it I will have a new chapter out later have a great election to my US readers and to everyone else, I wish you all a good week.
-LP
