Ch25: A day(not really) at the docks.
(Sunday, Y+1, M+3, D+23)
"Kurt! Where have you been!?" I hear, being tackled by a red blur.
I was walking to the cafeteria when I came across my sisters.
"You've been gone for a whole day!" Yang says, a bit angry.
"I didn't feel like dealing with Weiss." I say. "She's been a bit… insensitive lately."
"Where were you?" Yang asks. "Did you use an empty room?"
"Sorta. I've been busy. Ozpin let me use an old hangar for some projects of mine. I set up a hammock and slept there." I say offhandedly, leading the way to the cafeteria.
"What kind of projects need a hangar that big?" Ruby asks, curious.
"Once we finish breakfast I'll tell you. Where's Weiss, by the way?"
"In the room getting ready." Yang says.
"Still? Even you don't take THAT long Yang."
"Hey! I like to take very good care of my hair!"
[A few minutes later.]
"Did you hear about the White Fang hideout the police found?" Yang asks.
"I heard they found one." I lie, eating a pancake.
"The police showed up to respond to reports of gunfire and found a White Fang hideout of some sort. The reports say that the facility appeared to have been raided; guards had been shot, tied up, and had their wounds bound. They said that there were signs of a short struggle: shell casings, bullet holes, and a few bloodstains." Yang informs me. "And the guards said that they were attacked by a man wearing a white trenchcoat, a white ski mask, and a white beret."
"Hmmm." I reply, finishing my food. "C'mon, I'll show you-"
"THERE YOU ARE!" I hear. 'Shiẞe.'
"Hello Weiss." I say flatly.
"Where were you!?" She asks/demands. 'I wasn't expecting that.'
"Busy. If you come with us, I'll show you." I say flatly, starting off towards hangar B-17.
[A few minutes later, just in front of hangar B-17.]
"Why are we in front of a hangar?" Weiss asks.
"Because Ozpin gave me use of it for the rest of my stay here. I use it for my projects."
"Oh. Those." Weiss says. My technical skills were rapidly becoming known throughout Beacon. I'd had lots of requests for me to assist other students in improving and designing weapons, even from higher-level students.
"Welcome to The Flying Forge." I say, pointing to a sign I'd made in my spare time; depicting a B-17 silhouette in front of a pair of crossed wrenches. "And THAT," I say, pointing to a vehicle sitting proudly in the middle of the hangar, surrounded by assorted parts, "is what I've been working on."
"Why did you paint it all red?" Yang asks, looking a bit scared.
"Is it for me!" Ruby asks/squees.
"It's painted red because THE RED WANZ GO FASTAH!" I say quite loudly, shocking the three girls a bit. "And no Ruby, I would probably void my bowels in terror if you got behind the wheel." She looked a bit sad. "And Yang, I would probably do the same if you drove anything larger than Bumblebee." I turn to Weiss. "I actually would trust you behind the wheel." I say, surprising her a little.
"Thank you." She replies.
"What did you arm it with?" My weapons-nut sister asks excitedly.
"I'll show you." I say, walking over to my creation, and getting inside. I run my finger down the row of switches mounted to the ceiling of the vehicle until I find the right ones, flicking the pair of switches. A pair of semicircular doors on the roof of the vehicle, situated in the center of the roof of the MRAP-style vehicle, pop open and a matte black minigun quickly raises itself from its place on the ceiling of the vehicle's cabin. I exit the vehicle and see Ruby's face of pure unadulterated joy.
"Cooool." She says.
"It's called a minigun, chambered for .30-06, for the purposes of simplifying my logistics a bit." I say, pointing to my most difficult project so far.
"Minigun? It's not exactly what I'd call small." Yang says.
"To be entirely honest, I have no idea why it's called that." I reply.
"Where'd you get the truck?" Weiss asks.
"I built it." I say half-truthfully.
"Oh."
"Let's go back to Vale." Ruby says.
"Why?" Weiss asks.
"To look for Blake." Ruby says.
"Then let's go!" I say, ushering everyone out and making sure the door is locked securely. "ONWARDS!" *Bamf* 'Aaaand I left them behind. I guess they'll have to take the airship.'
I decide to spend the rest of the day just wandering around the city. Make sure the layout's in my head in the event I need to bamf somewhere fast. Maybe run into someone I haven't met yet.
[A few hours later.]
'"Hello Kurt."' I stop walking as I hear a voice in my mind.
"Hi Neo. How's life been to you?" She walks up next to me and we start walking.
'"Alright. Got hired by some Torchwick guy as a bodyguard."'
I chuckle a bit. "That guy's a whuss. I fought him a couple times. He ran."
'"I start working for him tomorrow."'
"Good luck then. Try not to die."
'"Why'd you say that?"'
"You seem like an interesting person. what can I say?"
'"You too. It's nice being able to actually talk to someone."'
"Danke."
'"Huh?"'
"Thanks." As we walk on, Neo stares at an ice-cream parlor. "You want ice cream?" I ask her.
'"Yes."'
We walk up to the counter and I place our orders. I order a chocolate milkshake for myself and a neapolitan banana split for Neo and pay the cashier.
We get our orders and sit down outside.
"How is it?"
'"Good."' I hear, as she happily eats her treat. '"Thanks for paying.""
"My treat. You can pick up the tab next time." I say with a smirk, taking a sip of my shake.
I hear giggling.
We pass the next few minutes with small talk and finish our cold treats.
"Well. I must be going, I've got some paperwork to do." I say, remembering the scrolls I nicked from the White Fang hideout.
'"Well that sounds boring."'
"But it'll lead to something interesting later on. So, until next time I guess."
'"Until next time."'
I smile and walk off towards the docks, putting my headphones on and turning on Billy Joel. I take a few random turns and walk until I find a deserted alley. I slip in and bamf to The Cave. 'Time to get to work.' I think, grabbing a pen and a pad of paper and sliding open the top drawer of one of the filing cabinets from the White Fang safehouse. 'Gonna be a loooong day.' I think. 'Just a couple of hours then I'll get lunch. Then a few more hours and I'll need to get to the docks for some fun.'
[Hours later.]
I look at the notepad, an ordered list of notes and thoughts on the info I managed to retrieve. The filing cabinets mostly contained lists keeping track of the contents of the facility and who took what for later use. In other words: nothing incredibly useful to me. The important information was contained in the scrolls.
The biggest find was a list of where the various supplies were going to and coming from. By my accounting, the other addresses that Tukson gave me were joined by three others, along with some supplies being sent somewhere into Forever Fall. 'Interesting. What time is it? Oh. Might want to kit up and get to the docks, the fun should be starting soon.' I think, pulling my shirt off revealing a bullet and slash-resistant under-suit, woven in certain areas with a magnetic thread.
I quickly rush over to an OD-green crate in the corner where I'd set up my hammock along with a few other personal items. I open the crate and snap the armored plates contained within onto their respective parts of the under-suit. After all of the pieces are attached, I put my armored boots on, pull on a pair of armored gauntlets, tie my sash to my waist, clip on my weapon belt and, pull my greatcoat from a small hook on the wall and put it on. I grab my various weapons and some extra ammo, making sure everything is in working order. 'Knife, Colt, swords, ammo, explosives, Blue Death. Good, everything's here.' I grab the last item from the crate and clip it to my belt before bamf-ing to the dock area.
[A few minutes later.]
"Hey!" I hear, turning towards the voice. "Aren't You Blake's teammate?"
"Yes. Where's Blake?" I ask.
"I was just getting some food." He says, holding a few apples.
"What're you two doing?" I ask somewhat suspiciously.
"We're staking out the docks."
"Why?"
"To prove that the White Fang aren't behind the recent string of Dust robberies."
"I'm helping." I say.
"Alright then." He says, looking at me a bit weirdly.
"What?"
"What's that?" He points to something on my belt.
"Oh, this?" I point to the item. He nods. "It's a helmet." I say, placing it on my head and hearing the slight hiss of the helmet forming a seal with the rest of my suit. "Sweet, huh?"I say, my voice a bit distorted by the helmet's speaker.
"It's definitely different." He says. "Why are you wearing full body armor?"
"Because it's awesome." I say, gesturing to the rest of my jet-black, sci-fi inspired armor, plates covering my body, arms and legs. "Let's get going then. Can't leave Blake waiting."
"Follow me." Sun says, heading towards the coastline.
A few minutes later, we climb a rooftop and I see Blake laying down watching over the dock the roof overlooks.
"Hey Blake." I say. She jumps up and whirls around, drawing Gambul Shroud.
"Who are you." She demands, pointing her weapon at me. 'Well. That'd a new way to test my armor.'
I slowly raise my hands and pull off my helmet. "Forget me already Blake? C'mon, it hasn't been that long." I chuckle.
She looked horrified for a second before quickly sheathing her weapon. "What are you doing here."
"I decided to go walking through the city and I ran into your new boyfriend."
"He's not my boyfriend." She says quickly.
"And my name's Sun."
"Alright then. Incoming." I say, dropping flat and drawing Blue Death in sniper form.
"What?" They both say, dropping to the ground as well.
"Bullhead. Two klicks out." I say, reading the numbers on the display of my T-slit helmet.
A few moments later, a bullhead swoops in and lands, disgorging several White Fang mooks.
I heard Sun say a few things to Blake but I was too focused on what they were doing. The mooks were attaching tow cables to a crate of Dust.
"Hey! What's the holdup!?" I see Torchwick walk out of the aircraft, gesturing widely. "We're not exactly the most inconspicuous bunch of thieves at the moment, so why don't you animals try to pick up the pace?"
Blake and Sun say a few things that I don't pay attention to; I'm too busy trying to decide who to shoot first. But Blake decides to do something else, she rushes off towards the group, weapon drawn.
"Dammit Blake." I mutter, holding my fire.
I watch her take Torchwick hostage, holding her sword to his throat. She makes a short speech to the mooks before being distracted by the arrival of five more Bullheads. Torchwick takes advantage of this and fires a shell at the ground, knocking her back.
I switch Blue Death to storage mode and reattach it to its place on my back. I unsheathe the C-100 and another, bipod-free knife.
"Go help Blake. I'll take care of the Bullheads." I say, bamf-ing onto the top of one of the craft. 'I've always wanted to do this.' I think, activating my magnetized bootsoles, allowing me to avoid falling to my death. I carefully make my way to one of the engines, standing on the wing-like strut and crouching down to look at the joint between the engine and the craft. 'That looks important.' I slash and stab at various parts of the joint until the craft starts to lose control. 'One down, four to go.' I bamf to another Bullhead, giving it the same treatment. 'Another one bites the dust.' I bamf to yet another Bullhead, seeing Blake and Sun trying to hold off the small mob of mooks. 'This'll have to be the last one. Penny can get the others.' I think, rendering the craft unworthy of flight. I bamf to The Cave and grab one of the weapons that I habitually kept almost battle ready. I heft it and chamber a round with a satisfying noise. I adjust the heavy weapon and bamf back to the docks.
I spot Sun on the ground, Torchwick's cane is aimed straight at him.
"HEY!" I shout, loosing a couple of rounds in Torchwick's general direction, forcing him back and allowing Sun to get back up.
"Hey! Get away from him!" I hear a familiar voice from the rooftop.
"Well hello Red! Isn't it pat your bedtime?" Torchwick mocks.
I look to see my little sister and Penny standing on a rooftop.
"Penny, get back!" Ruby tells her friend, before Torchwick fires a shell at her.
*bamf* *boom* I fly back from the force of the explosion,landing a dozen or so feet away on my back.
I groan, standing up and dusting myself off, walking to my weapon, a large machine gun and picking it up.
"IS THAT THE BEST YOU'VE GOT TORCHWICK!? I'LL SHOW YOU A REAL WEAPON YOU SHIT!" I bellow, assisted by my suit's speaker system. "I'VE BEATEN YOU BEFORE AND I'LL DO IT AGAIN!"
The distinctive and beautiful noise of 700 .50 caliber rounds per minute fills the air as I turn the barrel to the skies and riddle one Bullhead with Mr. John Browning's gift to the world. The other Bullhead quickly turns to attempt to make a strafing run and it soon regrets the decision, dropping from the sky to crash in a pile of twisted and slightly burning metal.
"OHHRAH! GET SOME!" I shout, as the belt fed gun runs dry.
I place my weapon on the ground. I momentarily flick my suit's voice projector off and utter a command to the suit's rudimentary systems.
Music blares and I draw Anne and Pearl.
*I AM NOW AN INSTRUMENT OF VIOLENCE!* The speakers blare, playing Warrior, by Disturbed.
I take a running jump and land on the ground about ten feet in front of Torchwick.
"REMEMBER ME?" I shout, pointing at him with Anne.
"Well shit. GET HIM!" He points at me, ordering the mooks, who were staring at the burning wrecks of Bullheads scattered around the dock area.
"I've got them! Make sure they don't get away!" I shout to my friends, also standing stunned, as another trio of Bullheads swoop in. One lands as the other two make strafing runs on Penny, Ruby, Sun, and Blake, now standing together. I don't catch much of what happens, being swamped by mooks, but I do catch glimpses of flying swords and lasers. As I wade through the small army of mooks, I see Torchwick closing the door of a Bullhead as it escapes.
"Damn." I mutter as he escapes, blocking a slash by a sword-wielding mook. *THWACK* I block his slash with Pearl and punch him straight in the face with my armored fist. the last few mooks still standing look uneasily at me, hesitating. "Stand down and drop your weapons and I won't have to hurt you." I say, sheathing my swords and turning the music off. The mooks, six of them, are standing in a semicircle two yards from me.
"We don't take orders from humans." One of the mooks says, almost spitting out the last word.
I curl my tail out from my trenchcoat, into view. "You were saying?" I question, pulling Blue death from my back and switching it to AR mode, chambering a round, holding it at hip level aimed at them.
"Traitor! Get him!" The mooks shouts, grabbing a rifle from another mook's hands and pointing it at me.
*CRACK* *CRACK*
He falls over, a hole through the front of his head and a bigger one out the back. "Anyone else want to try me?" I say, still holding my AR at hip level, barrel smoking a little.
The five remaining mooks quickly wise up, drop their weapons and raise their hands as high as they can. I look down at my left breastplate, a mark now present on the plate. I bend down and pick up a flattened piece of metal.
Sirens grow louder as police finally respond to the chaos at the docks.
Ruby runs up to me. "You...you killed him." She says.
"He shot me first. If I wasn't wearing my armor, this'd probably be in my lung." I say, holding up the squashed bullet. "If the cops ask, I'll just show them the footage from my helmet cam. Either way, it was him or me. They survived," I point at the five mooks standing with their arms raised. " And so did they." I gesture to the couple dozen mooks scattered around the docks. All various shades of unconscious.
Police cars pull up and officers pile out.
[A few minutes later.]
are securing the area, arresting the various mooks, and documenting the condition of the area.
"Well kid, I guess it's better him than you." A police officer says, looking at the body bag on the ground.
"It's not pleasant sir, I can tell you that. Killing is something I hope I never have to get used to." I say, still holding the flattened bullet.
"Well. Good job with the perps kid. You say you took down five Bullheads?"
"Yep, three with a knife and two with the big gun. I say, pointing to the M2 sitting beside me. If you don't mind, I'm gonna go back to school. Get ready for school tomorrow." I say, placing the bullet in a pouch on my belt and picking up my M2.
*bamf*