As promised here's the finale of Thorns for the Roses Volume 1! I hope y'all enjoyed it and please leave a review if you did!
And with that, let the show begin!
Amelia groggily wakes up, her body aches everywhere, and her muscles protest even the smallest of movements.
Reluctantly she tries to sit up, but finds herself being held down by something on top of her, so she looks down, and her jaw drops open.
Summer is laying on top of her, her white cloak flowing around the two of them like a blanket.
Amelia tries to squirm out from under her, but only succeeds in waking the girl up.
"Hmm? Oh, good morning. Hope you don't mind, you were shivering like crazy last night." Summer sleepily mumbles, climbing off and sitting down by Amelia's feet.
Oh...thanks.
"Don't worry about it, you saved our asses plenty last night."
Amelia sits up and realizes why everything is so muffled, her helmet is still on.
She removes the black helmet and pulls her hair out of her flight suit, running her fingers through it several times before flicking it over her shoulder to rest behind her.
Ugh, I feel like I wrestled with a bear and lost.
"Yeah, give it a bit, you'll be running around again in no time. Aura helps with healing as much as it does with protection."
She was right, the longer Amelia sat there the more her aches and pains faded. Five minutes later she jumps up and throws a few punches into thin air before stretching her arms.
Ahh. You're right! I feel great!
Summer stretches and stands up as well, putting her cloak on as she walks towards the kitchen. "See? I told you, it's amazing the kind of punishment someone can take with aura and be fine a few hours later."
Amelia follows, but halfway across the hangar Jackson walks in and whistles.
"Elimination mission! We're wheels up in fifteen!"
Well look what the cat dragged in! You get the Thud fixed?
"Yeah they got it fixed, I've also got a ton of pictures to deliver to Ozpin. The ground crew is changing up the configuration of the Thud to a bomber as we speak, meaning I'll be joining you guys for this."
Amelia pumps her fist in celebration and grabs her helmet off the couch, tucking it under her arm before staring at Summer with a grin.
Well? What are you waiting for? Go get in your flight gear! We actually get to blow shit up this time!
Summer smiles excitedly and dashes up the stairs to the living quarters, where she grabs the gray suit and runs into the bathroom.
Jackson glares at her. "She's not trained enough to do a combat mission."
Amelia returns the glare and puts her hands on her hips.
We're not being precise, so she can ride along. I've been training her a little in each flight we've gone on, she knows how to fly, basic maneuvers and controls.
"And how is she doing? I figured you'd pull something like this."
She's actually very good, she can be gentle enough for fine adjustments, but strong enough to pull some serious G's. She pulled a solid eight for a few seconds the other day.
Jackson nods slowly, his eyes lost in thought as Summer comes out of the bathroom, dressed in her flight suit and all the extra necessities with her helmet under her arm.
Summer puts her cloak on and happily walks down the stairs, followed by Kimberly and Cassie.
Amelia slaps Jackson on the shoulder as she walks past, heading for the large bay door at the end of the hangar while Summer jogs to catch up.
She walks out to the F-105, which has been changed in configuration from photo reconnaissance to a bomber, and now multiple Mk82's hang from the pylons on the wings and below the fuselage.
All aboard the pain train!
Summer giggles and climbs into the back seat as Amelia does the pre-flight check, making sure all the ordinance is live and properly secured.
Once she finishes the pre-flight she climbs into her seat and straps in before looking down the flight line, where the rest of the team is also climbing into their aircraft. She notices Jackson give her a thumbs up before he closes his canopy and returns the gesture.
She tunes her radio with one hand while starting the plane.
{So what's the target for today? We got a taste of blood and we're ready for more!} Kimberly asks, her purple helmet standing out the most among the pilots.
{Mountain Glenn, our objective is simple, cause enough damage to hinder the movement of Grimm such as Goliath's.} Jackson talks while doing the extensive startup procedure for his A-10.
{So essentially what we did last night? Bomb the hell out of the countryside?}
{Negative, we're bombing the city. Orders directly from the high council.}
There's an eerie silence that falls over the radio as everyone starts their planes, which carries on uninterrupted until Jackson gets his engines started.
{Listen, I don't like the thought of bombing skyscrapers either. But this is what we are, we're mercenaries, we take the job nobody wants without question and take the money once it's over. If you want to back out of this one I won't blame you.}
Suddenly Cassie shuts down her engines and opens her canopy. {nope, I'm out. I'm not bombing skyscrapers, especially not when they might still have civilians in them.}
Kimberly shuts down and recites essentially the same thing.
What about you Summer? You want to make some money?
{I'll go! After all the carnage last night I want to see what things look like from above!}
Amelia grins and turns off the parking brake, taxiing to the runway before waiting for Janet and Jackson.
The pair of A-10's taxi in behind them, and from the flight line comes a sight that leaves Amelia shocked for a moment.
All of Saber flight are standing at attention, one of them covered in bandages and leaning heavily on a crutch. Determination on their faces the three slowly raise their arms into a salute.
Amelia's eyes water up as she returns the salute, the burn in her eyes lingering as she pushes the throttle forwards and accelerates down the runway.
The flight to Mt. Glenn feels like an eternity, but Amelia watches in grim satisfaction as the green landscape below turns to a blackened wasteland, littered with bomb craters and burned trees.
{Damn, just how many bombs did you guys drop?} Jackson mutters into his helmet as he stares down at the rolling landscape.
As many as was necessary to keep the civilians safe. I hope you're taking pictures Summer.
{Oh I am, I'm taking lots of pictures, video too.}
Amelia smiles as they fly over a large ridge in between Vale and Mt. Glenn, but the smile quickly disappears when she sees dozens of small black specks in the distance, all circling the abandoned and battered city.
{Nevermores, they're trying to find any survivors. Don't let them hit you with their feathers.} Janet warns as Amelia lines up on the largest skyscraper and arms her bombs.
They streak in at five thousand feet and drop their bombs before circling around to watch the impacts.
Amelia's payload all smash into its target, and the two-dozen story building topples over, landing on top of the main road out of town.
Jackson hits his target, and it topples over onto a shopping center, smashing out the colorful lights of the large building.
Janet bombs the power station, and it goes up in a bright flash as the one thousand pound bombs hit their mark, destroying the power transformers and plunging the cities lights into darkness.
{Good shit, mission complete, let's get back to home and get paid.} Jackson's voice is monotone as he spirals high above the city, turning back towards Vale.
Amelia watches the A-10 fly above her, momentarily losing track of it due to the high sun, and she marvels at it before Summer screams in her helmet.
{Look out!}
Amelia snaps out of her lull to find a Nevermore slinging feathers at them, the wide swath completely unavoidable given the performance of the aircraft. She thinks quickly and reverses the turn, causing the large black feathers to embed in the underbelly of the aircraft, instead of smashing into the cockpits.
She doesn't get to celebrate her maneuvering however, as the base of one of the large feathers pierces her seat and rips into her right thigh.
She grits her teeth in pain and accelerates away from the large bird, her white-knuckled grip on the controls shaking.
You alright back there Summer?
{Yeah I'm alright! A little banged up from the sudden maneuver but otherwise fine!}
Well I'm glad one of us is. This feather in my leg hurts like hell!
{Are you alright!? How bad is it?!}
I'll be fine. You just worry about getting plenty of pictures to show to Beacon.
Amelia opens a mental link with Jackson once she's back over the dividing ridge and he pulls up alongside her.
I need you to do a visual check on my landing gear, I'm losing hydraulic pressure and if I don't put them down now I probably won't get a chance to.
"'Alright, go ahead.'"
There's a period of electrical whirring as the hydraulic pumps try to pump fluid to lower the landing gear, but it soon fades out.
"'Shit. Half down, try your backup.'"
nothing!
"'Alright, do a full Jettison on your pylons. Then you'll have to belly it in.'"
Amelia works the switches at her disposal, and instructs Summer on what switches to flip, but once the process is complete nothing happens.
Amelia dreadfully lines up for the runway, aiming off to one side so she'll touch down in the grass.
Alright, Summer, to your low right is a black and yellow handle. Do you remember what it's for?
{Erm...no...? Should I?}
Nah, it's fine. I want you to grab it by the top and sit back in your seat, then pull it straight up.
{Uhh, okay...now?}
Yes now, before we get any lower.
There's a sudden roar behind her as Summer unknowingly ejects herself from the plane over Vale, and Amelia can practically hear Summer cussing her out behind the plane as the parachute floats to the ground.
Despite regulations against it, Amelia pulls her mask off and cuts the oxygen before reaching into her vest and pulling out a cigarette. She quickly lights it and takes a long drag as she guides the plane in, the controls being sluggish and shaky
There's a grinding sound as the underbelly of the plane grinds on concrete, but it's quickly replaced with the sound of rattling as the gravel in the grass scrapes against the fuselage. The belly landing goes well, until one of the partially extended landing gear catches in the dirt. The action causes the plane to jerk sideways, and to everyone else's horror, the plane's wings bend, then rip off, and it rolls like a log down the tarmac flinging pieces of the plane everywhere.
To Amelia, the world goes black on the second roll.