RWBY: Wolf Pack Chapter 9: Operation Vega Dawn (Part 1), a rwby fanfic

Ch. 9 – Operation Vega Dawn

I do not own RWBY, RWBY is owned by Rooster Teeth and Monty Oum (R.I.P.) nor do I own any media that may appear in the story. I only own the OCs, Enjoy! Remember to Favorite, Follow, and leave a Review.

"The fuck is this?" Carmine asked as he picked up the envelope and pulled out a series of pictures as Titus lowered his head "At approximately 10 am this morning, the Reapers made a move. A move that put the proverbial knife to their fucking throats. Thank god Duke and The Devils were there to respond." Titus said as a man walked out of the shadows and lit a cigar, he walked up to Onyx and Carmine before he shook their hands "Duke Winters, proud to be working with you boys." Duke said, Carmine chuckled "Likewise." Carmine said as he let go of Duke's hand.

Carmine placed the photos on the table as he spread them out and slowly observed them, Sapphire covered her mouth as she looked on in horror at the photos that showed numerous bodies that littered the floor. "What happened?" Onyx asked as he crossed his arms, Duke took a drag from his cigar and exhaled slowly "Well, we got managed to capture one of the shooters and interrogated him on everything he knew, he told us everything that happened. Down to the last detail." Duke said as he started to recount the events from earlier.

Earlier, Vega Civic Center - Comic Con.

Hundreds of people filled the civic center and intermingled with one another as the patrons browsed the merchandise and snapped pictures with the cosplayers who were dressed up in scantily clad outfits that were borderline lewd to say the least. A girl stood in line while she held a photo of a woman who was dressed in lingerie "Oh my god, I can't believe I'm gonna meet Nella Magnolia!" She said with an excited squeal as her friend nodded "Yeah, her cosplay really inspired me to design and cosplay as well." Her friend said as she posed in her Junko cosplay from Danganronpa. "Calli, you can pull off that outfit perfectly. I can't however, I tried to do Aoi Asahina from Danganronpa, but I didn't get tan enough." The girl said as she put herself down, Calli put her hand on the girl's shoulder "Shelly, you pulled it off perfectly. Now, let's meet Nella." Calli said as they were almost at the front.

"H-Hi Nella, it's an honor to meet you. Your cosplay inspired both of us to get involved and we were so excited to meet you." Shelly said as they shook Nella's hand. "I'm so glad I made a difference and helped you get involved in what makes you happy. Can I sign your photo?" Nella asked as she uncapped a sharpie, Calli took the photo from Shelly and handed it to Nella who quickly signed it. "Here you go, girls. Remember to stay true to yourself and do what makes you happy." Nella said to the two girls before they giggled and walked back into the flow of the crowd.

"Oh my god, I can't believe I met her!" Shelly said excitedly as she slipped the picture into her souvenir bag that said 'Vega Comic Con' on the side. "Alright Calli, what do you want to do now?" Shelly asked before she turned to see her friend standing still as she stared at something off in the distance "Calli, what is it?" Shelly asked with a concerned smile as she walked up to her friend and looked in the direction Calli was staring.

Shelly saw six large heavily armored men stand at the main entrance as they held LMGs, a woman brushed her hair as it changed from black to a reflective silver as she walked up next to them. A security guard stood up and confronted them "Excuse me, you're gonna have to check those props in." The guard said, the woman smiled as she pulled out a FN Five-Seven and shot the guard in the head as she stared at the growing crowd, the back of the guard's head exploded as brain matter and blood splattered on the window behind him. Shelly looked at the other exits and saw more armed men with assault rifles in their hands "Everyone run!" A voice yelled from within the crowd as the LMGs and assault rifles opened fire into the crowd. Bullets ripped through the bodies of the patrons who scattered in every direction, Shelly grabbed Calli by the wrist before the two ran deeper into the civic center. Bullets whizzed by her head as bodies dropped to the floor in puddles of blood, some cosplayers laid slain on their tables as their lifeless eyes stared at the roof.

Shelly looked back and saw some female cosplayers being bound and gagged as others were held down to the floor while their assailants had their way with them. Screams and cries were almost drowned out by the claps of gunfire that echoed throughout the civic center. Loki laughed as she fired her pistol at a few people who ran past her, a cosplayer drug herself across the floor as blood leaked from a wound in her leg. Loki knelt next to the woman and looked at the her that displayed sheer terror. Tear Gas canisters were thrown into small rooms in which some people hid, they came out coughing and rubbing their eyes before they were lit up, their bodies slammed against the wall and slouched to the floor, which left blood streaks on the wall.

Loki brushed the hair out the woman's face as she examined her face "So, I take it you're Nella?" Loki asked as she looked over that the kiosk that had the woman's face on the banner along with the name 'Nella Magnolia'. "Well, I must say. I love your eyes." Loki said as she opened a switchblade. Shelly flung open a closet door and pulled Calli into the small room while she was still in shock. "Shhh. You have to stay quiet." Shelly said in a hushed tone as her voice shook from fear. Calli cried quietly while Shelly held her tightly.

Nella shook in fear as Loki lowered the switchblade toward the cosplayer's face but stopped when an explosion rocked the building. Smoke grenades and flashbangs were tossed into the civic center before multiple armed men ran into the now smoke-filled room "Tango twelve o'clock! We're hot! Fire at will!" A voice yelled before the heavily armed Reapers dropped one by one as men with red masks with devil horns ran in, one of the gunners took a blade to the throat before his jugular was slit while the others were eliminated. Loki tossed her blade as she bolted through the crowd, she flung a door open and caught a round to the shoulder as she ran out the civic center.

After a while, the gunfire had stopped and replaced by the sound of heavy boots on the tile floor and radio chatter "Charlie 3 – 8 roger, sector 2 is clear." The radio said outside the closet that Shelly and Calli hid in, the door was flung open and Shelly was met with the tac light from the rail of the man's H&K 416 "It's safe now." The man said as he extended his hand to the two girls, the girls were hesitant at first but slowly emerged from the closet to behold the carnage. "Oh god!" Shelly said as she covered her mouth, paramedics rushed around the civic center as other armed men snapped pictures of the massacre.

Nella sat against the wall as she held her knees close to her chest as she wrapped a thermal blanket around herself. A paramedic tended to her wounds as Shelly and Calli slowly approached her "I'm glad to see you're safe, Nella." Shelly said as she knelt in front of the cosplayer who cried into a tissue, Nella sat up and wrapped her arms around Shelly and Calli "I'm so glad you girls are safe." Nella said as the three women started to cry. Three armed men slowly the trio "Excuse me ladies, my name is Duke Winters. I was hoping I could have a word with you." Duke said, the three women broke from their embrace and conversed with Duke as the bodies were placed into body bags and zipped up.

Back in the Wolves' Den

"Those mother fuckers will PAY for this. God damn it! We got careless but thank god you were there." Carmine said as he cracked his knuckles in anger. Duke nodded "Calli, Nella, and Shelly were checked out by the paramedics. Nella was escorted back to Atlas while Calli and Shelly are safe here in Vale. We took multiple eyewitness accounts of the mayhem and managed to capture two of the fourteen assailants. Bad part is that we killed nine Reapers, which means that three got away with the women that were bound and gagged." Duke explained, Carmine shook his head in anger.

"So, do we hit another one of their bunkers?" Carmine asked but Duke shook his head "Well, we took out most of their bases, all but one. It's still here in Vale, it's south of Vega so they most likely fled there. So, if we intend on striking and freeing those women, then we better act fast before they are shipped out. Once they move them again, we'll never see them again." Duke explained, Carmine clapped his hands together "Then let's go rescue them!" Carmine said as he stood up, but Aero tossed down a paper that had a blueprint on it.

"I pulled this from the files and it's apparently called 'R-H7Q – Mammoth', if they have this then it'll be another threat that needs to be culled." Aero said as everyone observed the blueprints of a large truck with a trailer attached behind it. The diagram displayed a long trailer with multiple mounted guns that pointed out the side of the trailer, it had two large quad barreled .50 caliber HMGs, and two eight pod missile launchers. The design had a large barrel jutting out the back of the trailer that had 'FT' written next to it.

"So, onto the main subject at hand: The Iron Hammer. We have determined that it is getting closer and it's southwest of Vale." Titus said as he displayed the map on his scroll. "So, here's what we do, we go in hard! Shock and Awe, we find the Mammoth and destroy it before we race back here and fortify for the arrival of The Iron Hammer." Onyx said as he stood up and formulated a plan. Harlequin tossed down her scroll and projected a diagram of a large airship that had four propulsion jets, multiple turrets, drop pod compartments, 360-degree missile turrets, and a cargo bay section. "Well boys, if you'll join me in 'Phantom Fury', we'll do reconnaissance from above and knock 'The Mammoth' into extinction… again." Harlequin said as she paused for a moment as she thought about her metaphor. Onyx laughed "We'd love to." Onyx said as Keppel walked through the doorway.

"Alright, who's trying to start shit now?" Keppel asked as he rubbed his hands together. "Oh, you know, just the group who hates their own existence." Crimson said as he walked out of the armory. "So, I've got an idea! So, we recon the area and do a couple strafe runs on the base, then we'll repel in and meet up with The Devil's Disciples to take out the bunker, meanwhile the 184th will set up a blockade to take out any fleeing Reapers. Once we finish, we'll haul ass back to Vale to fortify our defenses." Onyx said he created a course of action.

Titus laughed "So we get to be the blockade? I love it!" Titus exclaimed as he pulled out his scroll and placed a call. "So, the chinooks will fly in and we'll repel from them while the side guns open fire, we suspect that this is the last bunker that Cerberus was at so expect resistance. I expect there to be resistance in the form of Nevermores, Beowolves, and Griffons." Onyx explained as he zoomed in on the location in question.

Sapphire took Carmine's hand and pulled him into his bedroom before she closed the door, she sat on the bed and took his hand in hers "Babe, what's wrong?" Carmine asked as she rubbed her thumb across the top of his hand. She was silent for a moment as she gathered her words "I… I don't want you to go, at least… not yet." Sapphire said in a somber voice, Carmine sat down on the bed next to her and wrapped his arms around her.

"Babe, you know I've got to do this and since we have so much back up, we'll be fine. Hell, Harlequin will stay here with you if you want." Carmine explained, Sapphire showed a half smile "I know you gotta do what you gotta do, I just worry about you. Just… come back to me, please." Sapphire said as she wrapped her arm around Carmine's arm. Carmine chuckled "You know I always do." Carmine said as he stood up and kissed her on the lips.

Carmine quickly got dressed and threw his gear on in a matter of minutes, exchanging jeans for tactical pants and t-shirts for a Kevlar hoodie and a Heavy IBA. He slipped his boots on and zipped up the sides of them before he slipped the pants leg over them as Sapphire tightened the sides of his IBA and helped him with his tactical belt. Carmine adjusted his gear before he left his room to rejoin the brief, he looked over at the living room where Aero had turned on the TV to the news.

A banner flashed across the screen that read 'Breaking News' before the news anchor showed up on screen "Breaking news, multiple prison breaks have been reported throughout Remnant with two happening in Vale four days ago. Atlas military and other Police Departments could not be reached for comment but did say that they were handling it. In other news, Pyrrha Nikos of Argus has moved on to the final round of the Mistral Region Tournament, if she wins then this would be Miss Nikos' fourth consecutive win." The news anchor said before Aero shut the TV off again.

"They're building their forces again, after that huge defeat at the docks, I bet they're getting desperate." Titus said with a chuckle. He sat his scroll down on the table and projected multiple vehicle holograms "Alright so the 184th is bringing in four LAV-25s, four BTR-4s, and four IVECO LMVs. We'll have forces push through and post up in the trees and around the bunker." Titus explained as the holograms changed to a map that showed multiple chinooks carrying APCs flying toward Vale.

"Alright guys let's load up! Harlequin, do you mind staying back with Sapphire?" Carmine asked as he adjusted his IBA, Harlequin nodded "Sure, I'll stay back with the little lady." Harlequin said before Carmine and Onyx led her to the operations room. Onyx pressed a few buttons on the keyboard and brought all the monitors to life "Just call me your eye in the sky." Harlequin said as she sat down in one of the chairs, other Vipers walked in and sat down next to Harlequin.

"Guys, this is my head of intelligence, Jay. He'll be going by 'Overlord' for this operation which we'll be calling 'Operation Vega Dawn'." Harlequin said as she introduced Jay to them. Jay proceeded to sync their scrolls to a single database "Right, so now we can monitor all of your vitals, your position, and we'll also monitor what you see." Jay said as he handed Onyx and Carmine a couple boxes that had shoulder mounted cameras.

Carmine and Onyx walked out of the operation center and into the armory where he sat the boxes down on the table. The other Wolves walked in and prepped their gear, they took out the cameras and attached them to their shoulders, Jay called out from the operations center "Looking good!" Jay yelled as each feed was connected to the screen with each mercenaries' name under each feed.

"Hey Crimson! Throw something on while get ready!" Onyx yelled from within the armory, Crimson plugged his scroll in and tapped play on the media player.

The Pale Rider – The Heavy Horses

As the joint ops prepped their gear, the sound of an acoustic guitar and banjo came over the speakers. Carmine slipped his Ka-Bar into the sheath on the left side of his chest, Crimson slapped a fresh magazine into a Minebea PM-9 that he put into the holster on his side. Keppel picked out a Remington M2010 ESR and slammed a magazine with AP rounds into the receiver and pulled back the bolt to chamber a round.

Ride to town, shoot 'em up and keep on going, 'Cause I got a job to do and I don't stop for no one. So get your gun, and kiss your wife, and lock up your daughter, don't let her fall in love with the pale rider.

Onyx picked up an AK-12 and attached an ACOG sight to the top rail before he attached a foregrip to the handguard and a laser sight to the side rail "No AK-74 today?" Carmine asked as he placed a magazine into his front pouch, Onyx shook his head "Nah, giving the old girl some rest." Onyx said as he inserted a fresh mag into the receiver and pulled back the bolt.

Many men have quickly found I'm unforgiving, they say dying ain't no way to make a living. So get your gun and bet your life, if you're a gambler, you draw a dead man's hand against the pale rider.

"Alright boys! Let's get one thing straight! This isn't a small fight we're in, this is war! You encounter the enemy, you eliminate with extreme aggression." Onyx explained as he slipped a P226 into his side holster. "Hey, should we alert Ironwood to the current situation?" Carmine asked, Duke stepped forward and let out a slight laugh "Yeah, that's the first thing we did." Duke explained, Onyx crossed his arms "And?" He asked as anger built in his voice. "And they said there's no threat." Duke said, Carmine shot out of the armory "Bullshit, they arrested Alastor back in Mt. Glenn!" Carmine exclaimed.

And I walked down into Vacuo, what I came for I think you know. I take another life, it's all the same, it's one more killing to the man that has no name.

"Yeah, I gave them his real name and they said that name doesn't exist in any of the databases." Duke explained, Onyx scoffed and chuckled "Those mother fuckers are already cleaning house. They're sweeping this shit under the rug." Onyx said with a chuckle. "So, what do we do?" Keppel asked as he adjusted the sights on his ESR, Onyx clenched his fist "We do what we signed up to do, we protect the people of Remnant, regardless of 'red tape'. We kick their ass so other people can go home to their families at the end of the day. We do what Atlas won't, we confront the enemy and live to tell the tale." Onyx said to the entire room before he was met with a resounding 'Hell Yeah!' from the member of the JSO (Joint Special Operations) team.

So ride to town, shoot 'em up and keep on going, cause I got a job to do and I'll be gone come morning. So get your gun, and kiss your wife and hug your daughter, tell her you're off to meet the pale rider. Don't let her fall in love with the pale rider.

And I walked down into Vacuo, what I came for I think you know. I take another life, it's all the same, it's one more killing to the man that has no name, it's one more bullet to the man that has no name.

Grullo picked up an M240B Medium Machine Gun and sat it on the table "Nightshade, pass me a box of 7.62 x 51mm." Grullo said before Nightshade slid two large metal boxes across the table. Grullo connected the detachable box to the MMG and fed the chain into the receiver before he cocked back the bolt. "Guys! Predator drone is flying over the bunker now." Harlequin said as she brought the feed up on the large TV. She flicked a switch that changed the camera to a FLIR camera that illuminated multiple white dots in a sea of black that was the forest "Those aren't Grimm since they don't produce heat. I'm counting maybe thirty or forty tangos, looks like there are snipers in the tree line." Harlequin explained, Duke pointed to the bottom of the screen "The Disciples are moving in from the south." Duke said as he pointed to fifteen flashing strobes pushing through the trees from the south.

"TOC, this is Brimstone. We're pushing into the Apex of the bunker, how copy?" The operators asked, Duke clicked a button on his chest "This is TOC, we copy and have eyes on you. Proceed with infiltration of breakout." Duke said before the blinking dots moved deeper into the forest. The members of the JSO watched as more non-blinking white dots popped up in the forest ahead of Brimstone, Duke pressed the button again "Brimstone, this is TOC. Be advised, we are seeing more tangos popping up on the drone feed. Proceed with interdiction and eliminate with extreme prejudice." Duke said through the mic on his chest.

They all watched carefully as the blinking dots moved in further and fanned out, some of the solid white dots disappeared quickly before they reappeared behind Brimstone. Duke frantically grabbed for his mic "Brimstone, be advised. Multiple tangos have appeared behind you, how copy?" Duke said before they watched some of the blinking dots disappear one by one.

"TOC, it's an ambush! I repeat, it's an ambush!" Brimstone yelled before their feed was replaced by static. Sapphire covered her mouth as everyone watched in horror "What the hell was that? They just disappeared and reappeared." Duke said as he stood in a stunned silence. "That had to have been the shadow soldiers that were in the base in Vacuo." Carmine said as he stared at the screen.

Duke looked at the joint operatives that filled the room with a combination of anger and determination "We need to move, and we need to move, now!" Duke exclaimed, everyone nodded as they got back to work arming themselves. Nightshade picked up an AA-12 and slammed a drum mag into the receiver before he pulled back the bolt on top of the shotgun, Crimson grabbed his Sig SG 550 and attached an ACOG sight to the top rail along with an angled foregrip to the underside of the handguard.

Aero opened a folded compound bow and refolded it before he placed it on his lower back, he picked a quiver off the table and adjusted the tip selector at the bottom of the quiver, he adjusted the size of the quiver and inserted more arrow bodies into the quiver. Grullo picked up a Remington 870 and tossed it to Grizz who was standing in the corner, Grizz caught it and cocked it before he placed it on his back and picked his chainsaw up off the floor. Bubba walked through the back door while he was followed by two guys in balaclavas and molle vests who carried M16a4s.

"These guys with you, Duke?" Bubba asked, Duke nodded "Yeah, these are my new recruits, Reggie and Sweets. Boys, this is the Wolf Pack. That's Titus, Aero, Grizz, and Bubba of the 184th Mistral Militia, and that's Harlequin of the Viper Legion." Duke said as he introduced everyone. As they talked, the song changed to a heavier song and played through the speakers.

Indestructible – Disturbed

"We will give them no quarter and will show them no mercy. The Reapers die TONIGHT!" Carmine exclaimed, everyone cheered as they prepped their gear.

Another mission, the powers have called me away. Another time to carry the colors again, my motivation an oath I've sworn to defend, to win the honor of coming back home again. No explanation will matter after we begin, unlock the dark destroyer that's buried within. My true vocation and now my unfortunate friend, you will discover a war you're unable to win.

"Wolves, when you're ready, the Phantom Fury is overhead. You'll take a VTOL to her and make your way to the bunker. You'll be meeting with my second in command, Luna." Harlequin said, Onyx and Carmine nodded as Carmine slapped a fresh mag into his Scar-H.

I'll have you know that I've become!

Indestructible determination that is incorruptible from the other side. A terror to behold, annihilation will be unavoidable. Every broken enemy will know, that their opponent had to be invincible. Take a last look around while you're alive, I'm an indestructible master of war.

"How could this have gotten so bad? Why is Atlas refusing to do anything?!" Carmine asked as he loaded his MP7, Onyx chuckled "I don't know, guess we'll have to have a long talk with pops." Onyx said, Carmine stared at him as if he had just shot a priest. Onyx looked over at Carmine who stared at his brother "What's up, little bro?" Onyx asked, Carmine shook his head "So, Ironwood is our dad?" Carmine asked, Onyx shook his head "No, he took us in after our actual parents died in an accident. You were too young to remember it." Onyx explained, the memories leaked into Carmine's mind of Onyx carrying him as an infant away from a smoldering wreck.

Another reason, another cause for me to fight. Another fuse uncovered now, for me to light. My dedication to all that I've sworn to protect, I carry out my orders without a regret. A declaration embedded deep under my skin, a permanent reminder of how it began. No hesitation when I am commanded to strike. You need to know that you're in for the fight of your life.

"That doesn't answer the question though, with all this chaos happening, I'm sure the media or the people in general would have to have noticed all of this." Carmine said as he grabbed his gas mask and clipped it to his belt. Crimson shook his head "When you control the media, you tell the masses whatever you want them to hear." Crimson said as he placed his Ka-Bar into its sheath.

You will be shown how I've become!

"It's crazy to think that I'm fighting an all-out war at just 18, mom and dad would probably be furious." Carmine said with a chuckle, Onyx patted his little brother on the back as he picked up some grenades from a box on the table. "You know, I heard that some semblances are hereditary, so I wonder if I got mine from dad?" Carmine asked as he placed the grenade into his pouch on his side, Onyx shrugged and grabbed two grenades from the box.

Indestructible, determination that is incorruptible, from the other side a terror to behold. Annihilation will be unavoidable; every broken enemy will know that their opponent had to be invincible take a last look around while you're alive. I'm an indestructible, indestructible!

"Alright, let's head out! Wolves will take to the sky while the 184th and the Disciples will haul ass there, we'll wait for you boys to arrive before we start our assault on the bunker itself. Meanwhile we'll eliminate the forces in the forest." Duke said as he rested an ARX-160 on his shoulder. Everyone nodded and made a beeline for the door, once they got out of the HQ, the Wolves took off sprinting toward the air docks. "MOVE! MAKE WAY!" Onyx and Carmine yelled at the crowd of people who quickly moved to create path for them, meanwhile the 184th and Disciples climbed into multiple Humvees and sped off toward the forest.

The Wolves climbed into a VTOL that had an ouroboros snake on the side of it "You boys the Wolf Pack?" The pilot asked, Onyx nodded as he sat down. The back of the air ship closed before it took off into the sky "Alright boys, we're coming up on the Phantom Fury now." The pilot said as Carmine and Onyx looked out the front window but saw nothing, suddenly a shimmer rippled across the sky as a large airship uncloaked itself.

The airship had four pivoting thrusters, multiple gun emplacements, 360 rocket pods, bomb bay doors, and drop pods near the middle of the ship. The side of the ship opened as the VTOL flew into the hanger on board the Phantom Fury, the Wolves jumped out of the VTOL and were quickly escorted to the bridge where a woman with white hair and heterochromatic eyes stood, her eyes were a combination of emerald green and topaz amber. "Ahh, you boys must be the Wolf Pack." The woman said, Onyx nodded "And I guess you're Luna?" Onyx asked, the woman nodded back "Luna Lovefield at your service." Luna said with a curtsy, Crimson raised his hand "I'll take you up on that offer." Crimson said with a smirk before Grullo slapped him in the back of the head.

"Right, so if you boys will man those terminals over there, we'll disembark." Luna said as she gestured to a wall of terminals in the corner. Carmine, Onyx, and Keppel took three on the right side while Crimson, Nightshade, and Grullo took the three on the left. "Pico! Hit it!" Luna yelled before the ship bucked as the thrusters activated and went into overdrive. As the Phantom Fury raced across the sky, alarms started blaring "Incoming Grimm!" Pico yelled from the pilot's chair. Luna laughed "Alright boys, you're up. Let those guns ring!" Luna exclaimed as the weapon system came online.

The terminal screens flicked on and displayed the ground below and a horde of Nevermore's that filled the sky. The mounted Vulcans came online and started to rain 30mm hellfire while rockets shot out of the turrets and chased their target through the air before they exploded, the Nevermore's exploded in the air as the Phantom Fury flew through the sky. A Nevermore strafed the side of the airship before it banked under the ship and knocked out one of the guns "Shit! We lost one!" Crimson yelled as he changed the feed to another gun. The casings rained down from above as the guns spit out continuous fire and multiple rockets exploded in the air as they hit the Grimm.

"Alright boys! Let the AI take over, y'all get to the drop pods!" Luna said as a face popped up on the monitors and winked at them. The Wolves shot up and ran down the hall toward a room marked 'Drop pods', they walked in and looked at the open pods "Man, this looks like the opening scene to Halo 2. You know when the chief drops in on those covey fucks." Crimson said as he sat his rifle inside the pod and climbed in afterward. Onyx looked at the armory that was on the wall and grabbed an RPG off the wall "Here's a Dard 120, have fun." Onyx said as he handed the rocket launcher to Crimson who laughed and happily took it.

Everyone climbed into their pods and closed the doors "We're all ready." Onyx said through the intercom, the feed buzzed before it clicked again "Roger that. Happy hunting, Wolves." Luna said before the pods shot out of the bottom of the air ship, the pods screamed through the sky as they rocketed toward the ground. Metal parachutes shot out of the tops and slowed their descent before they slammed into the ground, Carmine pulled the cord on the roof and blew the door off the pod before he jumped out and raised his rifle.

Crimson jumped out with his rifle in one hand and the Dard 120 in the other "Come get some, chuckle fucks!" Crimson yelled with a combination of enthusiasm and anger. The Wolf Pack looked around the forest but were met with silence mixed with the occasional claps of gunfire from above. "Alright boys, we saw your entry. Make your way two clicks north." Titus's voice said through their earpieces. The last pod door blew off before Grullo stepped out and gripped his M240b "Let's go kick their teeth down their throat." Grullo said as he carried the LMG with the barrel pointed toward the ground.

The group moved slowly through the tree line as they kept their head on a swivel, "Keep your eyes open for tripwires." Onyx said as scanned the base of the trees he passed, as they walked through the forest, they heard the familiar sound of engines rumbling. As they emerged from the forest, two BTR-4s drove past them as the APCs disappeared into the forest.

"Hey boys, glad you could make it to the party." Titus said as he walked out from under a tent that was being set up. "What's the situation look like?" Onyx asked, Titus chuckled "Well, they put up one hell of a fight, but they retreated back into the base and locked it down. Whatever's in here, they don't want us to see it." Titus explained as more gunshots rang out from within the forest. "This place is fortified, it's not like any of the other bunkers. This one is… this one is special. We found a hatch and are prepping a breach system as we speak." Titus explained as they walked up to where the Disciples were boring into the ground around a concrete slab with a metal hatch in the middle, they slowly slid multiple Semtex charges down into the bored holes and connected the wires together.

"Alright, y'all step back. This is gonna be fucking loud." One of the Disciples said, the name 'Nightwalker' was written on a patch on the front of his Molle vest. Everyone quickly moved behind cover before Nightwalker clicked the detonator, all twelves charges clicked from red to green before they exploded in a massive explosion that ripped through the ground below and evaporated the concrete foundation, the explosion rocked the ground as a huge plume of smoke and dust covered the area.

"Carp! You're up!" Duke yelled before a man shot up and put his hands together, a swift wind current rushed through the forest and caused the cloud of dust and smoke to dissipate. The Joint Task Force emerged from behind cover and inspected the giant crater "Walker, how much Semtex did you use?" Duke asked, Nightwalker shrugged "About nine lbs." Nightwalker said. Suddenly sirens blared and red warning lights flashed from within the now breached bunker, Nightshade chuckled "You think they know we're here?" He asked sarcastically as Carp and Nightwalker started to set up repel lines.

"Alright boys remember, we don't fear the reaper." Titus said as he latched the rope to his belt, the others followed suit before they lowered themselves into the bunker. Chunks of concrete and rebar clicked against the concrete floor as the boots of the mercenaries hit the floor, the Disciples raised their weapons and pointed them down the hall while the 184th aimed the other way down the other hall. "Clear." Nightwalker said as he took a knee next to the wall. "Lights on." Titus said before they clicked the tactical light on the end of their weapons on, one by one, the lights illuminated the dark corridor. "Overlord, how copy?" Carmine asked as he pressed his ear piece after he disconnected the repel line.

"We read you five by five." Overlord said through their intercoms. "10-4 Overlord, JSO is moving deeper." Titus said as he gripped his M4 close to his chest, the feed clicked slightly as the static buzzed. "Roger JSO, good hunting." Overlord said before the feed went silent. "JSO?" Carp asked as he gripped a Benelli M4 and pointed it down range. "Joint Special Operations, this threat is so massive that we have to come together to confront it. Honestly, I think we should keep it like this, this cooperative agreement." Duke said as he pushed the buttstock into his shoulder, everyone nodded before they slowly started to move down the hall.

"Y'all go ahead, we're going to go cut off their escape routes." Titus said before he slowly pulled himself up the repel rope and back outside. "Remember, check your corners. This is their last line of defense; a cornered rat will fight back." Onyx said as they walked into a more open corridor, the lights flickered as they illuminated the area as the operatives clicked their lights off. "So, where are we?" Crimson asked as he looked around the room as he walked around slowly, a deep cackle echoed from the corners of the room "Just where I want you." A dark voice said as black smoke filled the area, shadow soldiers slowly emerged from the floor and surrounded the JSO Operatives.

"Shit, this is bad. What do we do?" Reggie asked as he backed up slowly. "Find the real one." A voice said from behind them, the group turned around to see Phantom walking out of a cloud of black smoke while he held a Spas -12 in his hands. Reggie gripped his rifle and dashed forward as he shot at each of the shadow soldiers, but his bullets passed through them, "Wait! Get back!" Phantom yelled but his warning came too late as the operatives watched as the black smoke forced its way down Reggie's throat, Reggie stood in an almost catatonic state as blood slowly leaked from his eyes and out of his nose, the sound of bones cracking emanated from Reggie's body before his entire body exploded, sending chunks of flesh, tissue, meat, and bone flying all around the room, a shadow soldier stood in his place, this one having the same features as Reggie.

"This is the work of Mamba, I called him Predator, since his semblance allows him to project a shadow form of anyone he's ever killed. These shadow soldiers, they are copies of all of his victims." Phantom explained as the shadows lined up next to each other. "So, what do we do?" Crimson asked as he raised his rifle, Phantom sighed "We need to find Mamba, but he could be literally anywhere." Phantom said, Carmine looked around the room bewildered "So how do we get through this?" Carmine asked as he gripped his rifle tighter.

Carp placed his shotgun onto his back and cracked his knuckles, the wind howled as a gust of wind rushed down the hole in the roof and blew through the tunnels, the smoke quickly dissipated as it lingered around the corners of the roof. "Go! I'll hold them off here." Carp said as he maintained the constant gust of wind. Duke was about to walk down the hall, but Carp got his attention with a whistle "In my right pocket on my chest, take these wind dust crystals, they'll come in handy." Carp said as he held his arms up.

Duke pulled a bag of green crystals out of the man's pocket and placed them in his own pocket before he followed the Wolves who were accompanied by Aero and Grizz "Why didn't you two go with Titus?" Nightshade asked as he checked the corner and peaked under closed doors, Grizz laughed "And miss the action? I think not." Grizz said as he kicked a door down off its hinges, he walked into the room and looked around "Well, this is interesting. Hey, come check this out!" Grizz yelled as he pulled out a flashlight and clicked it on.

Carmine, Crimson, Onyx, Duke, and Nightshade walked into the room as Grizz shined the light around the room "What the fuck is this?" Nightshade asked as he looked at the diagrams and pictures on the wall. "A hit list?" Crimson asked as he flipped through some papers, Carmine found a switch on the wall and flipped it which brought the room to life.

"Holy shit fuck." Nightshade said as he looked at the wall that had blueprints and plans all over it, they looked on the floor and found bits of burnt paper "Well, looks like we found what they wanted to hide." Onyx chuckled as he looked at the diagram on the wall "Hey Duke, isn't that the Vega Convention Center?" Carmine asked as he gestured to the large diagram of a city metro area, Duke nodded "Yeah, looks like it. So, they had planned this for quite some time." Duke stated before the ground shook with a thunderous roar as the sound of explosions echoed from outside.

"JSO, this is Overlord. Be advised, multiple fast movers have engaged friendly forces, over." Overlord said through their earpieces, Duke clicked the button on his chest as he pressed his ear piece "Roger Overlord, Brimstone two actual is moving out, over." Duke said before he let go of the microphone. "Brimstone two? Really?" Nightshade asked with a chuckle, Duke shrugged "We're devils so it only makes sense that we're known as Brimstone." Duke said before he clicked the microphone on again "Overlord, this is Brimstone two actual. How many fast movers are being engaged? Over." Duke asked before the room filled with the white noise of the radio, the feed clicked back as Overlord came back through "Brimstone two, be advised, friendly forces count at least thirty fast movers. Over." Overlord said which caused everyone in the room to tense up.

Aero walked into the room and looked at the materials on the wall "Well, this doesn't look like the one from the forest at all." Aero said as he picked up the documents on the desk and flipped through them. "Hey… look at this." Aero said as he sat down a manifest on the desk with a letter head that read 'Carrion Industries'. "Is this a weapons manifest?" Onyx asked, Aero nodded "Yeah, weapons, armor, vehicles. Look at this, seven SU-57s, seven J-20s, ten Tu–160s, and six SU-27s. Shipments of Assault Rifles, Shotguns, LMGs, Handguns, Kevlar vests, Hand Grenades, C4, components for IEDs. BTRs, BMPs, M2s, M134s, RPGs, MLRS turrets. Holy fuck, there are enough weapons to supply an army." Aero said as he placed down more dossiers.

"So, this Carrion Industries is the one supplying the Reapers." Onyx said as he took pictures of the documents with his scroll. "So, we need to find out who oversees Carrion Industries. Overlord, can you look into that?" Carmine asked as he pressed his earpiece, the radio feed crackled before Overlord came through their earpieces "Roger. Now, go kick their ass." Overlord said, Aero chuckled "Y'all go ahead, I'm gonna collect these documents and get them out of here." Aero said as he started to load the papers and files into a satchel.

The Wolves' piled out of the office and back into the main corridor where Carp was standing, his knees shaking as he slowly lost stamina. "Please. Hurry." Carp said as he struggled to hold the smoke at bay. "Alright boys, let's make some noise!" Onyx said before the Wolves' raised their weapons as Carp dropped to one knee. Within an instant, a hail of gunfire ripped into the walls as the claps of gunfire echoed through the bunker corridors, Carmine pulled out a hand grenade and ripped the pin out before he tossed it into the corridor, the spoon tapped against the concrete floor before it exploded in flash of brilliant light the illuminated the dim room.

As Carmine scanned the floor, he noticed the smoke coming from a vent near a large section of wall, he clicked the green laser on his rifle on and pointed it at the wall "Crimson! Fire the Dard!" Carmine commanded before Crimson fished the RPG from his back and placed it on his shoulder. "Blast back is clear." Nightshade said before Crimson squeezed the trigger, the rocket leapt from the tube and screamed through the air before it hit the wall with a thunderous explosion that carved the concrete out from the wall.

Duke tossed a green crystal into the cloud of smoke and shot it once, the crystal exploded and released a massive gust of wind that caused the smoke and dust to dissipate. As the smoke cleared, a figure limped out of the hole coughing and hacking up a storm; "Is that…?" Onyx started to ask but Phantom cut him off "That's him, the real deal. That's Mamba." Phantom said as the man tried to get a hold of his bearings. "I think you fuckers ruptured my eardrum." Mamba said as he wiped some blood from his ear and wiped it on his shirt before he raised his hands.

"Looks like the predator is now the prey." Carmine said with a chuckle before the JSO opened fire and riddled Mamba with bullets that tore through his body like paper and painted the wall with bullet holes and blood spatter. Some members of the JSO swapped out their spent mags for fresh ones and pulled back the bolts on the sides of their weapons. "Really? The predator is now the prey? That's the best you got?" Crimson asked the rifleman, Carmine shrugged as he placed his rifle on his back.

As they looked around the destruction, their intercoms hissed as the audio came online "Brimstone actual, this is Overlord. We got some information on this shadow corporation, turns out this Carrion used to be partnered with Lapis Industries and their current partner is, wait for it, Sarcoline Industries." Overlord said as he relayed the vital information.

"Well no shit, you think this might have something to do with Schnee?" Crimson asked as he nudged Mamba's body with his foot. Mamba's head fell to the side as blood leaked from his mouth and pooled around his neck, Crimson reached down and pulled the man's scroll from his pocket but found it with a bullet hole through it. The room's silence was broken when Grizz kicked in another door, the door broke off its hinges and crashed down the stairwell before it slammed into the wall. "Found the stairs." Grizz said with a shit eating grin, the sounds of boots slamming onto concrete echoed from the floor below accompanied by people shouting.

"Looks like they're ready for us." Phantom said as he cocked his shotgun, Aero walked out of the office with a bag and handed it to Carp "Get this back to Titus." Aero said as he handed the satchel to the Disciple, he nodded and jogged down the hall to the awaiting repel ropes. Carp attached the ropes to his harness and quickly pulled himself out of the breach in the ceiling, Aero looked back at the JSO and pulled out his folded compound bow which he slammed open. "You ready?" Onyx asked as he rested his rifle onto his shoulder, Aero nodded "Hell yeah! Let's go kick their asses." Aero said as he pulled an arrow from the quiver on his back and snapped the nock onto the nock point.

Grullo moved to the front of the group before he slowly descended the stairs to the lower level, he poked his head out from cover but whipped it back when a barrage of bullets impacted the wall in front of him. "My turn." Nightshade said before he seemingly disappeared after he took a single step, he reappeared suddenly behind a wall on the second floor. "What's his semblance?" Aero asked, Onyx chuckled "He calls it 'Flashpoint' he becomes ethereal for about ten seconds and he can go anywhere." Onyx explained in a hushed tone.

Grullo dashed down the stairs and raised his LMG, as the barrel leveled with its targets, the time around him seemed to slow as he squeezed the trigger and opened fire on the Reapers in the corridor, the 7.62 x 51mm ripped through their bodies and coated the floor with blood and chunks of flesh.

Their bodies dropped to the ground with resounding thuds as the gunfire ceased, the corridor was deathly quiet as the sound of blood dripped into puddles of blood and standing water that mixed into puddles of murky water. The Joint Task Force slowly descended the staircase and regrouped with Grullo and Nightshade, Nightshade felt the wall until he found a lever and lifted it, the lights above sprung to life and illuminated the now battered room. Bodies were slouched against walls and draped over concrete barricades, in the middle of two barricades was a 12.7mm Kord HMG. "So, are we taking this with us? Cause I think we are taking this." Carmine asked as he lifted the barrel slightly.

Grullo and Grizz grabbed the base of the HMG and lifted it while Crimson folded the tripod in, Grizz rested it on his shoulder and held it tightly "I gotcha, bud." Grizz said with a chuckle, Carmine looked around the corridor and noted the long, solid hall with a large metal door at the end of the corridor. Crimson loaded a new shell into the Dard 120 before he crouched down on one knee, everyone behind him moved out of the way as he squeezed the trigger. The rocket leapt from the launcher and screamed down the corridor before it impacted the door with a thunderous explosion, smoke filled the hall the echoing explosion dissipated.

"Alright, let's go!" Onyx yelled before the team sprinted down the hall and exploded through the cloud of smoke, as they emerged on the other side, they came upon a sight which shook them to their core. A woman stood in the middle of the room wearing only a vest rigged with explosives, the explosives were linked to a single wire that ran to a Deadman detonator. "Please. Save me." She said faintly as she sobbed quietly. "Well fuck." Carmine said in a deadpan manner.

A/N: Aye, cliffhangers! Woohoo! Well, it's getting intense as the Joint Task Force is in the Reaper's hollow now. They're going in hard and they're going in fast (giggity). Honestly, I had to split this chapter because of writer's block but I'll try to get back into the flow of things. Anyway, thanks for reading and remember to Favorite, Follow, and leave a Review, and as always, this is Nightmare 6-4, signing off.