"I thank all of you for coming this long way," Ayre says gratefully to the assembled crowd of pilots sitting before her. Atlas Vanguard, NEST Inc. security forces, SDC Sentinel pilots and independent mercenaries all sat together. "In an hour, the largest armored assault in all of Remnant will begin, so please pay attention to the briefing. General Ironwood?"
"Thank you, Ayre. To those of you unfamiliar with me, my name is General James Ironwood, callsign: Judge. I will be taking command of this operation alongside Ayre and Raven." Ironwood takes her place on the podium as in front of him, a hologram of the entire Mountain Glenn area.was displayed with red dots highlighting packs of Grimm, creating a nearly all-encompassing blanket.
"Brothers, there's that many?" one of the pilots, an independent mercenary, mutters out loud and it appears plenty of pilots even among his Vanguard share the same sentiment.
"Our objective is simple. Wipe out every last speck of Grimm in Mountain Glenn and secure it for resettlement." Ironwood explains as cannons of Vale's wall were highlighted, "To do that we have devised a three-staged plan. Phase One is getting beachheads on Glenn, to do that we will open up with artillery fire from the top of Vale's walls using its defense cannons, clearing up enough for a joint unit consisting of Vanguard Squad 1 and the Sentinel squad, Shadowsteel, to clear any remaining Grimm and hold the line at Sector 1, 2 and 3. This group will be led by Raven."
He points at three different sections of Mountain Glenn ruins located near the walls, highlighting them, "These are entrances to the tunnels built between Mountain Glenn and Vale. In the days before its collapse it was used to transport resources back and forth. Our goal is to secure them so NEST Inc. MT forces led by the Watchdogs can travel through and begin constructing FOBs and fortify our positions. Vanguard Squad 2 and the independent mercenaries will remain as a reserve force to rapidly deploy if needed. That is Phase One of our plan."
He then clicks a projector remote and shows holograms of MTs moving through the streets towards the breach in Mountain Glenn's walls, highlighting them along with the old cannons mounted on the walls,
"Phase Two will begin after we consolidate our forces for another strike. Our objective is to escort Construction MTs to the breaches and seal them off, and retake control of their remaining wall-mounted defenses, get them back up and running to assist us. Vanguard 1 and 2, led by me, will be in charge of intercepting priority targets such as Goliaths and other such Grimm that will pose a threat to our FOBs and wall repair progress. Watchdogs and Shadowsteel Squad will be the main escort force, led by Raven. Independent mercenary forces will be in charge of protecting the established FOBs with Security MTs, and once again act as a reserve force if necessary. Lastly, Phase Three."
With a click of a button, the red dots were rapidly blipping out of existence until none were left, "Phase Three…the systematic elimination of every single Grimm not smart enough to run. Any questions?"
There was some clapping and whooping from the Watchdogs, mercenaries and excited grins of some of the more bloodthirsty Vanguard and Shadowsteel pilots. There was no doubt, all of them were ready and even excited for this.
One of the Sentinel pilots raises a hand, "Yeah, are we getting any more support besides MTs?"
"Negative, the Vale Council does not want armed warships over their city out of the chance we may misfire and hit them. The only ship they are allowed is the one we're on now." The hologram then displays a Carrier-class airship parked behind the Vale walls at its docks, "It'll be our main means of resupplying, and act as a headquarters to direct our effort."
He then shuts it off, looking at all of them in the eye,
"You all know your objectives. Refer to your Scrolls if you need any reminders and report to the hangars assigned. This is it people, the largest battle of your careers. Fly safe out there, and good hunting. Brothers watch over us."
"Attention all AC personnel, please report to your squad leaders immediately." A voice sounded off through the carrier's PA system as the crew of the carrier began rushing to their individual assignments, preparing the dozens of ACs for deployment, loading up MTs into large shuttles, making sure every last detail was right for this operation, "Attention all AC personnel, please report to your squad leaders immediately. Phase One begins in ten minutes. Good hunting."
"Move it! On the double! This is what you've been training for!" Ironwood shouts at his pilots as they board their ACs, all of them dressed in a variant of the Vanguard flight suit with the difference being they were powered armored variants to both aid in piloting and non-AC combat if deemed necessary, "Blizzard, you're taking point."
"Sir!" Winter Schnee snaps off a salute as the General boards his own AC, a Tank-based variant of the Heavy Fire Support classification of Vanguard ACs, the HAMMER. It was large enough to get generators that could power a frontal Hard Light Dust shield and wield dual laser cannons on each arm, its shoulders mounted with the heaviest and most powerful missile launchers they could find, capable of firing thirty micro missiles in a single salvo each.
She was about to climb into her own AC, combining designs from the AC she used in training with the Vanguard's High Mobility Assault class of AC. As such it had a slightly thicker and blocky shape with a gray coat of paint compared to the streamlined original but provided more armor without slowing her down. Besides a few other bells and whistles, it remained the same AC she was used to.
But before she could put on her helmet and get into FROSTBITE, she heard a voice call out to her,
"Hey, Winter!" she turns startled to find Adam jogging towards her in his black and red flight suit, a familiar pair of sunglasses on his face and an even more familiar confident smirk, "So this is how we meet again?"
She can't help but smile back, reaching out and clasping their hands together in a handshake, "Been too long Taurus. Mercenary life treating you alright?"
"Working like a dog." he laughs at his own joke before alarms blare and they look up, "My squad's counting on you to clear the way. Save some Grimm for us though."
She smirks at him, "Carrying you just like the academy. Just like old times."
He laughs and slaps her on the shoulder before jogging off towards his own squad, "We'll catch up over a drink! Great seeing you again, Blizzard."
"You too, Ravager," she says as she slips on her helmet and climbs up to FROSTBITE's open core. Seeing her old partner again after so long made her feel more at ease. After the whole dinner incident with her family, her day has been manageable at best with her thoughts constantly full of worry for her sister. Seeing an old friend like Taurus got her spirits back up, and she felt ready to take on any task, just like old times.
She plugs herself into FROSTBITE, through a port in her armor and begins tapping multiple controls and panels inside the core,
"This is Vanguard 1, Judge. All Vanguard elements report in." Ironwood orders through their comms, and Winter complies.
"This is Vanguard 2, Blizzard, standing by," she reports as she engages Standard Mode,
"Vanguard 3, Shellhead, standing by." Another familiar face from Trainee Group 001, Tortuga, reports in, and the rest of the squad repeats, confirming their communications were working fine, and then a new voice joins their channel.
"This is Raven…standing by…" the familiar raspy tone of their instructor reports in, and even when Winter knew this ahead of time, she almost jumped at his voice. It was one thing to fight under supervision from Raven, but this time she was going to fight alongside him, making her feel somewhat giddy.
"Hah, great seeing you again, sir!" Tortuga cheers down the comms and Raven chuckles,
"Glad to see…familiar faces." Raven says with an audible smirk, "Now let's see…how much of my lessons you rookies forgot…Let's get to work."
"This is Shadow 1, reporting in." the voice of the Sentinel squad leader chimes in as the combined squad flies towards the walls of Vale, where the cannons are firing continuously, "Look who we're flying with, boys. An honor to fight with the legendary Harbinger of Death."
Raven remains silent, ignoring those beneath his attention as he focuses on his flight path and double-checking his AC's status. Following behind him was the Vanguard flying in a position with Winter and other frontline units at the head, Ironwood behind with other heavy weapon units followed closely by the support.
Besides them were the SDC Sentinels, flying their latest models with purple exhaust blasting from their thrusters, indicating they were using Plasma Dust for fuel. The sight of it has Raven glare from the inside of his AC.
"Heh, doesn't talk much does he?" the Sentinel leader chuckles, "Our companies might be enemies, but we're gonna be comrades in arms for the rest of our stay here at least. Let's try to get along, alright?"
"This is Vanguard 1." Ironwood cuts in, "They teach you any discipline in the SDC? Why don't you cut the chatter, Shadow 1, we're about to cross the threshold."
He was right, in just a few moments they would be crossing the Vale walls and into Mountain Glenn. Even with how prepared they were, they all knew how dangerous it was. The North, where they were heading, was the most dangerous part with thousands of Grimm.
Nothing less than a full team of Huntsmen would be sent there for the occasional elimination and monitoring mission. To this day the full count of Grimm estimated to be in Mountain Glenn was unknown, but given there were decades to spend with minimum human interference, most didn't want to think how much the numbers have grown since then.
"...Alea…Iacta…Est…" Raven speaks for the first time since deploying, surprising them.
"Heh, so he can speak." Shadow 1 chuckles, "What's that supposed to mean?"
"...Die is cast…no going back." Raven explains as he taps a few more buttons in the core of his AC, "Aerial Grimm spotted…slipped past cannons…Engaging Combat Mode."
"Copy." Ironwood says as his squad does the same, "Engaging Combat Mode. All Vanguard elements commence Attack Patten 9-A. Remember to watch your fire, the last thing we want to do is put even a scratch on Vale's walls."
"Copy that, sir," Winter affirms through their comms before getting into position, the heavy weapons of the squad began unleashing their payload on the approaching Grimm as her fellow Assault-class ACs got into defensive positions in front of them to take down any Grimm that survives the barrage of missiles.
"So that's the might of Atlas' military, eh? Glad to see our taxes being put to good use." Sentinel 1 says impressed at the sight, "You ever thought about going private, General? SDC could use a man of your skills. They offer a nice retirement package and top-of-the-line cybernetics. Those old-gen cyberware can't be comfy."
"Can the SDC Sentinels stow it?" Winter grumbles as she takes shots at surviving Grimm with her linear rifle, "From what I hear you're supposed to be the very best the SDC has to offer, but all I see is a lot of barking and no bite. We're about to cross the threshold."
"Heh, well if the heiress, pardon me, the former heiress insists. Make sure to put a good word in for me to your father, if you're still talking of course." Sentinel 1 chuckles before diverging from his course, "This is Shadow 1, we're diverging towards Sector 3 as planned. Alright Shadowsteel, let's show them how we do things in the SDC! Drones up front, now."
The Sentinel pilots flew off in formation, with their AC-sized drones taking point as their thrusters increased their power, breaking the sound barrier in seconds and leaving only trails of purple exhaust fumes in their wake.
AC drones…she supposed that would be cheaper than training pilots and paying their salary, insurance and whatnot. Of course, her father would go for the cheapest options, but something felt…odd. About the way the drones moved.
"Shit, did you guys see that?" Tortuga mutters, flying next to her in a customized version of the Standard Assault class of Vanguard ACs, a Biped-based unit armed with a hexagonal shield-cannon and a modified assault rifle, "Plasma engines are no joke. With all the fancy tech I'm surprised you didn't sign up with them, Blizzard."
Winter grimaces at the thought, "Stow it, Shellhead. Get your head in the game. Alpha Nevermore at 1 o'clock."
"Copy," he says as he shoots a burst at said Alpha, downing it in three shots, and downing some of its flock with the bullets that pierced through its body. With the last of their resistance gone, they began flying back in their original formation, crossing over the walls at last.
"This is Vanguard 1, we have crossed the threshold." Ironwood announces, "Moving to Sector 2. All Vanguard elements disengage Assault Boost. Raven, will you be requiring assistance to clear Sector 1?"
"Negative…" Raven reports over the comms as he accelerates towards the largest concentration of Grimm of all the Sectors. His one was out of range of cannons meaning they weren't scattered by the barrage of artillery but he sounded unconcerned anyway, "I need the exercise…"
At the abandoned station that connects Vale to Mountain Glenn, Watchdog 1 waits in his AC, a Tetrapod-based unit called the CLAM, overlooking the loading of supplies into three separated and specialized armored trains created by NEST Inc. for this mission. Once they reach Glenn they'll diverge at different intersections to reach their Sectors.
"All Sectors are engaged. Watchdogs you are cleared to begin deployment."
"Hear that people?!" he shouts over his comms as he raises his AC's fist, "That's our cue ladies and gents! Get those crates loaded up now, we don't want to keep our friends waiting do we?"
"No, sir!" a collective shout came from the MT squadrons as they hastened their process.
He turned to address his squad of thirteen ACs and their pilots, "You all know your assignments, Watchdogs. But this is for those who had your brains replaced by sponges at birth, looking at you Watchdog 4."
"Kiss my ass, sir!" Watchdog 4, Foghorn, shot back and the squad chuckled.
"So here's a reminder. I'll be taking Watchdog 2 and 4 with me to Sector 1. We're going with the boss. Watchdog 5 to 9 you get Sector 3, so play nice with those SDC folk, especially you Watchdog 7. I don't like the stink eye you were giving them. Lastly Watchdog 10 to 13 you're with the Vanguard in Sector 2." Pearl rattles off, "I don't need to remind you all that this is the biggest job of our lives. I don't want any heroics from anyone, least of all you Watchdog 13."
Adam smirks in his cockpit, "Wouldn't dream of it, sir."
"Like hell you won't." Pearl scoffs with a grin under his helmet, "Just remember to have fun and play it safe out there, folks. We get through this and we all get the first choice of land in New Glenn City! You know what that means? Lakeside property for everyone! Now move out!"
The Watchdogs cheer at this before moving towards their assigned armored trains, stepping onto flatcars and kneeling down as low as possible, while the MTs load up their weapons and construction equipment into box cars, packing them together like sardines.
Gravity Dust cells lining the bottom of the trains began activating before they accelerated, diving into the dark tunnels at high speed. As they travel forward, the hydraulically sealed blast doors, none having opened since they shut down in the Fall of Mount Glenn, began opening one by one after decades to let them pass.
"Blast Door 1… Blast Door 2 cleared…Blast Door 3 cleared…Blast Door 4 cleared…Blast door 5 cleared…All Blast Doors cleared." the voice over the comms announced as the last train passed through the last, "All Serpent elements en route to Mountain Glenn. Godspeed Watchdog squad."
"En route to Mount Glenn…" Watchdog 10, Nova, mutters out loud. An ageing former member of the Vale National Guard, he was the squad's designated marksman piloting a Reversed Joint-based AC with a gray camouflage pattern and a heavy linear rifle strapped to his back, "Never thought I'd hear those words ever again."
"You were there weren't you, old man? Anything we need to expect?" Watchdog 12, Nightwatch, was the former rookie of the Watchdog squad before Ravager came along and took the title. A former Huntsmen and Haven graduate who had lost his license, he now pilots a heavy Biped-based AC as one of the squad's frontline units armed with an assault rifle and missile launcher.
"Nothing they didn't cover in the briefing." Nova responds grimly, "Grimm at every corner…Tearing down skyscrapers from sheer numbers…More monsters than we have ammo for…Not even Huntsmen could stem the tide long enough. In one week the Vale Army was turned into the Vale National Guard. Lost too many men and equipment there before higher-ups called it a lost cause."
"...You think we can win this time, sir?" Watchdog 11 who had been remaining quiet all this time spoke up. Callsign, Phoenix, with an infamous reputation among the maintenance crew thanks to receiving the most damage for her AC out of all of them the most frequently, enough that there was a dartboard with her picture on it in their office. She was the squad's grenadier, piloting another Reversed Joint-based wielding a grenade launcher in one arm and a machine gun in the other.
"Boss wouldn't send us here if they didn't think so." Nova assures Phoenix, "Raven's unlike any officer I fought under, and General Ironwood has a reputation. If even the Atlas Vanguard are throwing their weight behind this with their best squads, they must think we can win. Just make sure to keep an eye on your ammo and you're good."
As he says this the train suddenly shudders and gunfire is heard ahead of the train. Nova taps into his comms, "Watchdog 10 to Serpent 2, what's going on?"
The conductor of the armored train responds, "Sir, there are Grimm in the tunnels. Bastards must've been spawning down here for who knows how long. How did advance recon not catch this? Shit, they're slipping past our point defense cannons…We're being boarded!"
"Copy, Serpent 2. Stand by." Nova nods before switching to team comms,
"Sir, permission to repel boarders?" Adam asks with an excited grin and Nova sighs,
"Kids nowadays…Permission granted. Watchdog 12 and 13 get out there and deal with them. If they damage the engines we'll be stuck here. Vanguard Squad 1 needs us so get to it." Nova orders and the two pilots ejected from their ACs, grabbing their weapons from holsters in the cockpit before rushing out.
"Boots on the ground, you're not rusty I hope?" Adam jokes as he hops across the train carts with Blush and Wilt in hand, while Nightwatch follows while unfolding his Multi-Dust Halberd, Tempest's Edge.
"Please, I've been doing this type of work longer than I've been in an AC." Nightwatch scoffs as he leaps to keep up with his younger and sprier squadmate, "I should be asking if you can keep up."
The two arrive at the train engine where spider-like Grimm is crawling over it, trying to bite through the hull as larger variants tear out the point defence cannons,
"Shit, we got Araknes!" Nightwatch grimaces as he swings Tempest's Edge, activating Lightning Dust to create a crackling blade, "Take care of the smaller ones first and avoid the big ones, or-!"
"Or they'll explode into smaller variants, I know." Adam pulls out Wilt from blush and holds it out towards Nightwatch who spun Tempest's Edge before swinging with all his might against Wilt. The red blade absorbs the blows as Adam sheathes it before unleashing Moonslice on the horde of Araknes, slaughtering a large portion of the smaller variants before they charge in.
Nightwatch switches to Wind Dust, spinning his weapon and creating strong gusts to blast the smaller variants while the larger and stronger ones hold on. Those were dealt with by Adam himself, keeping them at bay with his blade and rifle.
Once the smaller minions were taken care of, Nightwatch spun his halberd to create strong winds that pulled the Alpha Araknes closer together, allowing Adam to perform another Moonslice that tore all of them cleanly in half, exploding into small spawning pools.
But before they could create newborn Grimm, Nightwatch switches to Fire Dust and slams his halberd's blade onto the spawning pools, igniting them on fire and burning them off the train.
"Not bad, rookie." Nightwatch nods as he folds Tempest's Edge back into its compact form and places it behind his back.
"It's been six months, when are you going to stop with that?" Adam asks as he flicks off the Grimm goop on Wilt before sheathing it into Blush.
"When you stop being the rook, rookie." Nightwatch smirks under his helmet, "You'll understand the appeal once we get a Watchdog 14. Let's get back in our ACs, we're gonna be knee-deep in Grimm once we get to Glenn."
"Maintain positions!" Ironwood orders as he fires another volley of missiles, his squad circling each other and firing all around them at the Grimm, with even their support ACs firing their machine guns while deploying their drones to provide both repair and ammunition packs through the squad, but even their supply were running low.
"This is far more than we were expecting, sir." Tortuga chimes in between firing bursts with his assault rifle at the seemingly endless tide of Grimm, "This is nearly three times the estimated amount in our Sector."
"We always knew it was a possibility they could be inaccurate." Ironwood shrugs off as he charges his laser cannon before firing a beam that cuts through the horde, "Vanguard 4 and 5, intensify fire at North West. Vanguard 2, what's the status of the Elder Death Stalker?"
As he asks this, Winter roars as she stabs both FROSTBITE's Dust daggers into its underbelly before ripping it in half, "Eliminated, sir! I reckon that should disorganize the horde a bit for the next three minutes before they rally."
"Yeah, I can really tell the difference." Tortuga snarks as he blocks a Death Stalker's stinger with his shield-cannon, before smashing it away and firing at it, "By the Brothers, at this point I think Alphas are more common than base Grimm."
"It makes sense." Winter grunts as she slams FROSTBITE's palm into the ground, creating a large glyph and summoning a large Blind Worm that swallows a street clogged with Grimm, "They had decades to grow unhindered except for the occasional Huntsmen team, with only the wall cannons to worry about. Imagine if they failed…if the walls were breached by Grimm…"
"Vanguard 1 to 2 and 3, stow the chatter." Ironwood orders, "If the next words aren't a 'sir, yes sir' I'll have you both on latrine duty after this."
"Sir, yes sir!" the two pilots shout as they continue fighting before the ground shakes underneath.
Before they could wonder, the streets beneath a large stream of Grimm exploded before a large group of MTs came climbing out with weapons blazing, followed by their large Tetrapod counterparts.
"Breach, breach, breach!" One of them shouts as they fire a large rifle, mowing down Grimm and clearing the path, with a Tetrapod MT stomping on Grimm smaller than it and blasting apart larger ones with twin-linked heavy cannons before a familiar red and black Tetrapod AC flies through the large hole,
"Ravager!" Winter smirks, "About time. Too busy coming up with a dramatic entrance?"
"The exit was too small for even our MTs." Ravager responds as he rains explosives and bullets down on the Grimm, "So we had to improvise a bit."
As he says this the rest of his team emerge from the hole in the street, Phoenix firing a rain of Fire Dust grenades while firing with her machine gun, Nightwatch throwing in his own firepower with Adam's and Nova flying onto a building to take sniping positions,
"This is Watchdog 10 with Team 3, we have arrived at Sector 2!" Nova announces over the comms, "Construction Squad, begin fortifications! Everyone, drive these soulless bastards back! Vanguard Squad 1, can you give them cover?"
"You heard him!" Ironwood shouts to his subordinates, "Defensive Pattern 4-S! Grab the Grimms' attention! Not a single C-MT goes down, you hear me?"
With the reinforcing Watchdogs and MT forces, they then push back the Grimm surrounding the entry point they came from as MTs with bright yellow hazard stripes and gray coats of paint emerge carrying cannons attached via tubes to pods full of Concrete Dust strapped to their back.
A revolutionary artificial Dust created in conjecture with the Atlas Combat Engineer Corps, meant to assist soldiers in creating improvised structures on the battlefield as quickly and cheaply as possible, finding tremendous success in civilian use, especially in construction in the frontier.
The white chalky-textured Dust was fired from the cannons, creating walls to seal off the area by closing off the streets with fifteen feet thick walls of concrete as other Construction MTs focused their attention on assembling artillery turrets, slamming down steel boxes that unfolded before firing shells in an arc above them, detonating over the Grimm and showering them with shrapnel.
Other boxes were placed on top of the improvised walls, where machine guns loaded with explosive ammunition were mounted. They unfold and aim themselves at the massive horde before unleashing their firepower.
It was another thirty minutes of sustained and non-stop firing, ammunition crates were brought from below to replenish the rapidly diminishing supply before the first signs of the siege being broken were seen.
Grimm were not stupid, at least not all of them are. And the Grimm here were old enough to soon realize they weren't making a dent and would only die if they continued this fruitless task. With great reluctance, the powerful Elders pulled back their packs and hordes, and those not smart enough to run quickly finished off. As soon as the last Beowolf was turned to paste, the entire city block fell silent as gunfire ceased.
All of them from the MT pilots to even General Ironwood, wait silently for the inevitable return only for none. It was ten minutes before an MT pilot broke out into a nervous chuckle before full-blown laughter, which was contagious, affecting everyone in the vicinity.
"We…we did it!" one of the MTs yells before cheering followed by his compatriots and the Watchdogs. Even the disciplined Vanguards can't help but join in the laughter as Ironwood happily reports this through his comms,
"This is Vanguard 1, Judge… Sector 2 has been secured. I repeat Sector 2 has been secured! We've driven back the Grimm!" he says, unable to keep the joy in his tone as more reports come in.
"Shadow 1 reporting in. Sector 3 has been secured. All Grimm elements have been routed."
"Raven reporting…All Grimm in Sector 1 eliminated…fortifications of beach head have begun."
Laughter and celebration came from the forces in Sector 2, so much that Ironwood had to mute the audio from all but key personnel.
"This isn't over yet." he broadcasts to his forces in the midst of their celebration, halting it for the moment, "Phase One is a momentous success but we are not done yet. I want Construction MTs to reinforce the barricades immediately, get Tetrapod MTs up on top of buildings that could support their weight, expand the perimeter, and get Serpent 2 to ferry more resources and relief forces to patrol the area while we refit. Our fight's not over yet."
The force immediately snaps into action, doing as he ordered. Reinforcing the barricade, sending out requests for supplies, reinforcements and so on.
"Let this day be marked down." he continues his speech, "We have led an assault into territory held by Grimm for decades, planted our flag, and sent them running for the hills! Humanity has attacked the Grimm with less than a hundred men, and took land back from them! This is just the beginning…the beginning of our reclamation!"