A week had passed since the order was given to scout the bandit forces surrounding Kuroyuri, they had several more outposts than initially suspected. Commissar Yarrick immediately withdrew his order for armor, and instead requested The Steel Battalion.
Li awoke to the rumbling of tank treads, exiting his home he saw a legion of tanks entering the town. Just as the sun peaked over the horizon, Commissar Yarrick and Bravo Company were standing on a massive tank getting ready to leave.
Calling it a tank was a gross oversimplification, it was more akin to a rolling fortress. It was bristling with armaments, overwhelming and versatile firepower accompanied with exceptionally thick armor plating and a near-indefatigable power plant.
"What is this thing?!" Li yelled as he walked up to it.
"This is a Baneblade. She's the crown jewel in the Militarum's Armor Division. She's outfitted with the Baneblade Cannon, one co-axial autocannon, a demolisher cannon, a heavy stubber, one dustcannon, a few twin bolters, and a few twin flamers too."
"Do you have enough guns?" Li deadpanned.
"Never. We believe in redundancy. It's better to be prepared for whatever comes our way, rather than find yourself coming up short." Commissar Yarrick tapped his fist against the armor, and it began moving forward. Another Commissar approached holding a massive prosthetic arm, it was the size of a terminator's fist and had daggers coming out of each knuckle.
"Huh." Li noted.
"What?" Commissar Yarrick asked as the other attached the massive arm to his stump.
"I just figured Holy Terra would have better prosthetics than that."
"It's made specifically for combat." Commissar Yarrick explained, "We have regular prosthetics too."
Li nodded watching a power cord stretch from the claw to a generator on his back. The blades crackled with electricity before Commissar Yarrick deactivated them, "Why are you going shouldn't…?"
"A commander who hides behind his troops soon forgets what death is." Commissar Yarrick cut him off, "Know the men who follow you and let them know you. Don't ask your men to die for a stranger."
"Sir!" a guardsman immediately saluted Yarrick and bashfully smiled at the female Commissar, "Commissar Vikki."
"Sergent Hawk." She was almost just as bashful.
"Alright lovebirds save it for when we get back." Commissar Yarrick got between them, "What did you have for me Sergeant?" Sergeant Hawk cleared his throat and pointed at Li, but Commissar Yarrick waved him off, "He's a councilman, he can see."
Li practically ran over to see what they were talking about. Sergeant Hawk laid out a map on the front of the Baneblade, "The main bandit camp is here, scouts reported several smaller outposts scattered all throughout the forest, but we've taken care of all of them. Any survivors would've fled to the main camp, and we can wipe these savages of the face of Remnant."
"Wait, what?" Li gawked, "What happened to giving then a chance to join us?"
Without saying a word, Sergeant Hawk led Li over to a woman wailing over a headless guardsman, "We sent an envoy to them. No weapons, no armor, no intimidation, and they tied him to his horse and sent him back to us. He was holding his own head."
"We agreed to give them one chance and this was their response. They started this fight, and we're going to finish it." Commissar Yarrick ordered the tanks to activate.
"It is not enough to take an enemy from their life." Commissar Vikki rested a hand on Li's shoulder, "Rather take from them also their places of safety. Their allies, their homes, and their loved ones. Crush all those in their care. Lay their chattels to waste and then drive them alone and naked into the darkness. Take everything they have and burn it for the mere pleasure of seeing the ash crackle between your fingers and call it nothing more than a beginning."
Commissar Vikki jumped into a convoy next to the Baneblade with the rest of Bravo Company, the other trucks were filled with guardsmen. Li jumped out of the way as The Steel Battalion entered the forest. At the moment Li was torn between his head and his heart. His head was yelling at him, they sounded no better than the bandits, but his heart made him look at the mother wailing over her dead son. He blinked and saw An wailing over a headless Lie…
Any and all objections he still had vanished.
…
Raven Branwen watched more of her wounded tribesmen stagger through the gates. The morning was filled with survivors almost crawling into her camp. She entered her tent and saw a male version of herself sitting in the middle of her tent. He had helped himself to her liquor cabinet and had poured himself a few drinks.
"Well, to what do I owe the pleasure Little Brother?" she asked, pouring herself a drink and taking a seat.
"Can't a guy just catch up with his family?"
"We haven't been your family since you left us for Ozpin. Are you finally returning to us?"
Qrow slammed back his drink before sighing, "No."
Raven shook her head, "I shouldn't be surprised, the day I'm having and you're here? Just my luck…" Qrow glared daggers at his sister before knocking back another drink. "I don't know how many times I have to tell you, Beacon will fall and Ozpin will fail…"
"Did you forget the new player on the board?"
Raven scoffed, "The so-called: 'God-Emperor'? Please, don't tell me you're afraid of an egomaniac like that."
"Have you forgotten The Faunus Rebellions?"
A scream echoed in Raven's head before she slammed back another drink, "What of them?"
"Those psychos left Atlas and now they have their own kingdom."
"That's a stretch, and for the record those psychos that deployed during the rebellions were slaves to Atlas."
"Are you being intentionally dense?! In case you hadn't noticed, the nucklelavee you were so worried about is gone. Take a guess who killed it. Not to mention all of your little outposts."
"That thing wiped out multiple encampments, you're telling me that a bunch of Atlesians took it out in one night?"
"They aren't Atlesians, at least not anymore. The tech that comes out of Holy Terra puts anything Atlas has to shame. When they succeed, they probably took all the weapon designers with."
"Raven!" a smaller woman with a shaved head ran into the tent.
Raven barely turned to look at her, "You better have a damn good reason for opening your mouth, Vernal."
"That was the last outpost…all that's left of the tribe is right here."
Raven grabbed the bottle and started chugging, "Take a good look at them Vernal, this is on you for killing that messenger. They'll be here any day now then…I'm going to lie down…"
"Raven wait, you can stop this!" Qrow protested.
"You can see yourself out." Raven retreated into her bed as more memories she'd tried to repress began bubbling up in her mind.
The Faunus Rebellions…
In the ashes of war the White Fang was originally meant to be a symbol of unity between humans and the faunus. But rather than the equality they were promised, the faunus were subjected to discrimination and hate. Humanity still thought of them as lesser beings, and so the White Fang rose up and The Faunus Rebellions began.
Many humans sided with the faunus, Raven among them, only because she couldn't say no to her. Her hands trembled as she reached for the top drawer of her dresser. Opening it just a crack she saw the beginning of a white cloak, she opened it wider only to see splotches of red. She slammed the drawer closed and drank until she crashed on the floor. They fought in several battles; they looked like they were actually going to win until he called them…
…
Summer and Raven teleported into Ozpin's office when they got an urgent message. His hands were clasped in front of his face to hide his emotions as they entered the portal closed behind them.
"What is it Oz?" Raven sighed shifting in her armor. "We're kind of in the middle of something."
Ozpin dryly chuckled, "Yes, how are the rebellions going?"
Raven opened her mouth, but Summer quickly cut her off, "Great! It sounds weird saying that for a war, but we've turned the tide in several key locations."
"One we should be getting back to." Raven added.
"Ah yes, Tranquility Valley." Ozpin pulled up a map of Remnant and zoomed in on a stretch of land east of Mistral. No settlement was ever established there, but the strategic value of it was different. It was a directly north of Menagerie's capitol and could be used as a back door to Mistral's. "I wonder why it's named that."
"Is there a point to all this?" Raven snapped.
Ozpin's eyes hardened, "Careful Miss. Branwen, you are still Valen Huntresses. I could've recalled the both of you back at any time, and I still can, understand?" Raven reluctantly nodded, "Now the reason I called you here is because it won't be just Mistral you face in that valley, they called on Atlas for support."
Raven rolled her eyes, but Summer approached Ozpin, "They didn't call…them…for aid, did they?"
Ozpin shook his head, "The God-Emperor and The Imperium are still silent. However, not all of his sons joined him during their own rebellion. You may face the traitor legions…"
"Traitor Legions?" Raven raised an eyebrow.
"The name isn't important." Summer interrupted, "What can we expect to face?"
"I don't know…" Ozpin began but Raven slammed her hands on his desk.
"There it is." Raven glared, "You didn't call us to warn us, you want intel on The Imperium! Loyalist or Traitor." She tapped Summer's arm, "Come on, there are people who actually need us." Raven opened a portal and could hear gunfire on the other side.
"We'll do what we can Oz!" Summer quickly jumped through the portal.
An explosion rocked the entirety of the valley. Gunfire and screams filled the air as faunus and humans fired upon each other. A line of faunus were rushing down a hill when a white aircraft flew over the battlefield and completely obliterated them. Many more flew over the valley dropping bombs.
Summer and Raven sprinted through before diving behind a wall of sandbags. They crawled forward until they met up with a group of faunus.
"Sergeant, Command says sir support is holding till they can assess our status." One faunus reported to Raven.
"Our status?!" Raven scoffed, "Our status is we need some fucking air support! Now get back on the line and tell them to get in here!"
"That Manta is shredding us, Rae!" Summer added.
"They won't move without a lieutenant's authorization code, sir."
Raven rolled her eyes and shoved past them to a dead faunus on the ground. She ripped off his patch and handed it to the faunus, "Here. Here's your code. You're Lieutenant Baker now. Congratulations on your promotion. NOW GET ME SOME AIR SUPPORT!" she shoved him toward the radio and huddled up with the rest of them, "Pull back just far enough to wedge them in here. Get your squad to high ground and start picking them off."
Summer shook her head, "High ground's a death trap with that Manta overhead."
"That's our problem, thanks for volunteering." Raven smiled at Summer, "Marcus, give us some cover fire we're going duck hunting." Raven ordered when an explosion went of right above them and one of the faunus soldiers slumped over dead. "Just focus!" Marcus slowly looked up at Raven, "Mistral said they were going to waltz right through Trainquility Valley, they even called in Atlas for support, but we choked both of them with those words. We've done the impossible and that makes us mighty. Just a little while longer. Our eagles are going to be soaring overhead, raining fire on those arrogant cogs. So, you hold. YOU HOLD! GO!"
Raven and Summer moved to the sandbags and resupplied.
"You really think we can bring her down, Rae?"
"You even need to ask?"
Raven watched another bombing run overhead, she turned to Summer when the bombs stopped, "Ready?"
"Always." They got ready to move when Summer turned around to see that Marcus hadn't moved an inch, "Marcus? Marcus!"
She scoffed before mounting a rifle on the sandbags and started firing. As Summer fired, Raven charged ahead, any soldier that tried to stop her was cut down by Summer. Once Raven gained significant ground, Summer went after her.
Both were behind a rock where a Hydra Anti-Air tank was sitting, none of its four barrels were damaged and the ammo belts were intact. The crew had been killed; all Raven needed to do was commonder it for a few minutes. She made a break for it as Summer shot anyone else trying to recover it.
"Main power still online." Raven got behind the controls. She rotated the turret just as the Manta was coming back. She slammed her fist on the red button and all four guns unleashed their arsenal. The Manta started dodging but Raven kept firing. "Yeah!" She cheered when one of its engines erupted. Her cheers soon turned to dread as the ship was now headed straight for her. "Summer!" she tackled her teammate behind the rocks as the Valkyrie exploded upon impact. Raven slowly started chuckling before bursting into laughter.
"Nice cover fire!" Summer punched Marcus' helmet as they returned to their makeshift post.
"Baker, what's our status on…" Raven trailed off when she saw Baker's body slumped over the radio. "Summer…"
Summer nodded and gently removed Baker's body and got on the radio. Raven sat next to Marcus, who still hadn't moved from his puddle of piss.
"Hey, Marcus, look at me. Listen. We're holding this valley, no matter what."
"We're gonna die." Marcus deadpanned.
"We're not going to die." Raven scolded, "We can't die Marcus, you know why? Because we are so very pretty. We are just to pretty to die." Raven noticed a little smile on Marcus' lips, "See, look at that chiseled jaw, huh?" they heard the roar of aircraft overhead, "If you won't listen to me, listen to that. Those are our eagles. They're going to blow both Atlas and Mistral right out of this valley. Summer, tell the 82nd…"
"They're not coming." Summer cut her off. "Command says it's too hot. They're pulling out. We're to lay down arms…"
"But what's…" Raven, Summer, and Marcus stood up to look over the valley. There was only one ship in the sky, a massive aircraft that dwarfed any Atlas ship. It was at least five kilometers long and three kilometers tall; fired several pyramid-like pods into the valley. The pods were all dark red with a gleaming silver circle with teeth branded on each side. The walls on the pods began to lower and stepping out where dark red suits of power armor with the same toothy circle on their pauldrons.
The men stepping out didn't even hesitate to start gunning down the faunus. Many of them didn't even have guns, they were cutting them down with axes or worse, ripping them apart with their bare hands. Even the ones who threw down their weapons and begged for mercy.
Marcus' head vanished in an instant and Summer took a bullet to the chest.
"Summer!" Raven wailed rushing to her side.
"BLOOD FOR THE BLOOD GOD!" a dark red suit landed in their foxhole. He was at least eight feet tall and wore a dual-engine thruster almost the size of the armor on his back. In each hand was an axe with chainsaw-teeth running the length of each blade. Both swords and gauntlets were drenched in so much blood the original color couldn't be identified.
Raven drew her katana and swiftly slashed upward, knocking the red helm and part of his cheek clean off. Though Raven shrank under his gaze. His face was locked in a rictus mask of fury and old scars, streaked by fresh blood. Her cut peeled back his cheek exposing stringy tendons and white bone. However, most terrifiying was the top of his scalp. Dozens of wires were bored into his skull, the wounds were bleeding, but he didn't even seem to notice. Even with half his face cleaved off, he readied his chain axes for a fight.
"BLOOD FOR THE BLOOD GOD!" he bellowed again, "SKULLS FOR THE SKULL THRONE!"
Raven couldn't make sense of anything he weas screaming about. She didn't have time to worry about that anyway, she used her katana to open a blood red portal and picked up Summer. She started for the portal when she let out a bloodcurdling scream and fell to one knee.
"Rae?" Summer could barely hold her head up.
Raven forced herself to her feet even as her armor fell. She couldn't believe it, that chain axe cut through her armor, her aura, and her flesh like a hot knife through butter. She pushed herself through the portal and collapsed on the other side. The soldier started following through, but she quickly closed it and cut him clean diagonally in two. His right arm, head, and a good portion of his torso dropped out of the air like a sack of potatoes. Her eyes nearly jumped out of her skull as even cut in half his hand gripped his chain axe before finally succumbing to his wounds.
"Summer…" Raven was fading in and out of consciousness, "Come on…" she squeezed her hand, "Ruby and Yang are waiting for you…Summer? Summer!"
…
"Summer!" Raven screamed shooting out of bed completely drenched in sweat.
"You talk in your sleep." Qrow dryly commented.
Raven took a second to notice where she was before grabbing her head, "Did you change me?"
"I took off your armor."
"Fucking perv." Raven threw her legs over the edge of the bed before wincing, "Ugh. Why can't aura cure hangovers?"
"Did you really say that?" Qrow ignored her complaining.
"What?" Raven whined.
"Ruby and Yang are waiting for you," Qrow repeated, "Did you really tell her that?"
"What's it matter? She died anyway." Raven stared at the floor.
Qrow shook his head, "You always say that, and I always believed you. At least till now…"
Raven looked up at him and there was something in her eyes that nearly knocked Qrow flat on his back: concern. Before either one could speak a deafening boom roared throughout the camp. Raven grabbed her belt at least and her katana. She scoffed when she heard a cawing and her brother had vanished. She rushed outside with Vernal. She and a few other bandits surrounded Raven as more booms rang out.
Their walls of tall oak were reduced to splinters as the entire camp was surrounded by The Steel Battalion. The tribesmen tried to fight back as guardsmen ran between the tanks. They didn't last, if it wasn't a bullet from the guardsmen, it was from one of the tanks' numerous machine guns. Raven watched helplessly as more and more of her tribesmen were cut down. She started hyperventilating as the smell of charred flesh filled her nostrils. Coming directly up the center of the camp was the Baneblade. The colossal tank stopped right where their main gate used to be; Commissar Yarrick and Bravo Company jumped off and started forward.
As Commissar Yarrick and Vikki were walking forward a tribesman decided to charge at them. As he did a mountain of a man grabbed him by the head, lifted him off the ground, and popped his head like a grape. The closer they got, Raven pulled a dagger and short-sword backup from her waist and threw them aside too.
"You're the leader of these bandits?" Commissar Yarrick asked. "Do you know who I am?"
"Never had the pleasure."
Vikki was about to start a speech when Commissar Yarrick stopped her, "I'm looking for the one who killed our envoy."
Vernal scoffed and stepped forward, but before she could even open her mouth, Commissar Yarrick swung his bladed claw and cleaved her into three chunks of steaming meat. Raven started hyperventilating seeing Vernal cut down. Looking up she didn't see Commissar Yarrick, she saw the dark red suit of power armor.
He drew his pistol and aimed for Raven but one of her tribesmen was able to lower his gun just as he pulled the trigger. The gun was double barreled and was fully automatic. Even with his intervention she still took a few shots to her aura. Chaos ensued as everyone started firing, Raven was hit multiple times in the crossfire, her aura held out just enough to summon a portal.
Just as she did her aura shattered.
The portal started to shrink, and the bullets started penetrating her skin. The rest of her tribe were gunned down trying to cover her. Both Commissar Yarrick and Vikki tried to kill her before she got away. They were able to wound her with Yarrick's claw and Vikki's sword, but she was just barely able to make it through.
"What was that?!" Vikki stared at where the portal was.
"That…was interesting." Commissar Yarrick pondered, "Change of plans. I want her alive, I think the Adeptus Mechanicus could implement that into something."
…
Raven landed with a disgusting thud against a cabin door. She weakly raised her hand to just barely knock. The door swung open and she collapsed inside. She heard two little girls scream and a set of footsteps rush towards her.
"By the gods, Raven?!" Taiyang screeched.
"T…Tai…H…Help…" was all she could manage before passing out.
Taiyang wasted no time flipping the kitchen table over and back before picking her up and laying her on it. "Yang, I need towels and the first aid kit…now!"
"W-what?! Why?! Who the heck is she?!"
"She's your mother!" Taiyang was really hoping to have this conversation when Yang was a lot older, but the universe had other plans it would seem. "Gods above…" her shirt was little more than ribbons, flipping her over revealed three massive wounds. Yang came running back in with the kit and towels. "Yang put your sister to bed, then I need you to start boiling some water, hurry!"
Yang did as commanded and took little Ruby to her room. She put the baby gate up for extra protection and ran back into the main room. Taiyang poured some alcohol on one of the towels and started cleaning out the bigger wounds. "Okay Yang, take those little cloth sticks and start plugging up the little holes. Use this to clean the hold before putting it in."
He handed her the alcohol towel before running back to his room, he came out with his sewing kit and dipped the needles into the boiling water. While Yang was dealing with the smaller wounds, Taiyang began stitching up the deeper ones. It had been years since he anything like this…his hands were shaking, vision was blurry, and had to swallow his vomit every on more than one occasion. He used to patch up the team, back when they still were a team, but that was a lifetime ago. What seemed like an eternity finally ended with Raven all sewn back together.
Taiyang breathed a sigh of relief as he collapsed in one of the kitchen chairs, "Almost over…put one towel on daddy's bed, please, Yang?"
Yang was watching Raven intently, as if she was counting the second that were passing. "Huh?"
"I'm moving her to my bed so she's not on the hard table."
"Oh!" she ran to the bathroom, "Uh daddy? We're out of towels!"
Taiyang couldn't help but chuckle, "Well, I never liked those sheets anyway." He gingerly picked her up and laid her in bed. He held his hand under her nose and could feel her still breathing.
…
Raven slowly peeled her eyelids apart, her body was screaming even with her aura slowly healing her wounds. She noticed a wheelchair next to the bed, gripping the handles she slid herself onto it.
"Oh!" her voice was barely able to squeak. The transision was more painful than anticipated. She forced her legs into the footplates and rolled herself out of the room. She could hear the tv going and went to investigate. He saw Tai and Yang asleep on the sofa with the tv still going.
She turned the chair around to return to bed when she saw a baby gate in front of a room with a light still on. Peaking inside she saw the last member of the family. A tiny Ruby Rose was walking around her room with a stuffed grimm toy and a pacifier in her mouth. Her silver eyes locked onto Raven's, and she dropped the toy. She waddled over to a bookshelf and pulled out a massive one that needed both of her tiny hands to carry. Raven looked back and tried to get the others, but Ruby was already at the gate trying to give the book to Raven. She reluctantly took the book and watched as Ruby grabbed her toy, got into bed, and waited for Raven to enter.
"You know the drill, do you?" Raven undid the baby gate and rolled herself inside. Her lips instinctively curled as she grabbed the edge of the sheets and pulled them over Ruby. "Comfy?" she asked, and Ruby nodded.
"Okay, let's…" Raven tilted her head at the book. It didn't have a title; it was just a green leather back book with a metal emblem on the front. The emblem looked like a crudely drawn skull with horns. "What kind of book is this? Where'd it come from?"
Ruby pointed at a picture of Summer on her dresser.
"She always did pick the weird ones, I bet she even did funny voices too? I'll do my best." Raven opened the book, and her eyes nearly went cross-eyed at the spelling. "Oh boy…" Raven chuckled, "The Tale of Tuska Daemon Killa. Couldn't be the Four Maidens, huh?" She cleared her throat and deepened her voice best she could, "Tuska Daemon Killa waz one uv da Orkiest Bosses eva! Known as a Garg of a Daemon Killa, Tuska always did Dakka against Gitz wot waz more Unki dan im! 'E 'ad dis Kroozer: Gorejaw what'e used ta Blitz da Immyterium. Tuska gored louds of Tuf Dee-munz. Invadin' da Eye of Terra, Tuska's Kroozer landed on dis Daemony Slag wiv a Mega Garg Daemon called: 'Da Blood Prince.' Usin' iz Power Claw, Tuska killed da Blood Prince but died afta bein' gore'd up by an Urd of Scum."
Raven paused; Summer actually read her this? Looking up she saw those wide silver eyes practically begging her to continue, You're just like her, you know? I can't say no to you. Raven coughed before raising the book.
"Fing is, da Garg called Khorne was Mega impressed with all da Dakka Tuska did, so 'e ressy-rected da Tuska and his Boyz to fight again da next day. For dayz, Tuska and his boyz would Dakka da Daemons like Proppa Orkz and da Blood Garg was mega 'appy wit dem. So 'appy, he made it so Tuska now lives in da Immyterium wiv Khorne. Dere's a place called Da Brass City-dell where Khorne keeps 'iz Genyrals ta fight Tuska every day and kill 'im. Dun matta though. Taska loves Dakka and so do 'iz boys so for them dey get to do Dakka every day foreva!"
"WAAAAGH!" Ruby yelled as loud as she could.
Raven instantly plopped her pacifier back in her mouth and the little ork fell back into bed. Raven pulled the covers over her and turned to leave to see Tai waiting in the doorway.
"Glad to see you up and about." He smiled.
"I went to see you, but you and Yang were passed out on the couch." Raven handed Tai the book and he put it back on the shelf. "Summer really read that to her?"
"Yeah." Tai pushed Raven back to their old room, "She sent it to us during the rebellions, I'm surprised you didn't know that. She said she found it in a warehouse raid?"
Raven nodded, "It was an Atlas supply line that doubled as a smuggling route for faunus who couldn't fight. Mothers and children mostly. Doesn't surprise me she found a kids book someone left behind."
"She found lots of books, not just kids ones." Tai explained pulling out books from one of his drawers. "I think it was from back when Atlas tried suppressing their culture."
"What's that?" Raven pointed at a dark red book with a toothy circle on its cover. "That symbol…" Raven rolled forward, "The soldiers that slaughtered us in Tranquility Valley wore that symbol."
"The World Eaters…" Tai read the cover.