Author's Note: New chapter, enjoy.
They left Atlas early the next day, a small fleet leaving to conduct a "training exercise" somewhere off the southern coast. That was the official story, although everyone who was actually onboard the ships had already been briefed on what the actual mission was shortly after departure. The fact that this small fleet was likely large enough to level an entire city didn't seem to matter. A single battleship, not even Ironwood's personal flagship, but instead one of the older ones, and two cruisers to protect it. The plan seemed simple enough to Pyrrha when they had explained it the night before, but as she sat through the brief they gave, she couldn't help but feel worried.
"The White Fang have established themselves in an old Great War fortress on the southern border of Vacuo." Pyrrha didn't recognize the man giving the brief, though General Ironwood was standing only a few feet behind him. He had introduced himself as some kind of analyst from an organization she didn't recognize the name of. He gestured towards the digital map that had been projected for their benefit. "Fort Malik is our target. Downsized after the war, the Vacuoan military abandoned it entirely nearly six decades ago just before their dissolution."
Dissolution? Pyrrha hadn't even been aware that Vacuo had a military at one point, aside from its contributions during the Great War. It hadn't been something they talked about in Dr. Ooblecks class, surprisingly enough, although perhaps that was a topic for later years.
"It's been relatively quiet until recently, but even then the inhabitants have kept a low profile." The projection changed to show a number of camera angles that had been taken from above. "We believe the White Fang is using this as a storage and supply hub as they shuffle arms, ammunition and recruits in between Vale and Vacuo. We aren't certain how long they have been established here, but they have a formidable hold and well built defenses." The images shifted once more to show some kind of court yard, but other than that, she couldn't tell what it was meant to show them. "As you can see, they have air defenses centered in the compound, and every other tower. With that our drop ships can't get close enough without extensive bombardment."
The General finally stepped forward, the analyst stepping away as the projection changed to a map of the general area. The Fort was still visible, but now they were able to see the surrounding terrain. It had been constructed on the coast, the walls actually going around a small inlet of the water. It looked strong, but Pyrrha didn't know the first thing about military bases, let alone what made them well positioned. There were several smaller islands off of the coast that couldn't have been much larger than the ships they were currently on.
"Specialist fireteams will drop under cover of darkness and head out ahead of the fleet, maintaining visible cover behind these islands." General Ironwood gestured towards the small dots out towards the sea. "It's unlikely that they have established radar systems, but in the event they do, pilots have been ordered to keep as low as possible. If they don't, the islands will block anyone from spotting you until our fleet is in position." Three blue triangles appeared north of the Fort. "Once in position, our battleship will begin bombardment of their entrenched positions along the wall, drawing out their defenders and limiting their ability to respond. Once the bombardment is underway, the Specialists will move into the Fort from the south-east and eliminate the defenses along the southern and eastern walls. Once those defenses are down, we will deploy ground troops and secure the compound."
Pyrrha again listened in silence, having little to add. In truth, she wasn't sure why she was there. Winter and Qrow were sat beside her, and she could see the familiar red colors of a Specialist on a few others there, but she felt wholly unqualified to be in that room. No one asked any questions, though again she didn't know if that was normal or not, and the General nodded.
"In order for the Specialists to land, someone will have to infiltrate the compound and take out the anti air defenses along the eastern wall." Ironwood looked towards Qrow. "Specialist Branwen will signal once the guns have been cleared, after which the fleet will move into position. If all goes according to plan, casualties will be limited, and the operation will only take a few hours." Again, the room was silent for a moment before he went on. "Everyone with a clearance below level six, you are free to report back to your units and make your preparations." The men and women gathered stood, saluting and waiting for the General to respond in kind before slowly shuffling out the doors. Pyrrha made to follow, only for Winter to grab her arm.
"He wants you to stay." Winter said. "Level six is reserved for those who know about our real target." It was just cryptic, just vague enough, that Pyrrha knew what she was saying. Level six was for those who knew about Cinder. As the room emptied, only a handful of people remained. Mostly older men and women whose faces seemed in a constant scowl.
General Ironwood turned towards a man standing beside him who wore the rank of… Pyrrha wasn't certain what it was. A small silver bird holding onto some kind of branch. She knew it was a higher up rank, but she couldn't remember exactly which one it was. She had tried to learn the rank structure of Atlas, and she had made progress, but it was slow going. The various stars and bars signifying ranks seemed to blend together. "Captain, make sure your interceptors are ready in a minute's notice, I don't want the target to slip through the net."
"Aye sir." The Captain spoke in a gravelly voice. "I sent two air wings south before departure on long burn flights to get in position should she try to flee away from our ships, they'll be arriving the same time we do."
"Good." The General nodded, turning back towards the analyst who had stayed in the room as well. "How certain is the director that the target is still there?"
"There haven't been any sudden departures or unusual arrivals, sir." It was only then that Pyrrha truly noticed the man who had been briefing them. She had been so focused on the projections and information that she had failed to see that he was only a few years older than her, far younger than the rest of the people who had stayed in the room. "The White Fang keep a tight schedule and its only ever supply runs moving in and out. Whoever is running the show, they're very efficient, sir."
"Any idea who exactly?" Surprisingly enough, it was Qrow who asked that question. It was possibly the first time he had spoken since entering the room.
"No, sir." The analyst shook his head. "We have our theories, but nothing concrete to act on."
"And what is your theory?" Winter asked.
The analyst hesitated for a moment, before speaking cautiously. "This base has been in use for some time, likely established shortly after the Faunus Wars, it stands to reason that some of the veteran's from that war are in command of this outpost."
"Speculation." General Ironwood nodded. "But not entirely unfounded. Many of the White Fang's upper command structure is pulled from former veterans of the Faunus War. They may be older, but they have experience. Something the younger more… ambitious recruits do not."
"So expect a tougher fight than usual." Qrow sighed. "Tell me again why I volunteered for this suicide mission of yours?"
"Because you're the best for the job." Ironwood nodded with a subtle smile. "You can get in unnoticed." What went unsaid was how, even if Pyrrha knew it was easy to spot how he hadn't actually said it. She noticed some of the other officers looking on curiously, but none of them said anything or even looked like they planned to. "Unless anyone has anything else." The General paused for a moment before nodding. "Captains, back to your ships."
The rest of the room was emptied, leaving only the four of them. Pyrrha sighed in relief, her shoulders sagging as she relaxed for the first time in what felt like hours.
"They get easier." Winter said, smiling subtly at Pyrrha's discomfort. "You composed yourself well."
"How?" Pyrrha asked. "I didn't do anything."
"Exactly." Winter nodded. "These kinds of briefings aren't the place for questions. It's to help the lower-level units understand the larger scale of their part in the operation. The important questions have already been dealt with."
"What do you think?" Ironwood asked quietly.
"I think I'm out of my depth, sir." Pyrrha smiled awkwardly.
"I would still value your thoughts." He assured her.
"It sounds like a good plan it's just… why would Cinder be here?" Pyrrha voiced her concerns for the first time. It had been a thought nagging at the back of her mind since they had departed. The Cinder she knew, as limited as Pyrrha's knowledge was, had been prepared from the start. She had planned everything from what they could tell and they hadn't realized it until the trap had been sprung. She couldn't understand how being in Vacuo would help her plans.
When she was finally done explaining her worry, she was surprised to see that they were all taking it seriously.
"It's a fair point." Qrow nodded. "If this Fall bitch really is some kind of master mind, wouldn't it be smarter to stay away from the obvious terrorist stronghold?"
Ironwood nodded. "It is a fair concern, one I am sad to say I can not easily alleviate." The General sighed. "Predicting other people's actions is not so simple. It's possible she was acting under orders from Salem during your time, or maybe she is doing so now. When we flushed her out of Haven, maybe she became desperate. There's no way to know. All we know for certain is that the trail leads here."
"I'm sorry, Sir." Pyrrha shook her head. "I'm just worried is all."
"You don't have to apologize, the fact you are thinking about this so deeply is good. There are less chances for mistakes that way." Ironwood smiled. "And what did I say about calling me Sir?"
Pyrrha chuckled softly. "You are my superior now."
Qrow scoffed. "Don't expect anything like that crap from me. Your ego is big enough as it is."
"I never would, Qrow." Ironwood rolled his eyes. "If you'll excuse me, there are preparations to make. Winter will give you the time table and direct you to your fireteams when it's time."
"Great, so now I take orders from you too?" Qrow looked back at Winter with a flat look. "That hardly seems fair."
Winter returned that same look with ease. "I have more discipline than you."
"That's not the impression I got las-ow!" Winter smacked the back of his head, though smack may have been a bit too gentle. Pyrrha was fairly certain she had seen Qrow's Aura flair slightly.
"Keep your mind out of the gutter, please." Winter reprimanded him, though Pyrrha didn't fail to notice the slight red tinge to her cheeks. It was an odd response for Winter however, as she wasn't usually so physical.
"I suppose we should get back to our rooms and get some last minute shut eye." Qrow said it but made no move to do so, seemingly content to stay seated next to Winter.
"There's a nice observation deck on level three." Winter offered quickly. "It will likely have an excellent view as we cross over to Sanus."
"Oh, trying for something romantic-"
"The next time I hit you, it won't be with my fist." Winter growled softly.
"Kinky." Qrow responded and, despite her words, Winter "slapped" him once more. His laughter was infectious however, and Pyrrha quickly joined in.
Before long they were on their way to the observation deck. The observation deck was simply a mostly empty room with a table and some chairs in the middle, and a large wall of what had to be reinforced glass. It gave them an excellent view out the side of the ship where they could see the coast of Sanus meeting the ocean. The sun hadn't actually risen yet, but with the moon as bright as it was, the light reflected off of the ocean and almost seemed to glow.
"Huh, not bad." Qrow nodded. "Not very romantic, but not too bad. Five out of ten."
Winter shook her head softly, but the subtle smile on her face betrayed any apparent anger.
From everything Pyrrha had heard, Vacuo was a desolate place. She knew that there was more fertile land to the north and south, but as she had heard, it wasn't much of an improvement over the vast desert that made up most of its land mass. Contrary to her belief, the land below them wasn't desert however. It was arid, but it was nothing like what she had seen in the movies.
"Believe it or not, it's not all sand… just most of it." Qrow seemed to guess her thoughts. "Still hot as all hell though when you get away from the coast. You'll wanna dress light when we head out."
Pyrrha nodded her head, making a mental note to reevaluate her choice in combat outfit. Still, the fact that he knew that was interesting enough. "Have you been to Vacuo before?"
"Oh yeah." Qrow smiled. "A few times actually. It's a… rough Kingdom, but it's got a certain charm to it."
"I've heard the rumors but… is it really as bad as they say?" Pyrrha asked. Vacuo had a reputation, out of all of the Kingdoms, it was perhaps the most precarious. After the Great War, the Kingdom hadn't been able to recover, but even before then what little she had read about that time period painted Vacuo in a perpetual state of decline.
"The people of Vacuo have had it difficult for a long time. They never truly recovered from the Great War, and the Council established afterwards has proven… ineffective" Winter answered quickly. "But they have learned to adapt. They haven't always had the best relationship with the other kingdoms, Atlas especially, so they are a very self-reliant people. It came as a great surprise when they sided with anyone during the Great War. They were expected to stay neutral. They hated Vale just as much as Atlas back then."
"The sands forget nothing, so why should the people?" Qrow spoke quietly. "I… had a friend from here. She was always saying that the country had been wronged, and that they never forgot, but that they eventually forgave."
"She sounds like a good person." Pyrrha spoke softly, unsure of what to say.
"Yeah… she was." Qrow responded, but the look in his eyes said that he wasn't entirely there. Pyrrha reached for the flask at her hip, offering it to him. He stared at it for a long moment before shaking his head. "Best not. It's a bad idea to drink before going out into the heat."
Pyrrha returned the flask to her hip, looking back out the window once more. They stood like that for quite a long time, simply staring out over the landscape in silence. Despite how she thought it should have felt, it wasn't awkward. If anything, it reminded her of her time with Team JNPR and CFVY. Everyone was content to be in each others company. Those moments of peace rarely lasted however, neither Nora nor Coco being known for their patience, but Pyrrha had learned to appreciate those moments of silence.
"And that's it." Winter said quietly. "We're officially in Vacuoan air space."
"Is that important?" Pyrrha asked, unsure why Winter seemed to care so much.
"The last time an Atlesian army arrived in Vacuo, they were defeated in battle by the King of Vale." Winter's voice was quieter than usual, but her face was as determined and disciplined as it had been when Pyrrha first met her; something she had come to realize was a mask. "They were nearly wiped out."
"Well…" Qrow took a deep breath. "Let's hope this time is different."
Pyrrha stepped onto the Bullhead she would be riding in alongside Winter. Qrow had been assigned to a different one, along with a few other Specialists they had picked up while in Atlas. Clover had stayed behind at Beacon, taking command of the small garrison left there while Winter was away, and so Pyrrha was left with very few faces she recognized.
Thankfully their shuttle appeared to be filled with Winter's own Soldiers, men and women she recognized from Beacon. They had learned that her rank as a Specialist was more symbolic, and had thankfully stopped saluting her when they realized how much she hated it. She had come to know them as professionals, some of the best according to both Winter and General Ironwood, despite that, they were surprisingly talkative.
"So ma'am, that brief was awfully lacking in details about our target." One of the men asked as their dropship finally started to move.
"Classified, Sergeant Winters." Winter answered simply. "You know how these operations go."
"I get that ma'am, but I've read her dossier." The man nodded towards Pyrrha. "If she's coming with, I'd like to know what the hell we're up against."
"Huntress level combatant." Another man answered, Pyrrha actually managing to recognize his rank as belonging to a lieutenant. She also vaguely recalled his name as having something to do with flowers, though she couldn't quite remember what exactly. "That's why we've got the Specialists."
"Oh I get that, no complaints here, but this girl fried a Paladin single handedly." The sergeant responded, nodding in her direction with an uneasy smile. "Can't help but feel a bit nervous that she wasn't enough."
"That was you?" The soldier beside her, a female sergeant if Pyrrha was reading the ranks correctly, asked. "Nice work. Taking those bastards down isn't easy… well, not for the rest of us anyways."
"Her abilities are classified as well." Winter answered.
There was a collective groan from the squad as she said that.
"Come on, you can't at least give us a little peak?" A different man asked this time, though as far away as he was Pyrrha couldn't make out their rank. "She's a better good luck charm than Meadows over there."
Pyrrha raised an eyebrow and looked up to Winter for an explanation.
"They were the team assigned to Clover during Mistral." Winter explained. "Ever since then, any mission you've been on has been a success. Though I would say that mentioning that might undermine the value of it."
"You're right, it does." The lieutenant glared at a few of the others before continuing. "But since when do you put so much stock in that kind of stuff, ma'am?"
"Since she started hanging out with Specialist Branwen." One of the other women answered for her, causing Winter to glare at her. The soldier didn't seem intimidated though, instead she seemed spurred on. "Why don't you clear the air now and tell us what that's all about?"
Winter paused for a long moment before smirking. "Classified."
The squad sighed once more.
"I told you that wasn't going to work, Yu." The sergeant beside her shook her head. "Way too obvious."
"I'm with Fairfire on this one. That plan was shit, Yu." The lieutenant said. "But with the rumors spreading around, I give it a few more days, a week tops, before someone collects."
At Pyrrha's confusion, the sergeant beside her, apparently named Fairfire, explained. "There's been a bet circulating around the unit for a few months now. At first it was who was going to beat the other one in a fight, now though… Well, the bets have changed."
"Hundred Lien is the starting bet if you're interested." Lieutenant Meadows added.
Pyrrha smiled but shook her head. "I don't think that would be fair."
"Why not?"
"Because I know." Pyrrha's smile brightened as the dropship once again fell silent.
Sergeant Fairfire was the first to speak. "I'll split the pot with you if you tell me."
The lights in the craft turned red before she could answer, signifying that they were approaching their waiting zone. By this point, Qrow would have already left his own Bullhead and started heading towards the base. That meant they just had to wait for him to report back and then the fight would be underway. The joking and talking fell away in an instant, each of the Soldiers before her slipping into the role of professional as if they had never been anything else. It was both intimidating and inspiring in equal measure.
Taking a deep breath, Pyrrha adjusted the prototype body armor the General had gifted her, making sure it fit comfortably against her chest, and she gripped Allos tight in her hands. Winter seemed to notice how nervous she was, nudging her knee against hers softly to get her attention. When she looked up, Winter nodded once to show her support.
It didn't completely calm her, but the knowledge she wasn't alone did help. Now, they just had to wait.
Author's Note: This chapter gave me a lot of issues. Dialogue and the flow from one character to the next was just… off, I can't really describe it. Hopefully it wasn't anything too noticeable. The ensign sections feature a few characters from a story I edit for, let me know if you know where they're from.
I hope you enjoyed it and as always, be sure to let me know what you think in the reviews.
Sincerely, SE