(A/N) Hey-o, long time no see! Almost a year since I uploaded, well, anything to anywhere and over two whole years since I touched the old version of BRWL. My reasons for rewriting the story are... manyfold, but honestly, BRWL always kinda stung at my pride a bit, mainly because it was a direct example of what happens when I let said pride get too out of control. "Oh yeah, just kill off five named characters by chapter four, they know you from Ruby-B312! They'll stick around!" lolno, past me, you were delusional.

I will say that while named characters do die here, it is with far less frequency and their deaths actually do mean something - every single one of them. Some of them are abrupt, because that's the nature of war, but the main characters don't have a singular Mas-Cas event that you can point to and be like "Yep, checking out here. This guy doesn't respect the characters." For something that was that important to my growth as a writer, and a concept I do like quite a bit, I feel it deserves better than what I originally gave it.

Anyways, I've rambled on enough about the old stuff, let's get to the new! A special thank-you to this fic's beta reader, Wesley9516, and if any of you would like to chat or hangout or discuss any of this, here's an invite code for my Discord: 3jf9w8u

Oh, and one final thing, I'll be uploading ch2 immediately after this one goes live. So that cliffhanger at the end? Yeah, only really there because it was a good place to break the chapter. Oh! And I have more news! I've been working on this for a very. long. time. So long, that I can say with 100% confidence that I'll have a set upload schedule! Ch3 will release this Thursday (Feb 15, 2024 for the future folk), and a new chapter will drop every Monday after that.

So, without further ado, enjoy the start of a new(ish) fic!

BRWL: A Tale of Aura and Aliens

Chapter One

Broken Idyll

/-\ Blake Belladonna /-\

I looked to my blonde friend – the one who had been with me for the entire time I'd walked upon this alternate, Grimmless world. She tried to smile back, but it was quickly aborted in favor of a nod of encouragement. I followed her through the metal doorway, still nervous but glad to have her by my side. Though she wasn't the Yang I'd been taken from on Remnant, she was just as resilient, possibly more so given all the pain and loss she's gone through in such a short time.

The room beyond was large and only partially lined with the base's otherwise ubiquitous metal, the remainder being exposed rock. A small crowd stood there, waiting on me, and had already separated to reveal an aisle leading straight to Central Officer Bradford. Yang gave me another attempt at a smile before breaking off and joining the left block of people.

Steeling myself, I walked forward, between the crowd of various soldiers, base staff, and a single familiar blue-eyed blonde. In short order, I stood before Bradford at attention. "Blake Belladonna," I started, repeating what I'd been told. "Reporting for duty."

He nodded, giving me and my gold-highlighted grey dress uniform a once-over. "At XCOM, we accept only the best, the brightest, and the most devoted to the defense of Earth and its people. Are you prepared to lay down your life as our first and last line of defense?"

"I am," I said, nodding.

"Are you prepared to eliminate the alien threat by any means necessary?"

"I am."

"And are you prepared to endure the sacrifices of those around you – those you would call comrades and friends – for the sake of the mission?"

I gave one final, steely nod. "I am," I said. As if I haven't already.

"Then on behalf of the Council of Nations, I welcome you to XCOM, Private Belladonna." He raised his hand, clutching the gold-and-black emblem of our organization. As he placed it upon my chest, he raised his other hand, clutching a pin, and slammed that into place, nicking my aura just a bit. "Vigilo Confido, Private. Dismissed."

Just as I saluted my new Superior and turned to walk away, the base alarm sounded. "Alert! Enemy Terror Fleet has landed in the outskirts of San Diego, United States of America."

Bradford frowned. "Belay that, Belladonna, get ready and hook up with Strike Six at the armory. Specialist Xiao Long, join her. We don't usually send rookies on Terror Missions, but we've all seen the footage. Give 'em hell."

I nodded, sprinting off towards my destination, Bradford running the opposite way to the command center.

Guess it was too much to ask for a quiet induction day, I thought. Looking to my side, I saw Yang's angry yet determined form keeping up.

At least I wasn't alone.

Seven Weeks Earlier

/-\ Ruby Xiao Long /-\

I groaned, slowly blinking my eyes open. A loud thump resounded through my room as I shifted, finally drawing me away from sleep's wonderful embrace. I looked down beside my bed and found that my phone had been the cause of the noise. Grumbling, I checked the time, curious as to how much more sleep I could get before my alarm woke me u-

7:33am

I blinked and checked again, not quite believing my eyes just yet. When the time didn't change, I flew out of bed, scrambling for the kitchen to at least get something in my belly before class. I knew I should've gotten off the Forgotten Weapons forums earlier, I thought. I was up so late, I must've forgotten to set my alarm. I was already half-way through my cereal when I noticed Dad sitting right next to me, still passed out. Guess I'm not fully awake yet if that slipped by. I shook his shoulder. "Dad, we've gotta go to school!"

He stirred, eyes blinking open for just a moment. "...fivemoreminutes… "

I shook him again. "Dad, it's 7:40. We need to get going!"

He shifted again, an empty bottle rolling out from under him and shattering on the floor. He shot up from his seat, revealing he'd stained his white shirt again.

I groaned. "Go change and get some water or something, I'll get Yang," I said, shoveling the last few bites into my mouth. God, I wish we weren't like this… I thought. Ever since mom… a few months ago… I shook my head, carefully avoiding the shattered glass and walking to my sister's room before pounding on the door. "You up?"

"...sick…" I heard through the door.

My eyes narrowed, she sounded perfectly normal to me. "Sick sick, or… sick?" I asked, already knowing the answer.

"'m sorry, Rubes."

A pang of worry shot through my chest. "Nothing's broken, right? You don't need to go to the hospital?"

"Wha- no! Ruby, you know we don't fight that hard there, it's just a black eye! I just… don't want any awkward questions asked, y'know?"

I sighed. "And you know what I think of that club of yours," I said, shaking my head. "If you're gonna skip, at least clean up the kitchen? Dad… Dad had a bad night."

"Ah, fuck… he was doing pretty well for a while," she said. "Yeah, I'll handle it. Qrow's still at work, right?"

"Late patrol, yeah," I said, glancing at the time once more. "I gotta go, see ya later." I bolted off back to my room, throwing on a fresh pair of jeans and a red hoodie before booking it outside to the car – just in time to see Dad struggling to put the key in the door.

Inwardly groaning, I rushed over to that side of his Honda Civic. "I'll drive, you're still waking up," I said, snatching the keys. "I need practice for the test next week anyways."

"If you're sure…" After a moment, he nodded. "Yeah, you're sure. I'll just… go over here…" he said, half-stumbling over to the passenger side.

I got in the car and fiddled with the mirrors and seat until they were adjusted to my smaller frame. In doing so, I caught a glance of my new black hair – just like mom's, unlike my natural hair which was more of a strawberry blonde. After a moment, I set us off down the gravel driveway. The clock already read 7:58, but thankfully we were only ten minutes from the school. Dad and I parted ways at the entrance as he headed off to his classroom and I went to my locker.

The school wasn't terribly big, so a quick few minute jaunt down the cinderblock corridors was all it took. I'd only just opened the tan-painted and squeaky thing when I heard a familiar voice. "Hey, Ruby!" I glanced over to see Jaune approaching, books already in hand. "Is Yang alright? She hasn't answered any of my texts this morning."

"She's fine, just a bit sick," I lied. I knew for a fact Yang hadn't told her boyfriend about her occasional extra-curricular activities, and though I hated lying to my own friend, I also knew it really wasn't my place to tell. "She's probably just sleeping in."

He sighed. "Bummer. Had this kinda elaborate thing I was gonna ask her to prom with today – brought my guitar and everything."

I raised an eyebrow. "You're her boyfriend. She already knows she's going with you."

"Yeah, I get that, but I just thought she'd like it."

Well, now I felt even worse about lying to him. "Hey, she'll probably be back tomorrow, right? You can ask then."

He nodded. "Yeah, I guess that's what I'll do," he said. Just as he finished his sentence, the three-minute warning bell rung. "See ya at lunch?"

I grabbed my books and shut the locker. "Yeah, see ya at lunch."

"Hey, Ruby, seen your sister around?"

"Yo Rubes, where Yang at?"

"Hey, uhh… you? Where's your big sis?"

"Ey Rubinator! Know where Yang's at?"

"Greetings, Miss Xiao Long, I was wondering if you know where your sister is? She's supposed to present today and-"

"Hey, d'ya know where Yang is?"

I sat down at the lunch table, trying to hide just how draining the morning was. It seemed I was mostly successful, considering Li, An, and Pyrrha went back to chatting. Jaune, though, took another look at me before pulling out his phone and typing out a quick text.

My own phone vibrated and I quickly checked it.

Jaune: U ok?

I glanced up at him and saw the mild concern on his face. I gave him a nod before texting back.

Ruby: Ye thx

Jaune: Dsnt look like it, whats up?

I looked up once more, hesitating for a moment. On one hand, if there was anyone in this school who could understand being overshadowed by a sibling, it would be the guy with seven sisters. On the other… what could he do about it? It's not like he magically controlled people's actions. He couldn't make people suddenly care about me instead of her. Frowning, I sent my reply.

Ruby: I'm fine

Jaune: I don't buy ti

Ruby: I'm ok. Plz stop asking

Jaune: ok

Jaune: If u need 2 talk, lmk

Jaune: I'm here

Ruby: …thx

I looked up, meeting his eyes and giving a half smile. He gave a nod and went back to his food. I myself dug in; I might not be able to talk about things, but at least it was Frozen Pizza Day today.

"So, um, Jaune," Pyrrha started, turning away from the other two at the table. "Things are… going well between you and her?"

He swallowed a bite. "Yeah, I'd say so. Why?"

She sighed, a pained look in her eyes. "Just… wondering, I suppose. She just seems a bit distant lately."

I fought to keep my wince invisible to the others, knowing exactly whyshe was so distant.

If Jaune noticed, he certainly didn't comment. "Pyrrha, look, things are going great – we really click and we're both having fun. Now I know you have feelings for me, but neither me or her did when she asked me out. She wasn't trying to-"

"Oh I am well aware of just how clueless you both were, Jaune," she said. "Wait, that came out wro-"

He held up a hand. "No, no, you've got a point. Let's just… talk about something else, okay? Like… uhh… oh! You just ran a marathon, right? How'd that go?"

Now a proud smile worked its way onto Pyrrha's face. "Oh, not to brag, but I set a new personal best – three hours, forty-eight minutes on the dot."

Jaune blinked. "Holy shit. I mean, I knew you were good, but don't most people take over four hours?"

Her smile grew even more. "The average for women of my age group is four-hours fifty minutes. You can see why I'm more than pleased."

"How are you not dead?" I asked. "Like, sure, I run whenever I get the jitters, but I'm always pretty beat after a couple laps around the property."

Pyrrha's smile slipped for just a moment before re-asserting itself. "Practice, of course – copious amounts of practice. I believe my sessions add up to a marathon in their own right every, oh, four or five days? Perhaps a week if I take it easy on myself."

Jaune shook his head. "There are a lot less painful ways to kill yourself, Pyr," he joked.

The lunch bell rang soon after and I quickly scarfed down what was left of my food before bolting to class.

The rest of the day was more of the same – people lamenting the absence of my sister.

If only they'd say it where I couldn't hear.

/-\ Weiss Schnee /-\

A yawn escaped my lips as I turned a page.

I sent a glare towards the clock – it was almost midnight! And here I was, no closer to understanding the text than I was when I started studying three hours ago. With a sigh, I got up and started a fresh pot of coffee brewing. It was Tuesday and I didn't have any morning classes tomorrow; I could stay up for a few more hours trying to grasp the material. I would not have a repeat of earlier in the semester – I'd barely scraped by with a mere 101% grade, unacceptable! I, as the heiress to the Schnee Automotive Company, will be the Valedictorian. The sheer prestige of attaining that title from Harvard – on top of having graduated a year early from high school to come here – shall grant me immeasurable favor with Father.

That thought left a bad taste in my mouth. I hated doing as he commanded – hated when he did nothing but order me around. But… what could I do? The man was one of the richest people on the planet. He had connections I couldn't even dream of. I shook my head – the only option was appeasement. And yet… for a moment, I allowed my mind to wander. The business textbook in front of me was dull, my passion lying elsewhere. I spun-up the 3D model in my head – the model of my dream car. The one I wanted to design and build, just like my Grandfather before me. That's how the company started – he sat down with the tools in his garage, and he built. No fancy software, no precision engineering, just… himself. In one of the few conversations I remember having with him, he said he did things by feel. He knew how things were supposed to be, and he trusted his gut.

I hoped I was that good, one day.

I sighed… one day. What would the future hold? I wasn't an idiot – while I was here studying, my younger brother would be at home, schmoozing and conniving with dear old dad. I knew he wanted the company. Who wouldn't? It was one of the richest in the world, for Pete's sake! If I failed to retain my title… what would become of the company? Whitley would probably continue Jacques's trajectory – he didn't have an original thought in his head, it seemed. I purposefully halted my thoughts. Family wasn't something I liked to dwell on.

There was only a single member of it I could stand, after all. A small smile crossed my face as I remembered holding Winter for the first time, a little over a year and a half ago. She was just so… small. So small and fragile and utterly adorable in her newborn-ness. I'd absolutely love to have her here, even if it meant I'd have to take care of her mysel-

The door slammed shut, startling me so much I almost fell off the chair. I growled, looking over towards the intruder. "Flynt! Where have you been?! Curfew was two hours ago!"

He chuckled, setting down the trumpet case in his hands. "Had a gig. Not everyone can pay for Harvard on daddy's money, y'know."

I opened my mouth to retort but thought better of it. I… crossed my arms, refocusing on my task. "Just… get out of my face."

"With pleasure," he said, walking towards his bedroom. I heard him open the door, but not shut it. "Oh, by the way, might wanna start gettin' out sometime; livin' a little."

I rolled my eyes, turning to face him. "And why is that? I have more important things to do than go to one of your parties, you know."

He shrugged, head sticking out of his bedroom. "Just sayin', Schnee. What happened in Yakutsk could happen here," he said, shutting the door.

I tisked, turning back to my studies. "Unsubstantiated rumors," I muttered.

Aliens. What a joke…

/-\ Yang Xiao Long /-\

Something was bothering Ruby.

Ever since she got home from school yesterday, she's been acting… distant, keeping to herself. More than usual, at least – she didn't even leave her room for supper! I wanted to ask what was up, but she had actually locked herself inside. A quick listen revealed her to be tapping away on that noisy keyboard of hers, so she was… well, she clearly wasn't fine, but she also wasn't going to let me talk to her at the time.

And that's how I found myself hurriedly shoving my little sis into the janitor's closet on the way to lunch.

"Yang! What the hell?!" she shouted, backing away from the chemical-laden shelf on the far wall.

I shut the door, crossing my arms. "Something's bothering you."

She blinked. "Did you have to shove me in here just to ask that? Where did you even get the key?!"

"It's been bothering you since you got home yesterday and you're still… out of it," I said. "Ruby, what's wrong?"

She sighed. "I don't wanna talk about it, okay? I'll get over it."

"Ruby…" I started. "Please just talk to me. Is it about Dad?" I asked. "Or Mom? Or… Penny?"

"They… don't help, but no. It's not about them," she said. "Look, Yang, I appreciate what you're trying to do, but I really just don't wanna talk about it."

I stared at her for a moment, looking at those baby blue eyes of hers that almost looked ready to fill with tears. Whatever it was… it was too fresh, clearly. Maybe I'd have better luck in a few days asking what was wrong. Hesitantly, I nodded. "If you're absolutely sure you don't wanna talk about it, I guess I can't make you. Just please lemmie know when stuff really bothers you? I love ya, and I hate seeing you like this."

She gave a brief smile. "...yeah, I love you too, sis. Thanks for checking on me, but… I'm okay. I'm okay."

"If you're sure," I said, opening the door and stepping aside.

She nodded, exiting back into the hallway with me not far behind. Just then, I had a thought – even if I couldn't get her to spill, I could at least try to cheer her up a bit. "Hey, how's about we break out the targets after school? Just you and me."

For the first time in a couple days, a genuine smile broke out on her face. "I'd like that."

"Sweet! We'll swing by the gun store for some ammo on the way home – I'm buying."

She waved me off. "Nah, you don't have to do that. I've got a job now too, remember? I'll pay you back on Friday after I cash my check."

I shrugged. "Sure, works for me."

We'd reached the cafeteria by then and got our food. She still wasn't the most talkative at lunch, but she also didn't seem as distant, either. Soon enough, we had to part ways for the rest of classes. Thankfully, though, they went by relatively quickly; one of the teachers was gone and the sub let us watch a movie! No idea what it was about, but I did have a great nap – one of those really deep ones that left you wondering which planet you were on.

As I headed for our usual meeting spot after the last bell rung, Jaune came up to me. "Hey, uh, Crystal kicked me outta the house for a few hours, wanna hang?"

Ooooof course his sister would do this today, I thought, spying a red mop of hair through the crowd. "Sorry babe, me 'n Rubes are doin' stuff right away."

He deflated a bit. "Ah, damn. Oh well, I'll just… go to the park or something. Text ya?"

"...you can come," Ruby said as we reached her. "If you want."

I blinked, confused for a moment before realizing what she was doing. "Ruby, you don't have to-"

She waved me off. "Nah, it's… fine. He can come shoot with us if he wants. It's not like we don't have a gun to let him use if he does, and plus I'd feel like crap if I came between you and your boyfriend anyway."

"You seriously don't have to-"

"Sweet!" Jaune shouted. "Thanks, Rubes, but I don't think I need to borrow any of yours. I haven't brought out great grandpa's gun in so long! I'll see ya guys in a bit, gotta run home and grab it!"

Before I could tell him otherwise, he was gone. I sighed. "Ruby…"

"Don't you start," she interrupted. "You've got a relationship, I don't. And, well, Jaune's my friend too," she said. "Sure, I was looking forward to it just being us, but, well, I really would feel like crap if all he could do is hang out in the park while we had fun."

"Tsk, you're way too selfless. Y'know that?" I said. "It's not a crime or anything to want some time with family. But if you're sure, then we can. Otherwise I'll just text him – he'll understand, he's a good guy."

"You wouldn't be dating him if he wasn't," she said, walking away. "C'mon, we've got a gun store to hit and then targets to beat up!"

Shaking my head, I followed her out of the school's double doors to the parking lot. Everywhere around, my classmates were hopping into their cars, pickups, even a side-by-side in one case, and driving off. Already, my own truck had plenty of room around it, meaning I could see the fact that some dipshit had dinged my door.

I sighed, running a hand along the crease. Thankfully, the black paint didn't appear chipped – small mercies. As I got in, I let out a sigh of relief; my yellow-striped snowflake still looked great, despite the age. God, I wish they still made these, I thought.

Ruby was already buckled up and on her phone by the time I got the truck started and into gear. With a grin, I gave the engine an experimental rev. Even though my truck was older than I was, it still purred like a kitten – a product of having many good owners, some tune-ups I personally installed, and, of course, excellent build quality. I flicked the Nicholas Schnee bobblehead stuck to my dash before throwing the truck in gear and speeding off.

We looped around the big, blocky, Kasota Stone building, finally reaching the county road that turned into Main Street after about a mile of cornfield. Patch wasn't the biggest or most bustling town in Minnesota; it only had about three-thousand people in it, after all. But it was the biggest town for about half an hour in any direction, so we still had a fair few shops despite our small size – a movie theater, too, along with a bowling alley, a swimming pool, and, of course, a small gun shop.

I pulled into one of the many slanted parking spots that lined Main Street and headed into the shop, leaving the heater on for Ruby who stayed with the truck. About ten minutes later, I exited the brick building with ten boxes of ammo – five of Ruby's 308 Winchester and five of my 12-gauge shotshells. Another fifteen minutes – about half of which was us listening to updates on the radio about the Yakutsk Massacre – saw us pulling into our gravel driveway. Dad was already home, his car inside the open garage next to Qrow's. We both knew our Uncle wasn't here, however, given the absence of his Sheriff's Deputy car.

I pulled into my spot next to the shed, shutting off the engine. Ruby and I went inside the main house – a white-and-red ranch-style just on the edge of a forest – and shed our backpacks.

As I headed to the kitchen, I saw Ruby flop face-down onto the couch, burying her face into a furry white pillow. "Want some toast?" I asked, putting a couple slices in the toaster for myself.

"Please!" she shouted back. I put a couple more pieces in.

While I was waiting, Dad came up from downstairs. "What's got you back so early?" I asked.

He sighed. "Just… had to get out of there, I guess," he said, moving over to the coffeemaker. "Left after sixth period. Been trying to grade papers, but I'm having trouble focusing. Maybe this'll help…"

I put a hand on his shoulder. "You're doing good, Dad."

He shook his head. "Didn't feel so good yesterday morning."

"That was yesterday," I said, fighting to keep the frown off my face. "You haven't fallen off the wagon yet, you just… stumbled a bit. You're still good."

He let out a deep sigh. "I'll… keep that in mind."

I paused for just a moment, the both of us standing still while our machines worked their magic. "If you do need any help, though, just ask. Like, tonight, too – I know we've got some spaghetti laying around somewhere I can cook up if you don't feel like it."

"No, I… I've gotta do stuff," he said. "It's worse when I just sit around, I gotta keep moving."

My toaster dinged, four crusty and golden-brown treats popping into view. "...if you say so," I muttered, fishing out the toast and placing it onto two small paper plates. As I buttered our food, I couldn't help but think something that I really hated; a thought I'd been having a lot lately.

I shouldn't have to do that.

It was selfish, it was stupid, and most of all it was wrong. His brain was being excessively shitty, and he had to work through it. We all did. It wasn't like Mom and Penny's """disappearance""" four months ago didn't affect the rest of us too, but Dad took it the hardest. After Raven left him the day before their wedding, he probably thinks he's cursed or something. But none of that changed how I thought, deep down. I hated those thoughts just as much as I hated my egg donor.

I shook my head, walking into the living room. "Toast is ready," I said.

Ruby quickly pocketed her phone, but not before I caught a glimpse of a familiar dog-like robot covered in mud… and a happier, slightly younger Ruby next to it. My sister's eyes seemed to glisten a bit more than usual, but several quick blinks returned them to normal. "Woot! Toast!" she shouted, swiping a piece.

I set her plate down on the glass-and-steel coffee table. "Don't take too long," I said, heading outside through the sliding door. Immediately, a white-and-black missile darted inside with a happy yip. Ruby squealed in surprise at the corgi that just threw her toast everywhere and was now on her lap demanding scritches.

I shook my head, closing the door behind me. My own toast quickly – and deliciously – disappeared as I made my way to the shed, where we kept the targets. A minute later, and I was already on my way to the middle of the yard, paper targets and some rope in hand. In no time at all, I'd run a length between two trees, mounted the targets, and then ran another length to a stake in the ground below them.

By the time I was finished, Ruby had already brought out our two guns – her FN FAL and my Remington 870 – and ammo for them. We took turns oiling the mechanisms, finishing just as Jaune pulled up in his old Nissan Sentra, a few pockets of rust glaring through the flaking silver paint. I couldn't help but preen at the stark contrast between my fabulous '89 Snowflake and his technically newer… eh, there really wasn't a charitable way to put it, my boyfriend had a shitbox. But it was cheap and it worked, and that's what mattered to him.

He stepped out of the car, quickly grabbing his cased-up rifle and ammo from the back seat before walking towards us. "Hey guys!" he shouted.

"Hey Jau-"

"Whatcha got?" Ruby interrupted. "Didn't get the chance to ask before you kinda ran away. Is it a Springfield? Wait, you're French, right? Is it a Lebel? Or how about a-"

"Just a second, jeez," he laughed. Walking over to the fold-out table – Ruby practically hanging off his arm – he set his things down and unbuckled the leather case, slowly sliding out something… wooden?

Ruby's eyes scrunched up in confusion before slowly widening as more became visible. "Oh my god, you have a Garand?!" she shouted. "I love these things and I wanna buy one sooooo bad, but I'm not old enough yet and this is in really good condition except… this?" she pointed to something scratched into the stock. "Mort… dorée? What's that mean?"

"Yellow Death," Jaune said. "Only bit of French I know. Dad says his granddad scratched that into the stock with a German trench nail just off Utah Beach."

Utah beach? I thought. Did they invade Utah sometime? I shook my head – history wasn't my strong suit and it didn't matter anyways.

"That's really cool," Ruby said. "Something like that – it's special."

He grinned. "Don't I know it? Why do you think I'm so excited? I get to hang out with my friend, my girlfriend, and I get to shoot this thing! It's gonna be great!"

She passed him the bottle of oil. "Well, why don't you get Mister Yellow Death ready? I'll grab our ear pro," she said, quickly darting back inside. A minute later, she emerged once more with three pairs of earphones, one already around her ears.

By then, he'd already finished lubing up his gun and was in the process of loading eight-round clips for his rifle. "Ladies first?" he half-asked, grabbing a pair of earphones from Ruby and slipping them on.

Ruby grinned. "Don't mind if I do~" she said, shoving the last pair into my hands. I slipped it on as she loaded a twenty-round magazine into her rifle, pulling the charging handle. "Clear the range!" she shouted, even though nobody stood in front of the table. She waited a few moments before shrugging, shouldering the weapon, and taking a few breaths before gently squeezing the-

A horrendously loud bang jolted me – even with the headphones, my ears rung a little. Ruby jolted backwards, blinking. "...that wasn't… me…" she said, looking around in confusion.

Another bang just as loud and startling as the first boomed out from… above?

I looked up, into the baby blue sky. Far, far above the Earth, I could just make out three shapes – one being completely circular and the other two being vaguely plane-like. The circular craft shot out a stream of green, impacting one of the fighters and tearing off a wing. The fighter exploded in short order, but I could barely make out an occupied seat among the debris and explosion. The remaining fighter dodged a follow-up stream, emitting a loud brrrt which had the circular craft dodging in all sorts of weird and seemingly random ways. The fighter loosed a missile, one which impacted its target scarcely a second after firing, and another, identical sonic blast assaulted our ears.

The circular craft shook, one side drooping dramatically in the air before it started flipping end-over-end, plummeting all the while. Its haunting purple form grew closer and closer. I was completely frozen – transfixed as I realized it was going to crash here.

"Hit the deck!" Jaune shouted, tipping over the table, and slamming both me and Ruby to the ground. He covered us with his body – a fact I only registered for two seconds before the loudest explosion I'd ever heard washed over me. My ears rang and I could feel bits of earth, metal, and whatever else hitting what parts of me Jaune wasn't covering. I raised my head just slightly and immediately recoiled – I could see daylight through the table. Tracing the path of whatever made that hole, it would've been maybe an inch from my body. Maybe an inch from skewering me. To my side, I heard and saw bits of roof impact the ground.

With shaky hands, I patted myself down as best I could, thankfully feeling nothing wet and/or sticky coming out of my body. Ruby and Jaune both groaned.

"You guys okay?" I asked, weakly.

"Ugh, yeah," Jaune said. "Small chunk of something landed on my back, but it's just sore, not broken."

"Good here too," Ruby said. "The hell just happened?"

"I don't-" I began, but then something very important came to me. I'd seen a chunk of the roof hit next to us. A chunk of our house. Our house that Dad was in right now.

I shot upwards, eyes wide, and saw the house was basically obliterated. Half of the home that me and Ruby had both been inside not ten minutes ago was now flattened under the saucer's charred purple hull – the other half looked like a giant had taken a baseball bat to it. Walls were toppled over, junk was everywhere, the roof was tattered… it looked like a tornado had gone through just this one, singular building. "D- Dad?" I weakly called. "Dad, are you in there?" I tried again with a little more strength. "Dad?!"

Before I could do anything else, a blue shielded door on the saucer flickered off, a single Grey-like alien stumbling out from inside. It wiped yellowish-brown blood from its exaggerated forehead, emitting a low chitter as it did so. I completely froze, but that did not stop the alien from spotting me.

Less than fifteen seconds after I'd first laid eyes on it, the creature raised its braceleted arm towards me.

That neon green glow promised only one thing:

Death.