Chapter 40
Dust in the wind
(Week 9, Day 69)
RWBY Subverse
Beacon bunker, Vale
(Johnathan's POV)
Icy cold fear seeps into my every bone as I made my way out of the elevator. Every second we waste, is a second closer this world is to complete destruction. And I'm not meaning that metaphorically. I'm praying to every and any god in the multiverse that will listen that what I heard on the other end of the call is NOT what I think it was. I'm hoping it's a Cordyceps outbreak at worst. I can handle that if I'm lucky and fast enough. No matter what it is, everything within fifty kilometers minimum is going to be going up in a hellfire inferno with every single possible bomb and missile these people can pull out of their ass. I can feel my heart hammering away inside my chest, pumping ice into my veins as fear took root. Alice was already down here loading up a pair of M7 sub machine guns before putting them on her thighs. Around us was locker after locker of weapons and crap loads of ammo. A table was set up in the middle of it all with a create of grenades not far from it. One set of lockers held several sets of Freelancer armor sets. Most notably the Mark V versions of ODST, CQC, Scout, Operator, Pilot, and Recon along with standard Mark V and VI armor styles. All basic white, free for the freelancer to customize as they wish. Sadly to get them on and off we need special tools, ones stored in the locker. I opened up a locker with the Forerunner weapons.
"Take this." I say throwing her one of the Suppressors. She expertly caught it mid air and begun inspecting it. "Z-130 Direct Energy Automatic Weapon. 48 round magazine, 500 rounds per minute, spread is similar to a MA5B but good in close quarters against large swarms." I informed pulling out a Suppressor for myself.
"I might like this gun. You think we're up against the same thing I'm thinking?" Alice asked. Thank the gods she has the BFG, we're going to need it. Oh lord are we going to need something of that firepower. "Grab a shotgun as well. If we are against what I'm thinking; we're going to need a lot more firepower. "
"I know it, but I'm praying I'm wrong." I replied replacing Arcflash with an M90. As much as I hate parting with my beloved railgun, I need something better suited for close quarters and loads of enemies at once. I started loading buckshot into the shotgun as Alice put the Suppressor on her back and started loading up on ammo for it. "Mu send a message to Ironwood to have his people prepare everything He, Vale, and Vacuo have on hand that goes boom. We need it all ready to launch the second we send the call. Tear whatever warheads are left in the Rex out and load them into the fastest bombers he has. I don't care what anyone says, tell him to start doing it RIGHT NOW! And where the fuck are these Ace Ops guys?!" I ordered sliding the pump. Shotgun ready to go, I ran over to a storage box holding our surplus of grenades. Taking all the Type 3 flamer grenades and hooked two on my belt, tossing the other three to Alice, who caught them mid air and hooked them to her waist as I threw them.
"Threw me a couple plasma grenades and regular ones as well. Load up on everything we can carry. Grab me some of those Freelancer enhancements. I don't care which one, see if you can fit it into my armor. We'll need every advantage we can get." Alice ordered. I wasted no time loading up on both grenades and tossed Alice what she wanted. "Also Penny, Tell them to evacuate everyone within a hundred kilometer radius of ground zero. Anything lower than twenty kilometers of it is to be considered dead and destroyed. We'll try to keep casualties to a minimum and help limit infection where we can. Try to quarantine the evacuated and those doing the evacuations, somewhere air tight with no chance of even a single fungal spore escaping. Destroy all equipment involved with fire. Tell the evacuated to only take what they absolutely can not bear to part with, burn anything that remotely looks off. If they see ANYTHING out of the ordinary they have my orders to leave immediately. Whoever is not onboard a ship is to be left behind. We can NOT take any risks." She ordered. Penny flashed onto my shoulder, ridged and fidgeting around.
"Johnathan . . . Alice. . . please tell me what's going on. Why are you two acting like we're all about to die? Why should the General go to such extremes? You're both scaring me." Penny asked, switching her gaze between me and Alice with wide eyes.
"You should be." Alice and I both replied at the same time. I grabbed the healing unit and domed shield, motioning for Alice to turn around viva a quick twirl with two fingers. I may know the Gen 2 armor, but she is in first gen mark IV armor. Shouldn't be too different, if not more or less complicated. I might be able to fit the healing unit on her easy enough.
"Penny there is no good way we can describe it. We have to move quickly or your entire world is fucked! With a capita D! Fucked!" I explained as Alice turned around. Immediately I got to work fitting the enhancements onto her armor, using a special impact wrench to get the back panel off. This SHOULD help us worst case scenario. At least enough to get to safety. All though I think this might void the warranty. The iconic ding of the elevator let me know someone was getting off as I finished up installing Alice's gear. I closed up Alice's back panel and gave her a firm pat on the shoulder to let her know I was done. "Eta and Iota will brief you on how to use those enhancements. Try not to break either of them." I informed reaching to the table and grabbing a random armor under suit before turning around. Three guys and a girl were in the elevator. One being Ironwood, who was not in the best mood if his expression was anything to go buy. One dark skinned faunus with green hair and a wolf like tail, who looked around him in absolute amazement. One dark skinned girl with a Mohawk and some type of exo skeleton power suit around her arms, she stood by the general with her hands behind her back with a rather stoic look. The last guy reminds me of a fisherman complete with a damn fishing pole like weapon on his hip along with several lucky charms, he also looked around in surprise. All in Atlas uniforms with various degrees of customization based on the user's preference. These must be the Ace ops guys. . . . strange, I figured there would be at least four for a team. Ironwood pointed to me and Alice as they marched out of the elevator.
"You two better start explaining. What the HELL is going on? Why did your AI basically tell me to prepare for an all out firestorm to be launched at a moment's notice?" He demanded. I nodded up to the wolf and threw him the folded up suit. He caught it right before it unfolded and blanked him. I pointed to the other two as I reached for two more.
"Titanium nano-weave undersuit, highly resilient material, it will protect you far better than what you're wearing. Put it on like a jumpsuit, pressurized zipper is in the back by the neck. It will automatically conform to your shape once it's sealed. You three put those on. Leave your weapons and grab any of these ones, they'll be much more useful. I can't fully explain right now, we don't have time." I informed throwing the other two a under suit as I turned to Alice. "You good to go Spartan?"
"I'll go inspect the transport. Make sure it's able to handle all of us with our . . . additional weight. You three do as he says and get ready. We're leaving in fifteen minutes, with or without you. And General, your transport better be fast." Alice replied making her way to the elevator. She easily towered over everyone in the room, myself included. Her heavy metallic footsteps did little to soften her image to these new allies. She stopped barely inches away from Ironwood as she looked down at the fisherman guy. "I read your team's file earlier, mostly the stuff not covered in black ink. Where's the rest of your team? Your file said there was six of you." Alice asked.
"Our last op went south. Our bullets just bounced off their skin, no blade could pierce it. Elm was left in critical condition, Vine and Tortuga they. . . . they didn't make it." The fisherman replied to her, choking out the last part. Alice nodded to him and a reassuring pat on the shoulder before heading to the elevator.
"You have my condolences. The Freelancer will explain everything on the way, right now get ready. Remember, courtyard in fifteen minutes." Alice reminded stepping into the elevator. I had Mu set a mission clock on my HUD for ten, it will take at least five getting up and to the courtyard. I know we're giving them a very narrow window to get geared up and armed, but as stated several times in the last five minutes. WE DON'T HAVE TIME TO WAIT! I rushed from my spot to the lockers as the doors closed, sending Alice up. I opened up the locker and pulled out one of the BR55 battle rifles. Pulling the bolt back and pulled the mag out, inspected the insides, good enough. I put the mag back in, chambered a round , then set it on the table and pulled out a MA5C, repeating the process and putting it on the table with the rifle. I can't give them the Forerunner guns because I don't have the ammo for all of them, so UNSC weapons will have to do. I look behind me to see Ironwood nor his team moved a inch, instead looked at me confused.
"What are you all waiting for, Monty himself to say it? Ironwood tell your guys to get ready. Mu, pull up the related video from my fight on Beta Halo and send it to his scroll. Show him what we're up against. Just everyone get ready right now! Go around the corner or something to dress if you want privacy. Just get this shit on now!" I ordered rushing to the next locker. I have to stay behind to help these guys get their armor on in a decently quick fashion. Especially the Wolf faunus, that tail is going to prove a problem, how do we make his work?
As I expected from Mu, the General's scroll beeped to let him know he had a message. One Mu was already playing if the heavy gunfire and screams from his scroll were anything to go by. He pulled out his scroll as the same collection of blood curling roars and screams echoed from my scroll. His face went straight to terrified in seconds as all color drained from him. If that doesn't convince him to listen to me, nothing will. Penny went to his shoulder and looked at the video. Covering her mouth in shock as the swearing and gunfire from the video only grew.
"Listen up Ace Ops. The Spartan and Freelancer are in charge of this mission. You listen to them like you listen to me. They say jump, jump. They say run, run. No questions asked. Get that armor on. NOW! You leave in fifteen minutes." Ironwood ordered closing the video. Not even questioning him the other three immediately unfolded the under suit and looked around it for a zipper. The girl took hers and went around the corner to the other set of Freelancer weapon lockers. Wolf guy found it and unzipped it shortly before the others, and started to speed undress. I turned away to give them some form of privacy while they change. "You're sure that is what you're going to be up against? Can't be anything else? No doubts in your mind?" He asked me.
"It could be a dozen different things. That is the most likely, and the absolute worst case. Everyone is going to have to be on their A game if any of us have any chance of survival. That's why they're getting this armor. They'll need it." I answered taking a deep breath and letting it out slowly to help control my own fear from taking over. We can't mess up, one small mistake and we're all royally screwed.
"When you get back, we're having a nice LONG talk. I want to know what exactly we're up against out there, and how far outmatch we really are. Penny, stay with him. Help them however you can." He informed, I nodded in agreement to him. Penny nodded and flashed away to join Mu in my armor.
"I'll put it this simple, you guys are at best mid tier tech in the multiverse. I'll handle things down here, get them ready to go in my way. You get those nukes ready to drop when we send the word. Negotiate whatever deal you can with Vale and Vacuo to fire all their missiles with yours. You can NOT afford to hold back, not against this threat." I informed stressing the last part. Ironwood for the most part seemed to understand, or at least acknowledge what I was getting at. He gave his team one last look before heading back to the elevator that just came back. I began heading toward my temporary squad members to help the wolf faunus into his suit. He got his arms and legs though but is having trouble reaching the zipper with is tail obscuring the zipper from moving, all while he stood there in a bright blue set of boxers. Base of his tail is just above where the zipper ends. So as predicted he was having trouble with his tail. I got several ideas on how to help, none too pleasant for him.
"I got an idea, let me help you." I offered. He nodded as I moved behind him. I'm not sure if what I'm about to do would be technically considered sexual harassment or racial abuse. Freelancer armor was not designed with a tail in mind, barely any sets of powered armor is. "Sadly this armor wasn't designed with faunus in mind, so this may hurt a little." I warned holding his tail up against his back and began zipping him up. If the whimper was anything to go by, this was far from comfortable with is tail firmly straight against his back with no room to wiggle at all. "I'm Sergeant Johnathan. I know this won't be the most comfortable situation with your tail. But it's needed for the mission ahead." I introduced taking a step back. As with mine, the suit encompassed his whole body up to over the base of his chin.
"It's fine, I'll make this work. So long as this suit is as good as you claim it to be." He introduced rolling his arms and flexing his fingers as the suit began to conform to his shape, tightly hugging his muscles. "This feels cold, and weird. It's like I have another set of skin on. Why do we need to wear this?" He commented looking down at himself, chuckling as he pinched his arm to see it's about as skin tight as humanly possible. They better get use to it. Going to be good odds they're keeping it when we're done, I guarantee they're all going to soil their armor at least once before we're done. I know I did when I first fought those parasites. I looked down at the mission clock on my HUD to see how much time we got. Seven minutes remaining. Not a lot of time, I look to see the other two got the suits on as they began adjusting to their form.
"You'll thank me once we begin real combat." I noted. I raised my head to the two others walking our way. Time for proper introductions. "Name's Johnathan Grey, you all may call me Ohio while on mission. What you're wearing now is a special under suit. This suit will protect your sorry ass where this armor can't, it's far better than anything you've worn before. And yes Aura will work with it. Before we get your armor fitted, I want names. We're low on time so give me the short version of what you can do. Shorter the better." I called out with an air of authority. I pointed to Marrow beside me for him to answer first since he was closest.
"Marrow Amin. I use a boomerang/assault rifle combo. Sembalance let me freeze things in front of me." He answered wiggling his arms around, trying to get comfortable in his new suit. Perfect for this mission, we'll need someone on crowd control. I pointed to the Mohawk girl.
"Harriet Bree. I use mechanized exo-skeleton arms to augment my strength. Sembalance is super speed." She answered quickly with her hands behind her back formally. She kind of reminds me of Kelly-087 a little bit. I'd give my other arm and soul to have that Blue team on this mission. I nodded to her and pointed to the last guy.
"Clover Ebi, leader of Ace Ops. Sembalance is good fortune and I use My fishing pole/grappling hook hybrid." He answered. While the good fortune will come in handy, the melee only aspect of what he uses will be suicide where we're going. I went to the locker and pulled out a neural chip injector. Basically what all the Sim troopers have for them to use their armor. The chip itself is no bigger than my pinkie and uses a encoded signal to interface with the armor from the brain.
"Sadly the only color I got for armor is white, we don't have time for you to paint on your own styles. Pick an armor style you like and start getting it on. I'll help you guys put it on. Focus on the Chest and Cod pieces first. You'll have time to put the rest on as we're on our way there. But before we do any of that, I need to install a basic interface at the base of you're skull. It will act as a IFF tag and help you control the many functions of this armor. This is so none of us shoot each other by mistake rounding a corner. You will show up on my motion tracker as green. Plus you'll need it if you want to keep this armor. So who wants to go first?" I informed loading up one of said chips. Clover walked up and turned his back to me while unzipping his suit to expose the back of his head.
"I'll go first since I'm the leader. If this helps us, I can handle a little pinch. I got a funny feeling in my gut we're going to need this armor and everything it provides." He noted as I lined up the injector with the base of his skull. With the sharp hiss of air it pushed the chip through to his head. He hissed in pain before his aura glowed to let me know he already started healing. He steps forward feeling the base of his neck and where I injected it. All that showed was a small disk that looked like a mini CD. "That wasn't so bad. Who's next?" He asked zipping himself back up. Harriet walked up next and we repeated the process after I reloaded it and then Marrow. Over all it went as planned, except for the howl of pain from Marrow when his went in. I remember waking up after getting mine in, still itches to this day sometimes. These guys got the benefit of aura and that these chips are only a step up from what a average UNSC Marine would have. Not as good as a Spartan neural chip, but a happy middle ground for Freelancer armor since the program mostly dealt with idiots and army rejects. After that I pointed to the armor.
"Have at it. Pick whatever one you like the most. If we survive this mission, you can keep it." I informed. The wolf didn't waste a second gunning for the Recon armor. Everyone loves Recon, I can't blame him. The other two shrugged their shoulders and went to the armor lockers. I couldn't help but chuckle at Marrow looking over the chest plate and back plate as he tried to figure out how to get it on. I went over and took the armor from his hands, disconnecting the pieces I gestured for him to move forward. "The armor comes together automatically in marked locations before it gets fitted onto you. After it notices you're inside it seals you in, making it a bitch to get off. This will increase your suvivability ten fold while doing little to restrict movement and flexibility. Each helmet has a integrated Co2 recycling system as well as a small oxygen tank for seventy minutes of breathable air when needed, bio-scans for each team mate, and much more I will go though as we head upstairs. This will be the most expensive and advanced armor you'll ever wear in your life times. We'll need every advantage we can get." Freelancer armor is significantly lighter than Spartan armor, doesn't require augmentation (but helps a LOT), and is easier to get on and off than Spartan armor. Downside is it doesn't protect as good as Spartan armor. Right now it is better than what they had earlier. He held out his arms in a T pose as I connected the back and front plant together. I know how do put this stuff on alone, I've done it enough times. It hisses as it sealed up with the suit as it fitted to his form. Rest I left to him, the chest piece is always the worst. Harriet and Clover seemed to be doing alright helping one another figure out how it all goes on. Always easier with a partner. Interesting. Harriet chose the Pilot like armor while Clover went for the Operator set with several of his 'lucky charms' on his chest plate. Interesting choices.
"Where did this armor come from? There not like anything I've ever seen before." Harriet asked putting on her bracers.
"I'll explain everything on the way there. Focus on the inner parts next. Thighs, biceps, go from your core out. It will make things easier getting on." I answered stepping back and moving to the weapons locker. Pulling out another MA5C rifle for Clover, his ass isn't bringing a damn fishing pole. That is begging for death where we're going. Inspecting it all the while keeping a eye on the mission timer. "Four minutes." I announced setting said rifle on the table. We're cutting it close. I ran to another locker and pulled out three pistols and several mags. Not much but it will do more than what they had. I look behind me to see Harriet having trouble getting her EVA shoulder patrons to co-operate. Clover was busy trying to get his thigh pieces on and Marrow was wearing his helmet looking around like a kid on Christmas. "Need help?" I asked. She nodded as I grabbed the shoulder pauldron she tried putting on.
"It kind of feels like I'm wearing a door honestly." She commented as I hooked the part into place.
"Good, that means it will protect you. Aura will only take so much before it fails. This will save your ass when it does." I answered hooking to second pauldron on and stepped back. She flexed her arm and noticed it did very little to limit movement. I nodded to her as she reached for the helmet. "Is something on your mind?"
"This is all so . . . overwhelmingly advanced. Why are you giving this to us? Why give three people you've never meet before such high end gear yet insist most of us use different weapons?" She asked swiping her thumb across the gold dome at her reflection.
"What we're up against, makes the worst of Grimm preferable. If you three are willing to follow me through the depths of Hell, only fair I outfit you with what you need to survive it. Ironwood trusts me to bring you guys back alive, so I'll do what I can to do just that. Trust me, you'll thank me for making you switch them out once the fighting starts. Your weapons will be useless against them. These you'll at least have a chance to survive." I answered standing back to my full height, looking to the mission clock once more. One and a half minutes remaining down here, time to get going. I reached up and took off my helmet. The hissing of air caught their attention as I held said helmet under my armpit. Every scar on my face viable, my cold blue eyes scanned their body language as they seemed to be putting on the last bits of armor. They seem to get it, at least enough to pass for a Freelancer starting out.
"Two minutes remaining guys. We're going in hard and heavy. So everyone grab a gun, ammo, as many green and blue grenades as you can fit on your belts, and get ready to go quickly." I ordered. For the most part they listened, putting down their helmets and going for the weapons I put out for them. Clover picked up the M6G and inspected it. Nodding in approval as he lowered it.
"This stuff reminds me of a video game I played as a kid. What was it called . . . Something combat evolved. It's been years since I played it." He commented looking for somewhere on his armor to put it. Well he's not entirely wrong. This stuff did originate in a video game world. Most likely the same one hes thinking of but his has a different name and most likely different style, but same idea.
"Your thighs have electromagnets in them, as does your belt, back plate, and boots. They are thought controlled, this is why you got a shot to the head. Just think about them and they'll activate." I informed demonstrating with my energy sword, pulling it off my hip and using the magnets to attached it out of my hand. Clover nodded and tried. As soon as it came close to the hip the suits electromagnets grabbed his pistol from his hands, attaching it to his thighs. The others quickly took note and tried the same, with the same results. "I recommend the BR55 battle rifles and MA5C assault rifles. Battle rifle uses a 9X40mm rounds, the one with the carry handle. They have a good amount of kick but equally as much power behind them. Assault rifle uses common 7.62X51 rounds, the enclosed one with a ammo counter. M7 SMG uses a 5X23 caseless FMJ round, the small ones that load from the side. M90 shotgun uses a 8 gauge magnum shell, it will kick like a mule on crack and hit like one. They load from the top and eject out the side." I informed as Harriet picked up said shotgun and looked it over before putting it back down then picking up a SMG. Marrow picked up his main weapon and put it on his back. Still flinching in surprise when the armors magnets attacked it. His weapon at least has a rifle option, others do not. Against this parasite, range is our best friend. I replaced my father's pistols with a pair of M7 SMGs and put them on my thighs in their place. Again, we're going to need more firepower than those pistols can give. Something better suited for groups and loads of small hostiles at once.
"That's going to take some getting use to. All this is going to take some getting use to. Holy Monty this is advanced stuff." He noted looking over a BR55. A sharp beep from my Helmet let me know we were out of time gearing up. Time to go, but first a small speech. Enough to let them know what we're up against and what's expected of them.
"Alright everyone, listen close. I'm only saying this once, so pay attention." I yelled going back to my Freelancer self. For the most part they seemed to pay attention to me. Ironwood ain't going to like this speech, but right now they need to hear this if they want to survive. "So long as you wear this armor you're no longer Ace Ops nor do you have any affiliation with who you were. You do not answer to anyone but the Spartan or myself. We're the only two with experience, no one else has even an iota of a idea what we're against. We're not fighting any form of Grimm, bandit, or any you've ever seen before. If I'm right we're up against a nasty parasite that does nothing but consume everything in it's path. It infects you with a single scratch, then you're one of them. In a single day it is capable of consuming the entire planet if we fail. The very fate of your world depends on our success, failure is not an option. You're weapons will be effective against this parasite, especially the melee aspect of it. These bastards love to use swarm tactics and trust me, there will be a LOT of them. You will get over run quick if you try to stick to melee range. These automatics and shotguns are your best friends today, use them and you might survive. We're not walking into the heart of a Death Stalker's den, we're walking straight into to fiery gates of Hell itself. This armor WILL protect you for a long while, indefinitely better than what you were wearing previously, but it won't make you invincible. Remember you are still mortal, you WILL die horrifically if you try being a lone wolf. We work as a team, we fight as a team, we survive or die as a team." I announced pacing back and forth, looking down at my own scuffed up helmet. I can feel my heart getting ready to burst from my chest right now. I'm not sure if I'm going to lead these guys home, or to a grizzly death. There is no middle ground with this parasite. "For this mission you're not Ace Ops, you're Freelancers. The most elite fighting force in all of Remnant. We deal with the horrors no one else can. Consider it the highest honor Ironwood sent you with us. Now everyone get your helmets on, grab what ammo you need, and let's head out. Alice won't wait forever." I ordered putting my own helmet back on. Marrow put his back on first, grabbed a BR55 mag and ran toward the elevator, nearly running into the side of the door on the way beside me. Walking with limited viability like that will take some getting use to. Harriet was next but unlike Marrow she was more cautious getting in, her exosuit arms were left in a locker, grudgingly yet she listened, after she found out that they will not fit with this armor. Twin SMGs on her hips and a shotgun on her back with belt full of grenades, solid choice. Clover walked in next, surprisingly he left his fishing pole with Harriet's arms. BR55 on his back with a pair of pistols on his thighs. Marrow can bring his weapon since it has a firearm function. I hit the button as the elevator started it's climb up, groaning a bit with the added weight of our armor.
"So why do we got to wear this armor? I understand it's to protect us but still, why?" Marrow asked with his voice muffled by the helmet.
"Where we're going, the air will be toxic. Our mission is to go in, retrieve a high value target, assess the damage, contain it if we can, and run like the devil himself is after us out of there. Ironwood, as well as the kingdoms of Vale and Vacuo, will be launching an all-or-nothing missile barrage on top of us with every explosive they can pull out of their ass. As well as dropping several of the bombs the Fang launched yesterday. By the end of the day that whole area will be completely unlivable. What they'll do to that bunker will make what happened in Atlas look like a firecracker. We can not afford anything less, or else we're all doomed." I answered as Mu flashed on my shoulder, surprising my new squad mates. "Mu see if you can get the basic functions of their armor running please. Team comms, bioscans, basic HUD components, link us together so we know where one another is at on the HUD at all times. If you can, set their damn motion tracker please. South completely blew her stealth Op because she didn't set hers." I asked.
"Sure thing Ohio. Shouldn't take more than a minute." She noted flashing straight to Harriet, who took a step back in surprise. "Greetings. I'm Mu, AI fragment assigned to Agent Ohio here. My job is to run his extra equipment and watch his back when he's too busy fighting. Now everyone hold still." Mu noted bringing up three screens on her end. Each one showing a T pose of the different armors, running her fingers across all the screens at insane speeds just before all the screens flashed green. "Everything is up linked and ready to go. Play around with the features to see what does what if you want, or we shall give you basic instructions on how to operate the armor's features as we go. The helmet is eye movement controlled. Just look at what you wish to use. Button by your chin activates the helmet lights. Everything else is thought controlled. Your motion tracker will display 3 colored dots. Green is friend, red is foe, yellow is unknown." Mu informed. Not long after everyone's armor light up and beeped. Their names showed up on the side of my HUD with an aura meter for all of us. Oh hey, I wonder when that little feature got installed? . . . that's weird, why does it show Alice having Aura? Far as I know, she never had her Aura unlocked, nor does she show any signs of having it. Then again, she's never been hit that I've seen. Well, we're going to find out soon if this is a glitch or not.
"This is so cool. Motion tracker, aura meters, ammo counter, grenade counter. . . even shows what weapons I have and a reticle. Monty Oum you Freelancers got some neat stuff. . . . what does this megaphone icon do?" Marrow noted. I am guessing he's 'playing with the buttons' to see what does what. I remember my first day in my armor. Wait. . . Megaphone icon! "Testing!" He said as his voice amplified to near ear damming levels making everyone in the elevator try to cover them, and he found the voice amplifier function. I completely forgot that little forgotten feature.
"Mu, do us all a favor and disable that please!" I asked as Harriet gave Marrow a smack upside the head with a metallic clang. Mu pulled nodded and pushed three buttons on each screen. "Anyone have any questions?" I asked. Few more seconds till the top.
"Is the implant suppose to be itchy? And was it absolutely necessary to inject it into our heads?" Harriet asked.
"Yes and don't scratch at it, it will only make it worse and possibly tear it out. The neural interface chip help you control the armor and have it work with you. Most of the systems aside from the helmet are thought activated. You'll get use to it and adjust the longer you wear it." I answered as the doors opened up to Beacon's halls. "Courtyard, double time." I ordered bolting out the door with my new team mates rushing to catch up. Harriet kept up no problem following me as we rounded a corner. Students already know when I'm running, they best get out of the way or I'm running them over. So the run to the courtyard was largely uninterrupted. The doors to the courtyard were at the end of the hall. One of the other students saw us coming and immediately opened the doors so I don't smash though it. Once outside there was a heavily modified drop ship set down in the main area, with Alice inspecting a recently repaired Warthog hooked up to the under carriage just behind the main body. With how often Ozpin and Ironwood have to repair those vehicles, I'd be surprised if they didn't start just making new ones to save time. All though it may look similar to a Pelican, the tail and wings are all wrong. The wings fold up around two large turbo jets. If memory serves, that thing is an Xcom Skyranger, only with a more Atlas style paint job and Atlas's emblem painted on the side of the tail where the Xcom emblem would be. If I'm right, this thing should get us where we need to go quickly. I slowed down as we came up on the dropship. Alice looked up from the Worthog as we arrived. "She good to go Spartan?" I asked. The pilot noticed up and began going to the cockpit.
"Affirmative. Everything checks out by my standards, she's ready to go." Alice informed as the rest of Ace ops followed in behind me. Alice looked over them nodded as the later two fell in line with Harriet. "Interesting choices." Alice noted inspecting them as they stood to attention like Ironwood was still here. "I want you three to understand one thing and one thing alone. That armor you're wearing, where I'm from you earn the right to wear it. It's a symbol that you're the elite of the elite, everyone looks up to you to protect them, to guide them though the worst. You're the only thing standing between them and countless untold horrors. Wearing it makes you a beacon of hope, you're the unrelenting force to turn the tide of battle; no matter how grim it seems. To me it means family. I've had brothers and sisters die being that very beacon of hope. So long as you wear our armor, I expect you to live up to our name. You wear this with pride, with honor, wear it knowing we trust you. Break that trust and I break every bone in your body, starting with the legs. Do I make myself clear Ace Ops?" They responded with a firm 'sir, yes sir'. Alice flicked her head toward the transport signaling them to load up. I was about to get in myself when I heard Serena call for me. I looked back to see her running across the courtyard. Alice patted my shoulder just as I looked up to the behemoth. "You got one minute. Make it count." She answered my silent question before heading into the drop ship. I reached up and took off my helmet just as Serena approached. Sweating and out of breath as I hooked my helmet on my belt.
"Johnathan, why are you heading out so soon? You should be resting with Rhode right now." She asked shortly before I wrapped her in a hug. This could very easily be the last time I see her. My chin rested on her head as my arms covered her back. We may be twin but it's clear which of us is the brains and the brawn.
"Serena I'm going to be blunt with you, I'm scared." I answered tightening my grip on her. Not enough to hurt her, but enough to comfort me. Serena reached around and patted my armored back.
"Johnathan, what's going on?" She asked equally terrified. When I'm scared, she knows it's going to be a near suicide mission. I let her go and knelt down to her height so we're eye to eye.
"A monument to all our sins." I replied knowing she'll get what I mean. Instantly her eyes went wide. "That's not the worst of it. We're going in to secure an informant, someone who knows more of what Emily is planning. What she has and what she promised. We're going to have at least three kingdoms launch their entire incendiary missile stockpile on our asses as we're leaving, and having Ironwood drop the remaining nukes from the REX as insurance. Last time I fought that parasite I almost died. I'm . . . . I'm not sure if I'm going to make it this time." I answered choking up before I wrapped her in another hug. "If I don't make it, you're the only other one who can help these people. Tell Velvet I love her, protect Elaia for me, don't let her know I'm dead until unless it's confirmed. Please." I all but begged. Serena wrapped her arms around my neck and held me tight.
"Please come back Johnathan, Please." She whispered before we broke off, returning to my full height and digging into my pocket. I pulled out a single data chip and gave it to her. She took it and nodded to me, knowing exactly who is on that chip, and what I'm about to ask. "Don't worry, she's safe with me. Freelancer will live on." With that I gave her a reassuring kiss on the forehead. Smile back at my twin as I turned to make my way to the drop ship as the Pilot started up the ships engines. The whole area was covered in a cloud of dust and dirt as I quickly jumped in though the bay doors. Immediately the whole ship started rising and the doors began closing. I looked back at Serena to give her a thumbs up just as the doors closed and we jetted off to our doom. Ace ops was already seated with their helmet's by their belts. I sat down beside Alice as Mu showed up on my shoulder. Taking a deep breath and letting it out slowly as I felt the rumble of the engines. Should only be half an hour max to our destination.
"I managed to hack the Atlas and Vale criminal data base to get an idea of our target. Oh boy are we after a good one." Mu informed flashing a screen to life in front of her and enlarging it. Sure enough it was what we're looking for. Petite woman, tanned freckled skin, skin tight black outfit, long brown hair, grey eyes. Knuckles were covered in blood and face full of anger. Couldn't be more than fourteen years old in the picture. Pictures was not dated not long after a dust mine collapse in Mantle a couple of years ago. Marrow leaned forward and pointed to the picture.
"Hey, I know her. I went to prep-school with her just before joining Atlas Academy. She's the freshman who knocked all the teeth out of several preppy girls making fun of a Dust mine explosion that killed several of the faunus miners. My great uncle was in that collapse!" He noted.
"Correct. The target is about 18 years old as of now. Female and a chameleon faunus, so hiding isn't hard for her given her smaller size and abilities. Both her parents were killed in that mine collapse, which explains the . . . understandable use of violence on said girls. Joined up with the White fang during their change in leadership shortly after. Adam's splinter cell uses her as an infiltration specialist, no surprise there. With how deeply rooted her hatred for humanity is, for good reason in my opinion, it makes this whole mission that much more terrifying." Mu informed putting her hand on her chin. "Whatever is in that bunker with her, it scares her enough to call out for help to the same people who made her life a living hell growing up. Not a good sign if you ask me."
"So what are we up against exactly? If not Grimm or a terrorist cell, what?" Clover asked. Mu split the screen into three as each displayed different possibilities. One showed the Cordyceps outbreak with a Clicker on screen, the other was a Flood combat form, the last was a collection of zombies from the Left 4 Dead universe. Ace ops looked at the screens with wide eyes. Mu showed the Clicker first.
"Based on the roars and screams from Ilia's end of the call. I narrowed it down to three possibilities. None of which are good for your world. First possibility is the Cordyceps fungus infection. Infects you with spores in the air or by bite. This armor will help you either way. Unlikely based on how long it takes to infect large groups. Takes up to two days for a healthy person to even get to a stage one infection. This is the more preferred possibility." She informed scrolling to the second screen showing a Tank and Witch infected. "Second possibility is the Green Flu virus, mutates rapidly and extremely infectious. Causes extreme aggression and sometimes mutation. Infected are highly dangerous even when they ain't mutated. Your armor will help prevent you from being infected so long as your smart. Plausible but doesn't fully match Ilia's brief description too much." She explained switching to the last screen. "Last and worst case is the Flood. This is a highly infectious parasite. Latched onto a host and turns them in seconds. So much as a scratch from them and you're turned. Mutates them into a grotesque beast of flesh and biomass. It can infect an entire planet in a day from a single spore. This parasite is extremely dangerous. If this is the case, we're going to need to be quick and have the kingdoms hit that bunker hard with everything that got. There is little more than an iota of room for error here."
"Wait a minute, what do you mean our world? Where are you two from?" Harriet asked. Alice and I looked at each other then to Mu, who nodded at us both as she swiped the screens away from her. Well, this news was going to be out eventually. Might as well get these guys up to speed.
"What do you know about the Multiverse?" I asked.
(Weiss's POV)
JNPR dorm room
I sat on Jaune's bed with my scroll in hand. Scrolling though the few pictures I have with my family. Rosa had her head in my lap, thinking her love will heal the pain in my heart. I softly pet her scaly warm skin as I smiled at a picture of Whitley and I having a chess match. Klein took the picture as I was deep in thought looking at the board. Whitley had most of my pieces including my queen, looking smug leaning back into his chair. One of the few games we were allowed to play growing up. Somehow Whitley always manages to win against me or Winter. Yet he could never beat Father. I was broken from my inner thoughts when the deep rumble of engines caught my attention. I look out the window to see a weird drop ship taking off with one of those funny cars behind it's main body. Seems like Johnathan is off for revenge. I didn't expect him to be going out so soon after us nearly dying and getting back from another universe. As long as he brings me something to hit I'll be happy. Preferably something alive and responsible for my family's death. Even if it's Roman's mutilated corpse I'll be happy.
Pyrrha was on her bed with Elaia braiding her hair, the kid was happily humming a tune I can't place. Ruby and Ren were with me in the room as Nora and Blake went to get us something to eat. Ruby was busy cleaning Crescent Rose while Ren silently kept an eye on Elaia and Pyrrha from his bed. Yang was on Nora's bed nursing her newly augmented arm. The whole situation with Pyrrha has my interest. She's meant to die because of some 'event-line' from our 'core world'. What does that mean exactly? I got a brief idea on the multiverse based on what I can piece together from Johnathan and Serena's conversations. But something still bugs me. If we're a 'sub-verse' as they put it, than what would that make me? What would that make all of us?
"Something on your mind Snow Pea?" Yang asked. I looked to her as she sipped on a fruity drink Serena brought us earlier. She looked back at me with a look of concern.
"You ever wonder why we're here?" I replied quietly setting down my scroll.
"You mean philosophically or literally?" Ren asked raising an eyebrow from his corner.
"What are we? What even am I? Am I some slightly different version of myself in another world, or am I just a cookie cutter template for millions of others exactly like me out there? Am I the real Weiss or just some cheap copy?" I asked looking down at myself. "Is everything we're going though predetermined by some central world just like ours? Or is it because of some lazy writer's screwed up imagination (A/N: Self roast)? What . . . what are we?" I asked getting Ruby and Pyrrha's attention.
"You know, now that you mention it. That is a good question. I haven't really thought about it all that much. Was I suppose to lose my arm or was this a freak accident because of my carelessness?" Yang replied looking at her arm nub. "Hey Kitty, you have any ideas?" All eyes went to the child as she happily kept braiding without a care in the world. How I envy for her innocence.
"I know when I asked about me, daddy said I am unique and there were only a few just like me. Yet the area I am from has lots of worlds just like it. Hurts thinking about it." She answered pulling our a hair tie from her waist. Honestly, us expecting a seven year old to hold the answer to an age old question was rather stupid of us. I'll admit fault to that one. "I know Auntie Serena was watching something with people that look like you before we came here. I wasn't allowed to see. Auntie Mu said it I wouldn't like and put on Bluey instead on the TV." That . . . kind of makes sense. Serena told us our world was a brainchild of an animator, so that means we're most likely a cartoon of some kind. That would explain a lot actually, but at the same time it raises more questions.
"Okay that's a start. We at least know we're a cartoon of some kind. Are we even a good story type of cartoon or a brain rotting stupid one?" Yang pondered rubbing her chin. I glared at her as she now held her hand up in defeat. "What, I'm curious now. I want to know if we got a handful of dedicated fans or legions of them cosplaying as us for fun. . . not to mention the ships. I wonder what kind of ships we got going now that I think about it? I hope they shipped me with someone good. . . . ."
"Of all the things to be curious about. You're worried about the ships? " I asked in a deadpan. Monty Oum, I sometimes swear her breasts are bigger than her brain. Speaking of Monty, it's as if he heard our questions. Serena walked in holding a single data chip in her hand, barely paying attention to us as she closed the door.
"Hey Serena, is our show any good or are we a hot pile of flaming garbage?" Yang asked bluntly. Serena blinked rapidly at her and tilted her head in confusion. "We're sitting in here questioning our existence right now. Elaia let it slip we're a show of some type you like, I'm curious if we got a cult following that worships us or some unruly rabid fandom that's never pleased no matter what our creators do."
"Trust me, you're better off not thinking about it." She answered quickly defecting from the question at hand. We all raised our heads to her. I pushed Rosa off my lap as I got up, depression being replaced with rage. She knows more than she's letting on. Has she known this whole time what's going to happen to us? What is happening to us now? She knew Pyrrha is destined to die, doesn't she? That explains her reaction to Cole when he mentioned Pyrrha. She didn't want us to know. She knows a LOT more than she's telling us. "Look I get it, your curious about your core-world but you're going to have to trust me. The less you truly know, the happier you'll be. I can't fully explain it. You're going to have to trust me on this." She answered quickly turning to leave the room, but quickly found herself hitting a glyph. I had Myrtenaster raised and pointed at her.
"WEISS!" Ruby yelled as everyone rushed to get up but equally hit a wall of glyph that split the room, separating us so it's just me and Serena. I slowly marched toward Serena, who backed up as I got closer to her. If one were to look at me they'd swear my eyes were on fire.
"Pyrrha is suppose to die before the end of the year according to Johnathan and his AI friend, as well as Beacon being attacked and falling on top of Monty only knows what else. We nearly died yesterday. Yang's arm is gone. My family MURDERED! My HOUSE was destroyed! You two have been telling us very little, and I for one am sick of being left in the dark. I. Want. Answers. NOW!" I yelled as Serena back into the wall. The tip of Myrtenaster right up against her neck, just enough not to break the skin. "I don't care if we'll like the answer. I don't care about protecting us from ourselves. I don't even care about the consequences. I want the truth, and nothing but the truth. What exactly ARE WE!" I yelled looking her directly in the eyes. She nodded in agreement as I lowered Myrtenaster away from her neck. My eyes still glaring daggers into hers.
"Your world is a web show called RWBY made by a company called RoosterTeeth, a rather good show in my opinion. It follows your team like a sisterhood. Five to ten minute episodes mostly, several volumes to your name; and yes Yang, a cult following with quite a good amount of rabid fans as with anything. You have hordes of fanfiction and fan art dedicated to your honor. Some are pretty good and worth a read, many not so much, many others are . . . less than honorable alterations of yourselves to put it nicely. The type I'd rather not say with Elaia around. Your world specifically is a offshoot from the main world. I'm not sure what the main significant difference is yet outside our interference and the portals, I only made it to the end of volume seven before jumping here. I fully admit to cosplaying as Blake once, she's my favorite." She answered quickly.
"There pictures and stories of . . ." Yang asked looking to Ruby and then to Serena horrified, eyes red with rage. "Do people have no shame! She's fifteen for Monty's sake! Fifteen! " Ruby didn't waste any time heading to the bathroom to throw up.
"I'm not even the real Weiss. We're all just some discounted copies, nothing original about us?" I asked lowering Myrtenaster and took a step back as the glyphs faded away. This is. . . this is too much. Ruby came back from the bathroom wiping left over vomit off her chin with a towel, her other hand holding her head as she groaned in pain.
"Depends on how you want to look at it. You are technically alive and real. . . but at the same time not technically 'real' to my world. It's extremely complicated to explain." Serena replied."Please, don't hate me. I only kept this from you all to protect you. The more you know, the more you'll try to change it, and the worse it will be in the end. I'm serious when I say the less you truly knew the better."
"There's no way around it then. I'm going to die and there's nothing anyone can do to stop it?" Pyrrha asked far from her normal cheery self. Serena's silence was the only answer we needed. Elaia for the most part ignored us and kept on braiding.
"So everything we know, every memory we have, every choice we've ever made or will make, is nothing but a lie? Some backstory written down for us to entertain others. None if what we remember is real?" I asked. Ruby shook her head and groaned in pain more as she started rubbing a trickle of blood away from her nose. Please tell me she isn't still suffering from radiation sickness.
"Hard to pinpoint exactly. Yes there usually is some form of a baseline of choices and memories that are predetermined, but ultimately you're memories are unique to you. Very rarely do two versions of yourselves have the same memories and choices. For example; There isn't another Weiss who can say she fought a Metal Gear REX and won. No Ren can say he stared down the jaws of a Tyrannosaur and lived. There isn't a single Ruby out there who can say she has a authentic Glass dagger made in Skyrim. No Pyrrha can claim she fought a Sanghelli warrior and won. But there are many Weiss variants who can say they have a sister named Winter or Ruby variants who can say they stopped Roman from robbing a store. It all depends on how you want to . . . " Serena explained right before she was cut off my Ruby falling to the floor, writhing in agony as she held her head, screaming bloody murder. I dropped Myrtenaster and rushed to her. Yang was the first to respond, using her good arm to lift Ruby up. Pyrrha and Ren immediately ran to get help. Pyrrha to the bathroom for painkillers and Ren out the door to the school nurse. Rosa got up and used herself to keep Elaia from seeing Ruby in pain. I held Ruby's hand as she squirmed and moved in absolute pain. Her eyes darted all over the place but weird enough, her iconic silver eyes were swirling between a metallic silver and a pixelated red as she cried. Something's wrong, something is very wrong here!
"La. . . Last rose. . . of S . . .S . . .Summer! R. . . R. . . Re . . . Reach! Co. . .Covenant found Reach! . . . G. . Got to get o. . . . . . . OUCH!" Ruby yelled crying bloody murder the whole time, gripping my hand in a bone crushing hold. Blood trickled down from both nostrils, eyes darted all over the place. Pyrrha came back in with a bottle of migraine medicine they kept in the bathroom. She popped out two red pills and tried to give them to Ruby. Ruby for the most part seemed completely unresponsive to anything we tried. Yang was trying to get her attention by yelling her name. Serena was off to the side watching Ruby with some interest. What in Remnant is interesting out my partner being in absolute agony! "Rose. . . Su . . .Summer Rose! Qrow. . . . Dad. . . . Got to . . . Transport. . . . . It hurts!" Ruby cried, her breathing getting sharper and faster.
"I know exactly what's going on right now. Girls move! Give her some space! You're overwhelming her!" Serena yelled shooing Pyrrha away.
"We're trying to help her!" I yelled back as she tugged on my arm to get me away.
"Trust me! Right now we need to calm her down. Flocking around her ain't helping, you're only making it worse." Serena explained pulling me away. Pyrrha and I took a few steps back. Serena knelt down to the writhing form of my partner and took hold her hand.
"Ruby . . . Ruby it's going to be okay. I know it hurts, I'm here to help. I'll walk you though this." She cooed in a soft tone, barely over a whisper while bringing Ruby's hand to her chest. "Focus on my heart Ruby. Feel it beating, focus on that. Ignore everything else around you, think about here and now." Serena softly. Ruby's cried of pain dimmed down to a whimper as she turned her head to Serena. Eyes still swimming and her breathing was still all over the place. "Slow and deep breaths with me Ruby. In though your nose, and out though your mouth. Like this." Serena let in a slow deep breath and letting it out just as slowly. Letting Ruby feel the air go in and out of her lungs. Repeating it several dozen times before Ruby's breathing slowly began to match it. "You're doing good Ruby. Just a few more times, follow my breathing. In and out." She said breathing with her, Pyrrha and I both held the same look of confusion as it seemed whatever Serena was doing is working. Yang seemed to me mentally taking notes. Ruby's breathing soon matched what Serena was doing. "Now Ruby, I need you to tell me where you think you are right now."
"I'm . . . I'm not sure. New Alexandria maybe? I'm somewhere on Reach I think . . . No that's not right . . . Ouch my heads hurts so much." She answered. Her eyes darted all over the place as she looked at us in confusion. Still switching between silver and a pixel like red. "Who. . . who are you all? I don't . . ouch!"
"What's the last thing you remember? Anything, no matter how crazy it sounds. I need to know." Serena asked softly using her sleeve to wipe the blood away from Ruby's nose.
"I . . . I remember Mom waking me up. Air sirens blaring all over the place. Her yelling how we need to go now. A corvette over the city, raining deathall around us. Weird aliens slaughtering everyone in sight. Yang wasn't far behind us, dad had a rifle fighting back. Chaos everywhere." Ruby started groaning in pain as her eyes seemed to stay at the pixel color. Serena nodded and listened as she softly motioned for Ruby to continue. "A banshee flew at us and dropped a green ball. It. . . . . . it exploded right in the middle. I was thrown lord knows where. Yang was in front of me, lifeless and missing the her lower half of her body. I don't know what happened to dad. Mom picked me up again and ran as more Covenant came flooding in. I cried for my sister as Spartans found us and tried getting us to a transport with several others. . . . Brutes ambushed us on the way, killed half the group in seconds. I felt a searing pain in my gut, then everything started getting cold. I held on to mom's hand and then nothing. I think . . . I think I died." She answered holding her head. "But I woke up, I was in a lab. Barely six inches tall. Everything felt weird, fuzzy, and slow. Like I was moving living in jello. I was given a new home on board an old destroyer called the Last rose of Summer. Mom moved me there and suddenly I felt . . . massive. Like I gained several million pounds in an instant. I could feel everything in that ship. Control it with the snap of my fingers. Mom and I spent many years on that ship, I lost track of how long. Well past the seven I was suppose to have. We were escorting a Cruiser battle group with Qrow in formation when the Banished ambushed us. The cruiser was destroyed first before they started focusing on the escort ships. Some weird purple Slipspace portal erupted as we were being slaughtered and we ran in after picking up escape pods. Then next thing i know I'm looking at what a weird world that feels familiar. What the. . . . ouch!" She asked holding her head again. Eyes slowly getting more and more pixelated as she rubbed her head.
"There's no easy way to say this, but those memories aren't yours. You got to focus here, focus on Remnant. Focus on Yang, your sister. Focus on us, here and now. Don't let your mind wander any more that you need to. Remember Zwei, your father Taiyang. Remember Patch and Signal." Serena responded rubbing the back of Ruby's hand.
"What's going on with her? What is she talking about?" Yang asked.
"There's another Ruby Rose here. Somewhere in this universe. From the sounds of it, Ruby B is from the Halo sector; possibly an AI in a destroyer. I can't even guess as to where she is. Our Ruby is experiencing two sets of memories at once. Her own and Ruby B's. Since the multiverse don't like having more than one of any one person at a time in a single universe, the two's memories got merged. Her mind was trying to short them, She couldn't because you all were overstimulating her. Her mind needs to remain grounded in our universe." Serena replied handing Yang her sister's hand. She took it without hesitation and kept Ruby laying on her chest. "Keep her focuses on her true memories. Our Ruby's memories. I need you to bring up anything and everything you can remember to keep her mind here. Dig deep in your own memories with her, the earlier the better. Pyrrha, set up some blankets and make a spot for her to ride this out. It may take a while. Weiss, go to your dorm and make Ruby a cup of coffee. She needs to stay awake. She'll want to sleep but don't let her until you're sure her memories are 100% hers. She falls asleep too soon, she risks the memories merging again. Don't let her leave this room either, the multiverse will do everything it can to bring the Ruby count back to one. We have to make sure she's the one still standing. Once Ruby B is gone, this will be over. Until then we got to keep her grounded and awake. Repeat what I did if she has another memory attack. Do what you all can to limit the stimulation where you can when this happens. If Nora and Blake get back, fill them in. I got to check with Ozpin to see if there has been any reports of something as massive as a UNSC destroyer showing up somewhere. Elaia, stay cute and stay with Rosa. We'll be back." Serena ordered.
We wasted no time running out of JNPRs dorm and I ran to my own. I got to our hidden coffee brewer and started making her a cup. How did she like it again? Cream with five sugar I think. The news keeps on coming and doesn't get any better. As I got done with Ruby's coffee something hit my foot. I look down to see one of the smuggled liquor bottles Yang snuck in a while ago. I reached down and picked it up. Mistral whiskey, one of mother's favorite brands. I took a deep breath and popped the top off. I need something to cope with everything that's going on, this is just too much at once. I took a quick swig and nearly spit it out. Has a rather strong taste. It burns as I forced myself to swallow it. The after taste was much better than the initial swig. On the plus side, my headache is gone and I feel better, except for my burning throat now. I put the top back on and got Ruby her coffee. Just what in Monty's name is going on with us? I guess the better question to ask would be what do we do now?
Not only are we web show people like, but I'm not even the real Weiss. I'm not even sure if I'm any different from the other millions of other Weiss copies out there. I don't even want to think about the kinds of porn of me. If the internet here is anything to go by, I'm scared of what's out there. Holy Monty I feel the need for another drink just thinking about our own existence right now. Right now Ruby needs our help. Focus on that first, my own existential crisis can hold.
~A/N: Johnathan's temporary team is on their way to the worst nightmare Remnant will ever see. Ace Ops gets a make over Freelancer style and some of the characters learn a hard truth. I used a grounding technique I found works great for me for Ruby's 'memory attack'. I will be posting the conclusion on Summers fight when I finish it up and paste it to a earlier chapter. Yes I'll inform you all when this is. This is put out to keep up with my new years resolution. A chapter every month, 2 hours writing daily to get me back into the grove. Please, do not hesitate to let me know any flaws you find or errors I missed. I'm hunting them down and editing them out where I find them. I went on vacation this month to see the Battleship New Jersey. Well worth the trip. 10/10, I miss her sight already. Got lost on my way back home and ended up in New York City somehow. 1/10 experience there, saw all I wanted to and not going back ever again. Not even Elon Musk and Jeff Bezos combined have enough money to pay me to go back to that crazy city. Already planning my next trip. Until next month my loyal readers.
~Dgreen20