Chapter 18
A ride in the woods
Weiss Schnee was miserable. Her clothes stank of woodsmoke, her breakfast was a cold meal ready to eat. Her shoulders and arms ached, her back was even worse and her ankles were absolutely killing her. That was not what was the worst part of her current experience for her. No it was the pit toilet with no toilet paper.
To add to her litany of woes, she was desperate to get clean. Her choices was either to wade out into the river or use a bucket of cold water, no consideration for modesty with either option. To add to the top of her list of grievances, the heels of her shoes broke and her combat outfit was streaked with mud and clay. It was covered with mud and clay to the extent that her team had refused her entry into their tent while wearing said outfit. She cast a covetous glance at Ruby's cloak as said girl was using said item as cover as she was scrubbing away at the bucket of cold water while moaning at the coldness of the water.
On the plus side she found she and her team leader had the same shoe size and mercy of mercies Ruby had brought a pair of sneakers in adjunct to her boots. The zipper of the tent behind her opened up and Blake's head appeared, the girl looked as frazzled as she was, even her cat ears looked bedraggled
"Please tell me we have coffee." She pleaded
"Nope. Only horrible tasting tea with no sugar brewed in a billy can." Ruby replied
Blake took one look at the bucket and smelled herself.
"Screw modesty, I need to get clean." She said
Blake marched to the river bank where she dropped her clothes in a pile before wading out into the ice cold water. She was joined by team BROW. Peeking at the group had Weiss feeling more inadequate with her own looks, this was aggravated as Yang strutted past dressed in a towel and open boots. She looked to where Blue team was congregated on top of the hillock and she wanted to start crying as clearly hot plates of food were being passed out.
Coco was sitting on the edge of the platform, a hot plate of food in hand and a steaming cup of coffee next to her
"No boys allowed this side, the girls are cleaning up." She called
"Then you need to get over this side as well, you are a bigger perv than us." Yatsu replied
"And ruin my viewing pleasure. No way." She replied
Velvet approached Jaune and Pyrrha as they were sitting shoulder by shoulder on the cliff side of the platform looking over the running water below their position as they were eating breakfast or more accurately feeding each other from their plates.
"Morning, can I ….Can I join you?" She asked hesitantly
The two looked up and Pyrrha and Jaune smiled up at her
"Of course." Pyrrha answered for the both
Velvet sat down and looked down, swinging her legs
"I don't really know how to proceed here. I am so confused." Velvet admitted softly
Jaune put his and Pyrrha's nearly empty plates to the side and shifted so that he fully faced Velvet and Pyrrha scuttled a bit back. Pyrrha spoke first
"Is this about losing your semblance?" She asked gently
"Partly, mostly. I don't know." Velvet bit her lip, an ear drooping
Velvet took a deep breath
"No I am lying. My mother and father are both in the profession and both have amazing semblances and here I came with a mimicry semblance. It took me ages to develop Anisidora and get my semblance to be combat effective and in one day I lose it because I fell out of a tree." Velvet said
She looked to Pyrrha
"How do you cope with losing your semblance? I look and I see you just going on. How do you do it?" She asked plaintively
Pyrrha took one of Velvet's hands and squeezed it
"My semblance was polarity. I could affect metal. It was one of the reasons I was the champion of the Mistral circuit. If the weapon, armour or clothing had the smallest bit of metal I could manipulate it. I tried not to use it in my fights, but as you know our semblances trigger. It made me the Invincible Girl, it was also the reason I was put on a pedestal and idolised by my peers and teachers and the public. I was so lonely till I saved a boy from pancaking in the Emerald forest." Pyrrha said
Pyrrha took one of Jaune's hands
"I would like to think I would have made the friends I have know regardless. But it would have still set me above my friends. In a way I am glad I lost it. Yes I lost a semblance yet I gained so much more. While training and learning with Jaune and Hina in a new ability is at times slow and frustrating it is so rewarding. Not only am I learning new things about all around me, I am learning more about myself."
Jaune cleared his throat
"Prior to the forest I lived like a normal, now with my senses unlocked I feel everything and everyone and it is exhilarating and frightening at the same time. I probably will never know what my semblance would have been but as Pyrrha said, the Force is so much more."
Velvet looked at them
"What does it feel like when you access this Force?" She asked
"For me it is like being wrapped in a warm blanket and I can almost smell fresh rain." Pyrrha said smiling softly
"For me it is like a river, slow and gentle and at times rapid and raging, it feels like I am standing in the sun on a summer morning." Jaune said
"The only way to truly feel it is to give in to it." Hina said
Hina sat down next to Velvet and cuddled the girl
" Yes you lost a part of you, but accept the force and you can gain so much more. The changes I experienced here was a shock to me too. Our species can barely feel or use the force but having my senses expanded like this, I cant describe have a choice agonise over what you lost or find if their truly is something more and better" Hina said
Velvet looked out over the distance, worrying her lip and tugging at one of her rabbits ears
"Can you help me?" She asked
"We will be happy too." Jaune replied
Hina nudged Velvet with her shoulder
"Scoot up, I think an early morning meditation session would help everyone."
The shifted around to make a circle. Hina looked down at Velvet's feet
"So which foot is the lucky one?" She asked
Moody climbed up the ladder to the platform and stopped before stepping up. Four of her students were sitting in a circle holding hands. Their aura's flickering visibly across them as the meditated. She could almost swear the aura's of Arc, Nicos and Scarlatina was mixing at points. What really drew her attention was a glowing green pyramid in Ichuru's lap.
The cube stopped glowing and all four opened her eyes. Scarlatina had a rapturous look on her face as she slumped slightly forward.
"That was so beautiful." Scarlatina breathed out
Of course Adel had to jump in before Moody could ask what was going on
"You okay there Bun Bun , it looks like you need dry underwear." Coco said teasingly
Velvet responded with two raised middle fingers in her team leaders direction
"So who got your engine revving, was it the kitty, the himbo or the redhead." Coco ignored the response.
"Coco, shut up!" Velvet cried out, blushing
Hina looked over at Coco
"If you are really looking for action you just have to ask. You don't have too live vicarously through Velvet." Hina said
"You offering?" Coco responded
"No, but Yara brought spare toys, if you ask nicely she might share." Hina answered, inspecting her nails
Moody decided to let the conversation not descend further into lewdness and she stepped onto the deck causing the conversation to stop
"Morning Campers how was your first night in your camp?" Moody asked
"It was nice." Nora answered, eyeing her bowl of porridge with suspicion
"Much better than our other team I would hazard." Yatsu said getting up from his mediation position
Jaune reached for his backpack and produced a notepad. He tore off a page and passed it along to Moody
"Our patrol schedule. We decided to mix teams for it. Yatsu, Katya, April and Ren will take the first air patrol, we thought a three mile square would be ideal. Myself, Pyrrha , Hina and Velvet will take the scout and check the roads. The rest will stay with the motorcycles as a fast response group if needed. Afternoon patrol we let Coco, Fox, Yara and Nora take the scout while I take the LAATi. Right now only I and Katya can fly it decently. " He said
"Technically I and Yara could fly as well but we are terrible pilots and should only fly as a last resort." Hina added
Moody looked over the page and nodded
"Good, the group staying behind can go and get my tent and gear from the craft, I will be setting up here with you. Do you have the list of what you need ready?"
Coco produced another sheet
"We will hold on to it for now, we noticed that the road patrol will take us by the settlement by the brick yard and one of the timber mills. We thought to check if we could get some of the items there. We still have some Lien left from that advance, we know it will be more expensive here but we would like to check it out." Coco said
"Buying local or at least stopping in the settlement would also help us in our interactions with the local residents" Yatsu pointed out
"At the very least finding out who is in charge of the factories and the town could be useful information. Also we will know if there is some form of local law enforcement." Velvet added
Moody nodded in approval
"Good points. Places like this are very insular so having at the very least neutral contact is good. Helping those truckers out earned us a little goodwill but more is always better. Keep an eye out for smaller residences on your road but do not approach."
"The so called Rednecks?" Yara querried
"Yes, them. They are very isolationist and more than a few are likely doing something illegal like brewing alcohol or drugs. Keeping Vale or company law is not our concern here. We are to keep the roads clear and kill Grim. However should they approach you be polite but don't go anywhere with them. If they get handsy or aggressive you can beat them down, Beacon will back you. Call for backup if anything happens."
Moody stepped to the side.
"You are free to move out. Check in every half hour."
Moody walked around Red teams structure. She nudged the charcoal pieces from the fire the girls had made around their hip high wall
"Much better girls, this charcoal line will help keep insects out. But this can still be better. Now let us look at what you should have done and what would have been better for you. Then you can figure out how to do it. If you have some lien with you I will go with you to the settlement and we can see what we can do to make your lives better, though to be honest, we can do nothing for miss Schnee's wardrobe. You would be best served to ask April or your partner if she has some spare clothes. Let this be a lesson that your combat outfit should be more practical than stylish."
Moody looked up into the sky
"We should also hurry. Looks like we will have rain again. The first thing you need is a drainage system away from your camp. Currently a decent rain storm will see your camp being flooded as it is now, failing that finding a way to keep water out. Your platform protects you from the sun but it will leak if it rains…"
With both Pyrrha and Velvet having very little to no experience driving it was decided to use the opportunity to teach the two how to drive, They had gone first in the directions the truck convoy had headed . Two hours drive later they found the location. A reinforced warehouse was situated next to a set of traintracks, They watched for a moment as a train was being loaded, gratefully walking around to stretch their legs. The station staff was bunkered in a block house and the four left with contact information for the stationmaster
The ride in the opposite direction was smoother to some extent as the two girls gained more confidence in driving, though the rough road did not make it an entirely smooth ride. They drove past their camp and headed along the road. Several times groups of people had come close to the edge of the road and stared at them, most heavily armed even the children. As they crested a ridge they saw the settlement and stopped on the ridge to asses the area. The timber mill and Brick yard was built right against the river, A moat had been carved to have the sites surrounded by water, Large bridges spanned the area, machine gun nests covered the approaches.
The company town was also moated and a wooden palisade weall surrounded it. From the distance they could see that the watchtowers were manned. Access was by a single bridge. Driving closer they noted that the moat had been augmented by wooden spikes. Farming plots lined the banks wit several block house structure assumedly being residences. Next to the wall were two brick structures. One the town tavern and on the other end the general dealer and farmers cooperative. Most of the housing was in apartment building format with very few houses.
The school was next to the store and the children abandoned their game to rush the fence and stare at the newcomers. The four climbed from the scout
"Lunch or store first." Jaune asked
"Whichever has an available toilet." Hina replied
"I think food first, we kind of did not finish breakfast this morning." Velvet suggested
"I agree." Pyrrha cast her vote
Conversation stopped as the four stepped into the tavern. They strolled up to a table close to the bar and sat their equipment down with Jaune strolling up to the bar counter to order as the girls scampered for the restroom. The barman slid a single page men across to him.
"We will take four Boss Breakfasts and the meal of the day, four sodas for now." Jaune ordered
"You sure you don't want something stronger. We have decent home brewed beer" The barman suggested
" Beer would be nice, especially if it is not the mass produced crap in the city, but we are still on patrol. Plus I am sure the professor will have us doing punishment drills till we drop if she smells beer on us." Jaune replied
"True, where you from?" The bartender replied
"Me and Hina, Fort Freedom and the border. The others are city girls." Jaune replied
"Rough country folks then like us."
The kitchen was visible from the bar and Jaune noticed the cook place a steel plate over the grill and crack the eggs open on it and adding the bacon rashers. Jaune pointed to it
"Nice idea, is there place to get some steel plate cut, we currently have meals ready to eat and open fire." He said
"The farmers coop will be able to help with that." He bartender started wiping the counter
"Was going to be our next stop, you know how it goes, you think you have everything till you need that one tool and don't have it." Jaune replied
A man with a badge stopped next to the bar
" Marshall Greystoke. You kids hear anything new from Magnus?" The man asked
"They are still reinforcing from what we have heard. Atlas is scouting ahead a bit and trying to thin the herds a bit or so we are told. I Believe mass evacuation might be next on the list." Jaune answered
"See any packs or signs of Grim, we have another large run this afternoon?"
"We checked up to the train station saw nothing, have not heard from our air patrol yet, they are roaming a bit farther than we are. If you give us the time I think we may be able to tweak our air patrol a bit and give oversight. Of course we will also be available to respond if anything pops up" Jaune admitted
There was a general easing of tension on the offer, Jaune prepared to go sit at the table before pausing
"Is there someone who might hire out a truck, we might need to buy a bit more than what we can carry on the scout." He asked
Greystoke pointed to an old badger faunus sitting in the corner next to the fireplace
"Old man Stripes has a truck, but you will have to hire him with his truck."
Jaune nodded his thanks and returned to his table. The food and drinks arrived shortly and they fell onto it with gusto. They ate in silence as they demolished the food
"Next patrol, we are stopping here again." Pyrrha stated wiping her bowl clean with a piece of bread
"No arguments here." Velvet replied leaning back in her seat
"I don't want to move now." Hina said
"We have to, but let us go see if we can get what we are short of at the store first. Then we can drive back and call this patrol over." Jaune said rising
He pulled his wallet from his utility belt and approached the counter.
"Cash or card?" The barman asked
"You get signal out here?" Jaune asked surprised
"Relay tower courtesy of Visa Bank. They might actually set up a branch here soon." The barman replied
"Card then and an itemised bill if you can, we are claiming back from Vale Council." Jaune stated
Moody was sitting next to their relay in the LAAti when the scout vehicle returned. Jaune parked next to it and the rest of the crew grabbed the purchases and made their way back up to the camp leaving a barrel for Jaune to carry. Moody lifted an eye as Hina carried up two pieces of steel and two breadpans
"We met a Faunus in town who was in the Faunus wars, he told us how to build a field geyser and an oven. He also gave us a recipe to bake bread." Jaune explained
"Learn anything else?" Moody asked
Jaune produced his notebook
"We got contact numbers and short wave frequencies for the train station, town mayor and marshall and the brickyard and timber mill. We also have a number if we need to hire a truck to carry purchaces, The driver is the faunus I mentioned, his name is Boyd Brown, he prefers to be called Stripes."
" Good start, anything else?"
"There is a VISA bank communications relay in the town, so we got another form of contact and they also accepts cards for payment. Prices are higher than Vale as suspected but not overly so. The Timber Mill and Brickyard are pushing out a large convoy again at Fifteen hundred and I think giving them some air cover will go a long way to gain local support."
"You and your temporary team up for doing it?" Moody asked
"Yes, Mam."
Moody thought for a while
"Call this stripes and asks if he is willing to drive out here. I want to take Red and get what they are short, that will leave eight of you to defend the camps when you fly overwatch." Moody said
"Mam, I made copies of the geyser and filed oven, may I give it to Red? I know we are supposed to be rival teams but I think keeping morale up should be more important."
"Go ahead and give it to them and then tell Rose and Branwen I want to see them, nevermind calling this Stripes guy, I will do it. Before you go tell me more of the town."
Jaune paused before speaking
"The town has very few houses but they have several apartment blocks, it is ringed by a palisade fence with several watchtowers. The town and factory are ringed by moats and accessible by a single bridge only, there are multiple spikes set up in the water surrounding the town. Apart from the housing they have a tavern , a general store and a farmers cooperation. They use the school as a town hall and shelter as needed. So that is the most reinforced building in the town. Town services are run from the factories."
"How is their militia armed?" Moody asked
"From what I could see they are armed with rifles, the bridge approaches have light machine gun posts but I have not spotted anything heavier." Jaune answered
"Thank you, you may go ahead."
Jaune was doing his pre-flight checks when the old Faunus and his older truck pulled into the camp. Moody walked over to the old man and greeted him before motioning towards the eight girls of red team. After watching them sprint for the truck Jaune could no longer state that Ruby was the one with the speed semblance Moody walked to the Laati and got into the co pilot seat as the truck turned around and headed to the town. She pulled a headset on and connected to the internal comsystem
"Where are we meeting the convoy?" She asked
"Brickyard Mam. I thought about doing a quick check on the route and then meeting up with them, though we can head there first if you want."
"You have their radio frequencies?" Moody asked
"Yes, Mam."
"Then let them know you are checking the road first, otherwise they might get anxious if we don't show up as they prepping to leave. The more relaxed they are the less we have to worry about Grim." Moody said
They were halfway along the route with the convoy when the radio crackled. Moody checked the coms list and saw it was one of the truckers.
"Red Rover this is the Lame Duck what is your emergency?" Moody asked, grimacing at the name they had been given by the truckers
"Got a heads up from the train station, the trains are delayed there is a pack on the track. They claim there is a Goliath." Red answered
"Send the coordinates and we will go look once we get to the station." Moody replied
"You can go ahead Duck, we were told the road is clear. The quicker the track is clear the quicker we can load the trains and get back."
"If you are sure. Okay send us the coordinates." Moody replied
She passed the new coordinates to the pilot and they veered of. Jaune toggled the internal coms.
"Guns are free, we have a combat mission. Anyone know how to kill a Goliath or even what it is?" Jaune asked
"It is elephant shaped but twice as large, head is heavily armoured and there tusks are serrated at the tips. They are quicker than you would expect but can not sprint very far." Velvet broke in
"Week spots?" Jaune asked
"Stomach in theory like a boarbatusk but they can take a lot of damage." Velvet replied
"So killing it is unlikely therefore we have to lure it away from the track by pissing it of to chase us." Jaune concluded
They saw the standoff as they approached. The trains had their armour and weapons deployed but the pack was standing well out of range of the guns but were preventing the trains from advancing. Jaune circled the pack and checked their reaction. Not one of the Grim gave attention apart from a look
"Grim don't fear Bullheads as they don't carry any offence weapons." Moody filled in
"Mam, why is that? It is just idiotic in my opinion." Hina spoke up.
"Something you will have to take up with the councils and the headmasters. But yes I agree it is idiotic." Moody replied
"Okay, I am going over the trains and going in for a low run. Pyrrha plow the road. Hina rear guns. Velvet take side door. Professor can you take the other door? Also doors grab some grenades, drop them into the pack once I lift up and over." Jaune broke in
The grim were not moving as the flyer moved low to the ground and rushed to the, the pack Alpha was not concerned as it had seen similar attempts from flyers. They never did anything to the packs and no flyer would crash into a pack.
Pyrrha braced herself behind the heavy repeater, She looked over her shoulder to the doors and confirmed that both Velvet and Moody were properly secured.
"Pilot, front guns, ready to go, all secured." She said
The youngest of the packs were in the front. The Alpha growled as they fidgeted as the flyer approached. The Flyer would have to go to the sides or go up. Once the threat has been diverted the pack will advance on the ground prey.
Jaune slowed a bit as they approached the pack. He hand one hand on the stick and the other on the throttle ready to lift up
"Weapons free." He said
Pyrrha started firing in short burst, Grim evaporating in each burst. She went full cyclic as they got closer. She stopped firing as the craft lifted. Multiple booms followed as Grenades were tossed like confetti into the packs, this was followed by Hina opening up on the pack as they flew over.
"I guess that Goliath did not like that." Hina remarked suddenly
" Eloborate." Moody ordered
"I gave it a shot to the back of its head and it rocked it. I do not think the back of its head is armoured." Hina replied
" Right door gunner, stand by. I am going to do a fly by before setting up another frontal run." Jaune informed them.
Moody pulled back on the slide and armed the lightmachine gun
"Door gun ready." She reported
"Making run now, spray and pray teach." Jaune replied
Moody braced as she opened up and swivelled her gun to and fro. The younger grim pushed back into the pack. Pyrrha moved up carrying her rifle in its grenade launcher form. She fired four grenades into the cluster before moving back to the front guns
The Alpha was confused. Never before had a flyer hurt the pack. Its control of the pack was weakening. More young died as the flyer came from the front again. Then the Big One bellowed in pain again. The big one started crushing the pack as it started to rampage to get to the flyer that is hurting it. The Alpha saw one big foot coming, then it saw now no more
Hina opened the coms again
"It is working, The Goliath is flattening its pack. One more and it will chase us." She reported
"No need to be so happy about it." Pyrrha remarked
"Are we recording this?" Velvet asked
"Gun cameras are active for front and back, nothing for door guns though." Hina replied
"Strike one more pass it is coming for us." Moody said firing a burst.
The Goliath stormed after the thing that dared to hurt it, uncaring that it was crushing small ones under its feet. Its red eyes locked onto the the thing that was flying in circles around it. It felt the little pricks from the sides but it was nothing to the front of back. It stood up on its rear legs and bellowed preparing to create a shockwave as it dropped gain
Hina saw the open maw of the Goliath and fired into it. The Goliath staggered before falling onto its side and started to evaporate
" Did you just kill a Goliath?" Velvet asked in the sudden silence as all stopped firing and looked at Hina
"I guess I did." Hina replied
"Girls, can we start shooting again please, there is still half a pack in the trains way." Jaune replied
"Hold that order. Move us alongside. The trains can take care of the pack easily now. You are about to see something few get to see" Moody broke in.
Velvet scrambled for her video camera and started recording. The trains started backing up a bit before rolling forward gathering speed. The plough guards extended forward and more plate armour rose up. Blades started appearing along the plough and along the train The first train rushed forward, A gun opened up from inside the plough and shredded into the pack before mauling its way through it. The pack was shredded to pieces as the train rushed through, those not killed by the plough blades were run underfoot by the train or cut to pieces by the side blades.
They landed at the train station as the trains entrred the warehouse. The engines decoupled and moved ahead onto a circular track to turn around before the station master shunted the tracks and the engines reattached to the trailers. Four of the truckers moved to the LAATi carrying several crates. They pushed the crates into the loading area.
Moody lifted a brown bottle from one case and gave a questioning look to the truckers
"Gift from the boys and girls. We reckoned you earned this, this is twice that you kept us safe and we appreciate it. I know the kids mentioned in town they can not drink while on duty, keep it for when you are off shift."
The trucker grinned suddenly
"There will be more of that in town once everyone hears you lot killed a Goliath."
"I assume the trains called it in?" Moody replied
"Never mind calling it in, they send us the camera footage from the trains."
Moody lifted the bottle in thanks and cracked it open. She took a swallow before handing bottles to the rest of the crew. Jaune waved his offered bottle off
"Not while I am flying." He said
Hina looked up at the teacher
"Not that I am complaining but should you really let us have this?" She asked
"If we were on campus, no way. Ot here we can relax the rules a bit. You are all legal adults even Rose. A long as you don't get drunk or pregnant I am not going to step in , that is as long as the camps and patrols run smoothly. Though hard rugs or getting wasted and I will make you suffer before I have you expelled." Moody replied
Jaune moved from the cockpit
"How are we on ammunition?" He asked
"Three belts left for my gun." Velvet reported
"We are both good, grenades are at half." Hina spoke for her and Pyrrha
"Four belts on my end." Moody reported
Jaune leaned against the craft
" Hopefully Beacon can get us more if we get resupplied, if we have more of these battles we might run out quickly." He said
"I will ask for Beacon to double what we brought out, can any of you think of anything else we need?" Moody replied
"Maybe another six light machine guns." Velvet spoke up
Velvet sat her bottle down
"We are currently splitting the guns between here and the scout. Six more will mean we can keep two here, tow on the scout and four for camp defence, two per camp." She explained
"So more guns, ammunition and hessian bags for sandbags for now. Along with food." Moody listed
One of the truck drivers spoke up
"My cousin works at the flour mill up the road from the timber mill. They might be able to supply you with bags. We usually use flour bags if the heavy rains start and the river rises. Want me to give them a call?" She spoke up
"Thank you, that will be great." Moody replied
The crew sat back and watched as the truckers and station crew went about loading the trains. All too soon they would need to be ready for the flight back but in the meantime they took the opportunity to relax.
Peter Port frowned as he received a significantly larger data packet from the Serenity Forest crew in their daily update. He opened the file labelled Train patrol and watched the footage. He did notice as he knocked over his coffee mug. He did however feel it as the scalding liquid hit his legs.
"Something the matter, Peter?" Ozpin asked from where he was coordinating the different team supervisors
" Nothing much. Just miss Ichuru killing a Goliath by herself, nothing but a standard day." Peter replied wiping his pants
Silence descended
"Did you just say a first year killed a Goliath?" Silver stated
"Not by herself of course, but yes. Anastasia reported that Miss Hina Ichuru fired the shot that fell a Goliath."
Peter held up a hand
"I have corroborating evidence from both the Teacher and the Vale Rail Authority. They killed a pack and a goliath."
Ozpin answered his scroll as it was ringing insistently. He moved to the side of the room and answered it. Moments later he closed his Scroll
"That was the council. Specifically Counsilor Mavers, she is demanding that we provide more anti Goliath weapons for the wall defence and stop wasting the ones we have in the boondocks."Ozpin reported
Ozpin clapped his hands
"Now good and amazing news aside, we have teams in the field and hunters scrambling for Magnus. Let us get back to work."