The aircraft landed at one of the main pads, bringing them close enough to the base of the massive campus. The place was inactive, from the looks of things, with very few people on-site at the current time. The Spartan and professor Goodwitch disembarked from the craft and the blonde woman led him down one of the many cobblestone paths of the place. In the distance, far away, the Spartan could make out snow-capped mountains amongst a veil of fog.
The woman staring at him made him feel slight unease. He adjusted his seating, before looking out as they approached for landing. The craft swung in, vectoring its engines forward and powering them to maximum, before stopping and hovering just above the landing pad. First to jump off the bird was Goodwitch herself, a hand over her riding crop. Cortana piped in, speaking to Chief and Chief alone "Well... That's a big school..."
John hummed and Cortana quickly answered "Beacon Academy, home to at least a small army of students being taught the rules of becoming Huntsmen, those being the folk who fight the creatures of Grimm and... Y'know, I'm just gonna plaster a report onto your HUD so you can read it as we walk... Followed up by a cover story." and, noticing John pause for a moment, she added "Trust me... I've read up on a lot of things about the Kingdoms and none of them specify the UNSC or any other political bodies outside their own. I feel it's also not gonna be that easy to believe you're a supersoldier from an alien galaxy, probably... So I came up with a bit of a cover story. Read the small report about Huntsmen and I'll then give the cover we're taking."
"Mhm..." John nodded as he walked with miss Goodwitch.
The woman looked forward. She was the stern type, a teacher through and through. Almost a drill sergeant, John through as he read through the files. Cortana's processing power had allowed her to set up an actual briefing report that was both concise and full of information about Huntsmen and Huntresses, the warriors of the Kingdoms in their fight against the encroaching darkness of the Grimm, said darkness being monsters made of black ichor, with bone armor and burning eyes.
Approaching the center of the Campus, which represented Beacon Tower, John had gotten halfway through reading his cover story. Entering said tower, a massive structure of concrete, glass and steel, the two moved toward the elevators, taking the first. By the time they reached the top of the tower, John had fully read through his cover story and to say Cortana was thorough would be an understatement.
Glynda finally spoke to him, saying "You'll be meeting Headmaster Ozpin and general Ironwood, the latter of the Atlas armed forces... I don't presume you can pressure James into telling us why you're here..."
"Ma'am...?" The Spartan raised a brow.
"It's obvious to me that you are probably one of the good general's new soldiers. That armor is far too advanced for any other kingdom..." She presumed, of course. John had almost wanted to correct her, but he kept to himself. Instead, the two approached the desk in the center of the massive room made of glass, turning gears of the clock, bookshelves and such, to the sight of two men. One of them had a military-standard haircut, with gradient greying hair on the sides of his head. He wore a white uniform made up of an overcoat, with accents of grey, as well as a blue vest, red tie and white undershirt. He had a holster hidden behind his coat, with a rather impressively large weapon.
Behind him was a man with silver hair and amber eyes, staring past a strange looking pair of sunglasses and at the arriving soldier and professor. The man smiled, then looked to the other tall one in the room. Said man in the uniform hummed, crossing his arms and adding a "As much as I'd like to prove you right, Glynda, I'm afraid that the armored man you brought in isn't part of my armed forces."
"Oh..." Glynda looked to him, noticing some faint symbols that were scraped by damage and scorch marks.
"However..." The man noted, "He is quite the sight to behold. That armor is amazing. Greetings to you. I'm general James Ironwood, of the military of the Kingdom of Atlas."
"And I am Headmaster Ozpin, of Beacon. Welcome to Vale." The one sat at the desk added with a smile and literal open arms. He stood up, picking up that ornate cane to his side, before moving past the desk. He then motioned to Ironwood and said "I and the good general were just having a talk about what had occurred outside the kingdom, near one of the relay towers belonging to the CCT Network."
"Ah, yeah, that... You wouldn't happen to know anything about the impact, would you?" Ironwood quirked a brow up at Chief. He smirked as he saw the man was hesitant to respond, before noting "I'm guessing you do..."
"Sir." The Spartan nodded.
"Well, he sounds young." Ozpin remarked with certainty, raising his awareness in regards to Chief's voice, "Would you care to tell us your name? It'd be better to know what to address you by in the future."
"Alright, this is it." Cortana told him "You know your role, Chief."
"Sir." John nodded to them, then started "Master Chief Petty Officer Dylan Braun, member of the now-defunct Royal Navy of the Kingdom of Wyvern" calmly eyeing the trio of Remnant-born citizens around. He had to admit, Cortana's little backstory was a wonderful concoction of hers, one rich in details including everything relating to what happened to their 'Kingdom'. He'd read up on the reports regarding Dust and what it could do. A near-magical omnipurpose mineral. He made a mental note to assist her with her next memory defragmentation as thanks.
"Oh...?" All three seemed confused.
Ozpin was first to speak out the question "Wyvern? Pardon me, Master Chief, but we know of no such Kingdom."
"Unsurprising, sir." The Spartan retorted, watching the looks of absolute confusion between the three, with the varying expressions-Concerned interest for the General, shock for miss Goodwitch and a morbid curiosity for the Headmaster-between them. He explained calmly, "Wyvern was a Kingdom formed during the hell of the Great War by a mix of peoples from all over the four main kingdoms. Mistrali artisans wanting to escape the iron fist of the Empire, Valeian farmers that had wanted to avoid being drafted to fight a war they saw as untenable, Vacuoan traders looking for a place to sell their own trinkets without the threat of an encroaching Army or of the Gimm and Mantle Military deserters, among which one of the good general's predecessors, general Victoria Amber."
"The... Commander of the Sixth Army. They'd gone missing from a battlefield on Sanus at the midpoint of the war. Left the southern flank completely exposed." The General remarked, with a look of shock on his face, "So that's where she and her forces went? I'd presume the Kingdom... Established itself as a military one, similar to the current Atlas?"
"Sir, yessir." The Spartan nodded.
"This... Does not add up." Glynda remarked, "Why hasn't your kingdom attempted communication with the others? The war ended almost a hundred years ago?"
"The multinational refugees that formed the base of our Kingdom had arrived in an area of the north-western continent that housed a massive underground stash of Gravity Dust." He looked to her , his eyes locked to the tablet in her hands as he spoke on, "Communication by normal means, that being radio, was all but impossible. Add to that an unpredictable tide in the Gulf and our ancestors could scarcely send ships to do anything but die in the waves. Even intra-Kingdom Communication was impossible outside the standard means of Runners."
"Huh." Ironwood crossed his arms, "And what are you doing here? I don't imagine your Kingdom suddenly found a path out after all this time."
"And you did mention your 'Navy' is now defunct." Ozpin noted, a sympathetic look in his eyes, "... Are we to assume the worst?"
"Sir..." He nodded, "Yes, sir..."
"Damn..." James murmured, "My condolences, Chief. Nobody should have to go through seeing their entire kingdom wiped." and then he added "However, that arises the question of how it fell... If it's not too painful for you to tell us...?"
"... I would rather have not remembered, sir." The boy let out a quick sigh, before starting to explain as Cortana started making the 'Fall' up, "As we've established, the Kingdom has had a total coms blackout for the better part of the century it was formed and we were martial in nature. Our armed forces, however, were not sole rulers. A Council had been formed between the four groups of various peoples. Artisans, traders, military and farmers all came together to ensure the formation of our Kingdom, to create its laws... You can imagine that a military administration would butt heads often with the civilian half."
James chuckled sadly as he remembered home, "Don't I know it... Go on."
"Well, as of late, some dissenting voices had made themselves heard. Parts of the civilian administration that advocated quite loudly for an attempt to break out of our confinement and reform contact with the rest of the civilized world. It was a normal demand, but the problem was with our research sector. It was military-owned and military scientists ran the research. Top staff was also military brass. We'd been researching technologies to defend ourselves from the ever-more-frequent Grimm attacks and deserter bandits. Re-establishing contact was, at most, a secondary objective. The Civilian admins did not take kindly to that." He remarked, casting a side-glance at the Headmaster and Glynda for a certain effect. It seemed to have caught Ironwood, who nodded.
"I see... And?" He motioned for the Chief to go on.
"... Well, among other things, the civilian admins started calling to the people. More and more aggressive stances were taken that, in turn, resulted in strikes that continued to grow in size until there were thousands in the streets and the Army and MPs could barely hold them back. Among them were also rebel elements... A Civil War was brewing." The Spartan spoke on as per request, feeling the air grow heavy. "The events, as you can imagine, grew worse."
"Strikes turn to protests and the protests grow into full-blown riots as the violence escalates..." Ozpin hummed as if he'd seen the events in person, his gaze growing grim.
"And riots, in turn, cause panic, fear, anger depending on how your forces handled them and the Rebels." Ironwood added on, look at the Chief just as grimly.
"And finally, the amalgam of negative emotions causes the Grimm to bear down on the Kingdom itself, presumably tearing it apart..." Glynda sighed, looking at the Chief with a glint of sadness in her eyes.
The Spartan nodded, crossing his arms as he went to cap off the story, "Our research and development sector created a specialized weapon to ensure that, if the Kingdom was ever under mass assault, as was the case here, we would not let it fall into the enemy's hands. That or the Grimm's claws. We call it the Gravitational Cascade... A weapon attached to the Gravity Dust mines below our Kingdom. It was a bomb, made up of hundreds of high-purity Gravity Dust crystals linked to a central igniter."
"... Oh..." All three staff present exclaimed, eyes growing wide as they realized what the Chief had just implied. If they'd used that weapon, what one would assume was a bomb, then what'd occurred must've been an incredible, yet awful sight to behold. An entire Kingdom and a bit of a continent, swallowed whole by the detonation of a Superweapon of Last Resort.
Ironwood had to break the ice, arranging his tie and adding "Again, I must say... You have our condolences for your loss, Master Chief, but that sadly doesn't answer how you wound up falling from what one would assume was low orbit above Remnant."
"Very well..." Chief sighed. "The Navy had engaged some Rebel ships that had managed to reach the near-limit of their Gravity Dust's capabilities, ensuring travel above the cloud layer and damn near orbit... Some of our ship, among which mine, with my team and crew included, gave chase when we got the warning that the Gravitational Cascade was activated. Our ship was severely damaged by the hits we took from the Rebels. Enough so that it was soon falling out of the sky. And about to detonate. My crew sacrificed themselves to save my life, despite my protests. As the ship detonated, I was launched out of the Airlock right at the edge of space. All I could grab was a remnant of the ship, that turned into my heat shield upon descent back down to Remnant. And from then on, the events you already know occurred, leading up to our meeting here."
"That's..." Ironwood hummed, scratching his chin, "A lot to process, Chief. On behalf of the people of Atlas, I'm sorry for your losses, both of your crew and of your people... And this was educative, to say the least, but I don't think I'm the only one here who has had a few questions for you." And he turned to Ozpin.
"Indeed... Thank you, James." Nodded the Headmaster, "Mister Braun, here at Beacon we train the future generations of warriors who fight against the monsters of Grimm, to ensure the safety and propagation of the Human Race. While it may seem a fruitless endeavor at first to battle the creatures that occupy much of the known planet and that have... Sadly left us without a fifth culture and kingdom on this world, I and my compatriots believe in fighting against them. We train these generations of warriors with the belief that they are our future and we want said future to be good... Currently, we're in the second semester of the Academy's curriculum for all years and our number of students is rather substantial. To add to that, we're preparing for the beginning of the Vytal Festival, which is a festivity to celebrate the end of the Great War and the four major cultures of our planet."
"I see, sir... And...?"
Ozpin smiled, "I would like a little assistance with the added security. General Ironwood has already been kind enough to bring his armed forces over to Vale..." And he cast a sideways glance at the proud military man, before continuing "But I would require someone on the inside of Beacon. Someone... I would say less conspicuous than an army of Androids that patrols the streets."
"And you think I'm less conspicuous, sir?" The Chief asked, a slight bit surprised, considering he had the MJOLNIR.
The man smiled. "I am only asking, mister Braun. You would have a place to stay in Beacon for the duration, of course." He offered.
As the Spartan was about to refuse, since he didn't know if he could trust any of them just yet, Cortana butted in and said "Give it a spin, Chief. We may need a place to lay low for a bit. We definitely attracted the attention of more than just Vale and Atlas with our fall... Plus, I'm detecting faint Cherenkov radiation pretty much all over the place after our jump, so it'd be better to have somewhere safe to bunker down and study it. Where better than in a school full of armed kids, right?" and at that last line, he could swear he saw her 'wink'.
Ozpin extended his hand to the Spartan, who, after a moment of hesitation, gripped and shook it. Cortana wanted a place to lay low, so be it. A school where they trained what amounted to soldiers was as good a place as any. To that, Ozpin smiled and said "Very well... Miss Goodwitch, please, lead the Chief to one of our free staff accommodations so he may rest and... Well, recuperate after his fall."
"Yes, headmaster." Glynda nodded, "Be seeing you, James."
"You too, Glynda." The man smiled, watching as the two departed and took the elevator, before looking to Ozpin and demandingly asking "What are you doing?"
"Offering the man a place to live and mourn, James." Ozpin responded cheekily, "Plus, an extra hand in the defense of Vale should prove quite important, should it not?" and he noticed Ironwood's smile had faded, replaced by his stern, hard officer's gaze. Oz sighed, then shook his head, before leaning back into the seat, hands intertwined. He explained "I want to keep an eye on him, James. If he can be useful, I will find out. There are a few holes in his story, but I'm willing to believe him for now."
"Very well..." James nodded, "I trust you, Oz... But I hope you don't have a problem if I call someone to... Keep an eye on him from up close."
"I don't mind. Most of the agents I have that would be able to do the job are out of Vale at the moment." Ozpin replied nonchalantly, before straightening up, "You may send one of your own here. I will send miss Goodwitch with them to the Chief and from there? I want reports to go through both of us." before he noticed a slight irk in James's movements. The man smiled, "Being clinically paranoid comes with our jobs, James. I'd like to know your agent can help."
"I understand... If you'll excuse me, Oz, I have to make a call. We'll talk more as the situation progresses." The General nodded, before departing with Ozpin's approval. The man entered the elevator and pulled out his Scroll, before tapping on one contact in particular. Once the receiver answered, Ironwood started "I'll need you for something. A situation arose in Beacon, one that needs a bit of tact, so to speak, so I think it's a perfect test and training opportunity for you. It's far more important than scouting out Vale... Priority One, I'd say." and he smiled as he heard the gleeful rapidity with which the girl espoused her joy. He answered jovially, "I knew I could rely on you. I will give you directives as soon as you arrive at the Campus. Ironwood out."
... At the House... Glynda had led John on a tour of the place he was gonna be staying in. An unoccupied home, furnished, that was supposed to be owned by the Chief of Security for Beacon. The man had quit his job before the school year started and the house'd remained unoccupied ever since, so, they were now offering it to him, free of charge, for the duration of his stay.
The place was cozy, as Cortana put it. A fireplace to sit by, well lit, properly furnished with a table and half a dozen chairs, a kitchen island with a few stools, a fully furnished kitchen including an oven, electric stove, et-cetera, as well as four separate bedrooms, two downstairs and two upstairs, each with their own bathroom. The man would probably have lived with his family, had he come for the job.
"You may pick whatever bedroom you wish." Glynda noted as they finished the tour in the Kitchen, "And one more thing, Master Chief. I have just received an important message from Headmaster Ozpin. As per the Headmasters' request, you've been assigned someone to assist you. A liaison from the Atlesian Military will be coming soon to introduce you to everything from the customs to the technology that has developed in parallel to yours."
John looked to her for a moment and Glynda paused, feeling a chill shoot up her spine. She explained "General Ironwood wants to make sure you're formally acquainted with everything going on in Vale currently. He and the headmaster both believe that the assigned liaison will be of great help to you, including in regards to combat and apprehending any possible intruders."
"Well..." Cortana sighed, "It could always be worse. At least we'll have different beds from him or her... Let's roll with it and see where it goes. Push comes to shove, I think I can rig an 'accident' for them with your help... Wow, I must've spent too much time alone before we fell on Requiem... Sorry, John. Go on."
John looked to Glynda, then offered a nod, "Okay."
Glynda sighed audibly in relief, before noting "That concludes everything. Your scroll is on the kitchen island. My number and that of the Headmaster are both in there should you require assistance, mister Braun. Best wishes and..." Her expression softened for a moment as she gave him a sad smile, "I'm sorry for your people. I'm certain they were all very good folks."
"Thanks, miss Goodwitch." Chief answered absentmindedly, his thoughts on the liaison. The woman bowed and took that as her cue to leave, closing the door behind her. The Chief pondered their next course of action, chewing on his lower lip. He paused, then asked "You said you had faint traces of Cherenkov Radiation... Think it's from the detonation near that Slipspace portal?"
"I mean... It's possible." Cortana remarked, smiling, "Good to see you're taking things in stride."
"We have to think ahead." John nodded, "Any ideas regarding the Rads?"
"I have an irking feeling we'll find out what they are soon enough." Cortana quipped, "For now, liven up. We've got incoming on the Motion Tracker... Huh, Curious... Sensors don't-"
She cut off as a knock on the door took their attention. Chief approached the door, propped it open, then looked to see a girl at about stomach-height there. She had carrot-colored, short, curly hair that came up to her chin, a tiny cowlick on top of her head. A pair of bright green eyes stared up at the Chief with awe, freckles dancing on a cutesy face and her lips curled into a beaming smile.
The girl wore an off white old-fashioned styled off the shoulder blouse with frill detailed trim and frill flared cuffs that half covered her hands alongside copper button detailing on the lower parts of her sleeves. She also sported a short gray pinafore dress with golden trim on the hem alongside four light green stalagmite styled stripes on the lower half of the dress, two on the front and two on the back, accompanied by two matching colored circles above the tips that had a stripe that runs around her waistline, with golden outlines, and a detachable black and light green collar. She also wears a pair of black thigh-high leg pieces that seemingly attached to black shoes. The leg pieces had a single green stripe up the sides that appeared alight.
"... Well, she's adorable." Cortana stated rather openly.
"Sa~lu~tations!" The girl said giddily, her voice warm and welcoming. She saluted the Chief, then said "My name is Penny Polendina! You must be Master Chief Petty Officer Dylan Braun. It is a pleasure to make your acquaintance!" and her hand shot forward, taking Chief's and shaking it rather violently. Enough so that Chief's armor warnings blared for a moment as the girl continued, "This is so exciting! You have no idea what your arrival means for me, Master Chief! I've wanted to stay in Beacon for a very long while, ever since arriving in Vale! Doubly so after I've made friends!"
"Aha..." John paused, retracting his hand from the grip, "It's nice to meet you too, miss Polendina. Are... Are you Atlas's Liaison?"
"Oh, it's just Penny!" The girl responded rather rapidly, "And yes, indeed."
"Tell her it's just Dylan in your case, then." Cortana chuckled, "May as well be polite with the girl."
Again, the Chief was reluctant... But alas, it was not his real name, so what was it to him? "Very well... It's just Dylan for me, Penny. C'mon in." and he motioned to the house. The girl yelped, then darted inside, hauling a set of bags that Chief had not seen when she was outside. She smiled, setting them down in the center of the main hall, before looking around, her smile still wide.
"My room is the one on the right, upstairs... You can pick any of the remaining three." He offered her. After a series of rapid nods, Penny picked her bags up and once again darted, this time up to the top floor and to the room on the opposite side. Cortana had gone from chuckles all the way to laughter as she watched the young girl buzz around like a honeybee.
Penny once again stopped downstairs as Chief closed the door, then said "Oh, this is going to be so much fun! I have to introduce you to my friends! They're wonderful people! Ruby especially!"
"Uhm..." John hummed. She was easily excitable, wasn't she?
"I've unpacked and my room is ready for my personal utilization. I would ask that you do not go in there, for matters of..." She paused, thinking for a moment, then said a quick "Privacy! Yes!" and hiccuping "If you wish for us to go on a tour of the School's facilities, we can depart now, while there is still sunlight and the Students' transports have yet to arrive with everyone else." her demeanor switching to a more semi-serious one as she walked up to the Chief.
"You're... Atlesian. How do you know Beacon's layout?" Chief asked, dumbfound.
"I studied it, of course!" Penny declared, "Now, come! We must proceed quickly! And then we will go meet my friends when their transports land!" and she walked forward, taking Chief by the wrist and somehow dragging the heavily-armored supersoldier in POWER ARMOR that weighed several tons out of the room, much to his surprise. Cortana's laughing fit got worse as she burst.
She declared openly, "I adore you, Penny Polendina!" through the laughs. John felt... Less than open about welcoming Penny so easily, but even he had to admit.
It was nice having someone friendly, that didn't want to kill them, to talk to.