Slightly shorter chapter this week. Things are still hectic, and I can finally tell you why. Well, beyond the crazy stuff at work where I'm finishing out reporting on a big test event while also preparing to take over a much larger project. But that's nothing compared to the real craziness that's been going on behind the scenes. As promised, I revealed it to my Twitch channel last Saturday and said I'd follow up here afterwards, so here goes.
We're having a baby.
That's right. There's a little gosling on the way. We're sneaking up on the third trimester already (due date in early August), so you can imagine how crazy things have been since we found out right before Christmas. Lots of appointments and about a million things to do, so my schedule's been all sorts of messed up. Getting things back under control for now, but fully expect to take some time off from writing in August, as I'll have a little one to take care of. Luckily, I get paternity leave and have plenty of regular leave saved up already, which will definitely help. Not sure if I'll have zero time to write or all the time in the world when he gets here. Probably a weird mixture of both where inspiration will strike when he's awake and vanish when he takes a nap. Either way, lots of excitement in the Goose household right now, so bear with me as there may be missed chapters along the way, especially later this year. I'll try my best to keep posting weekly up until then, but if I miss an upload, just know that I'm probably tied up in appointments or getting things ready and just ran out of hours in the day.
Anyway, with that bombshell dropped, on with the chapter!
Their trip had been about as perfect as he could've hoped for. He'd been able to take his mind off of the chores of running a camp and focus on himself and Blake for the first time in forever. They'd found a spot that would give them a great view of the target and a reliable jumping off point. Sure, it took them longer to find the spot than expected, but that just meant more time alone with her.
Sadly, all good things must come to an end.
Not that the trip back to camp wasn't pleasant. No matter how heartless a monster humanity claimed him to be, even he could appreciate the awe-inspiring beauty of Forever Fall, even after being out in the middle of it for so long. Then again, maybe it just seemed better because of the company. She'd still be by his side when they got back to camp, of course, but it wouldn't be the same. Sharing her with everyone else meant less time for him - for them.
Still, back to camp they went. Everyone seemed excited to see them - even Donavan, right up until he realized how easy he'd had it with two thirds of his trainers gone. The look on his face almost made coming back worth it. Of course, whatever they felt meant little compared to Sienna's reaction to his report.
"We think we've found a point of attack," Adam reported only an hour later. "Elevated terrain overlooking the area. Sloped rundown to the target. We should be able to strike without much problem."
Other than the whole trying not to become a red streak on the front of a train problem.
"Any issues with the target?"
Speed. "None. No visible defenses. Security looks light as well. Mostly automated. Nothing to worry about."
Finding all that out ended up being way easier than he'd expected. While he couldn't guarantee the exact same arrangement every time, there really wasn't any reason to expect a change when no one knew they were coming. The train they'd observed had been a sleek line of black cars weathered by countless journeys and graffiti. No turrets dotted any spot along the lengthy transport, which seemed a little foolish given their route through Grimm territory. Instead, a heavy, reinforced front and high speed made it clear they didn't plan to stop for anything, Grimm or otherwise. It would've been a bloody mess to clean up if Grimm didn't dissolve completely on their own. They'd still have to deal with the odd animal straying across, but most local fauna knew to avoid a recurring hazard like that.
The outside of the train was easy enough, but that did little to tell them what lurked inside. Instead, Kelly had finally proven useful with one of her recruits. Working at the train station wasn't exactly glamorous work, especially jobs like cleaning bathrooms and walkways all day. It was just the sort of job most people would shudder at even the thought of doing, which meant it inevitably fell to a faunus. As disgusting as the day to day tasks could get - waiting for a train seemed to rob people of the ability to aim - it did give their man relatively unlimited access to the goings on of the station, including a great view of people and cargo coming and going. He'd reported back less than ten people disembarking for most deliveries. Factoring in, at the very least, an engineer and a conductor, that meant no more than eight guards per transit. He doubted that was all they had, though. Atlas so loved their robotic toy soldiers, that he had to assume they made up the difference.
Easily outnumbering the passengers were the pallets and pallets of cargo that Vale received from the Forever Fall line. Their informant couldn't get close enough to tell them what each contained, but he'd seen quite a few crates bearing the familiar snowflake of the SDC.
Dust. Loads of it. Adam wasn't sure what the other crates contained, but anything else was simply a bonus. If every train car carried a full load, there might be enough dust that they'd struggle to take anything else, even if they wanted to. He'd counted dozens of cars on the last train they'd spotted. Heck, if even half of them had dust, they'd be set for a long time.
Minimal security with a sizable payload. Low risk. High reward. The best kind of odds.
Adam went over the plan with Sienna, pausing now and then to let her reference coordinates on a map on her end. He and Blake would set up camp a day in advance of the train passing through. As it passed, they'd jump aboard and work their way forward, neutralizing any resistance they met along the way. Cargo would go ignored as they prioritized reaching the engine and stopping the train altogether.
Meanwhile, Bane and Donavan would have a team on standby with an airship hidden in the forest not far from where Adam expected to stop the train. Sienna had actually been the one to pick the spot. And by that, he meant she'd probably gotten Laurence or someone to do all the math, somehow turning his speed and efficiency into an equation. He couldn't help but wonder just how accurate they'd be while also feeling the urge to somehow beat their prediction. Either way, they'd call in reinforcements as soon as they had control and offload as much of the dust as they could before reinforcements from Vale could arrive. Again, their spies in the city would come in handy, watching for the first signs of a response from either the city or Beacon.
He really hoped it would be the city.
Not that he was worried or anything. He'd taken on Huntsmen before, and while they weren't exactly easy fights, he'd still come out on top. If all went according to plan, he and his team would be long gone before anyone reached them. Better to avoid the fight altogether than risk an encounter with whatever Beacon might throw at him.
It wasn't even the faculty that worried him the most. Beacon's instructors were all formidable fighters. They had to be. Only the best could be entrusted with teaching the next generation, and Beacon's team took that to heart. Some of the most accomplished Huntsmen of their generation lived and taught at that school under the leadership of Headmaster Ozpin, who was the youngest Headmaster ever at Beacon. Or, he was, back when he first took the role. He was a dangerous man, by all accounts, and not just as a fighter. From what little Adam could find on the man outside of his current desk job atop Beacon Tower, Ozpin had trained both body and mind into weapons, often winning fights before they even started. He hadn't fought anyone in a long time - at least, as far as the public knew - so some thought he might've grown rusty as age began to creep in.
Adam knew better. Ozpin stopped fighting because he'd already won. There was just no one out there presenting a challenge to him. Instead, he'd turned to his other weapons. A quarter of the Huntsmen in Remnant trained under his schooling. The other Headmasters deferred to him at every turn. The Council practically bent the knee to him, giving him unfettered power in the Kingdom of Vale. He may as well have ascended the throne and brought back the monarchy. A true warrior king, able to strike down his enemy with a word as easily as a blade. As friendly as Vale seemed toward faunus - and that was in large part due to efforts from Ozpin himself - the risk should Beacon get involved could be too great for even him to endure.
Hopefully, it wouldn't come to that, but he had to be prepared for every possibility. If Beacon got involved and knew Adam was there, they'd come in force to stop him for good. On the other hand, if they didn't know about Adam, they might send one of their student teams to investigate. It'd be an easier fight than taking on Ozpin and his faculty, but Adam didn't relish the idea of fighting children. The fact they'd probably be around his age didn't escape him, but age was just a number. They spent their days worrying about homework and training in heavily controlled spars. Life and the Grimm had been his teachers, and their curriculum tended to get better results for those who survived.
The best he could hope for would be Vale deciding to handle it themselves. Bureaucracy would work its magic and give them all the time in the world while the city argued and debated over what to do before finally sending out some paltry force to find an abandoned train with a lot less cargo. They'd clean up the area, probably claim credit for scaring off the attackers, and no one would get hurt.
That was the plan, anyway, but since when did anything ever go according to plan?
"Have you come up with any way to slow the train down?" Sienna asked once he was done explaining the plan.
"No." He'd tried. Oh how he'd tried. "It looks like the front is reinforced against potential impacts." Mostly for the Grimm, but a train that could take out a Grimm at full speed without flinching wouldn't be stopping anytime soon. "Anything big enough to stop that would likely derail the entire train." A train full of dust and gods knew what else. Turning Forever Fall into the Forever Crater wasn't on his list of things to do.
"Stopping the train wouldn't serve our purposes," Sienna reminded him. They wouldn't be able to stop the one in Atlas either. Even if they could, turning the moving fortress into a stationary, hardened target benefitted Atlas more than them. The narrow train cars of a train would allow him to focus in a single direction and clog up the defenders. He'd have a much easier fight, provided he could get on in one piece.
"We'll have to hope for the best." Him more than anyone, since he'd be the guinea pig when he hit that train at full speed.
"Actually, I have an idea on how you can practice." The way she said it told him he wouldn't be thrilled by what came next. "It's not perfect, but it might work." Adam waited for the inevitable other shoe to drop. "Instead of jumping onto a moving platform, we'll have you jump off of one."
Yep. He wasn't thrilled.
/- - - - - - - - - -/
Adam held onto the side of the airship for dear life as trees zipped by just below them at terrifying speeds, merging them all into a blur that promised nothing but pain and suffering should he slip. Hitting a tree at this speed would almost certainly be fatal for a normal person. He could just imagine body and tree snapping in a tremendous explosion of splinters and gore. Limbs would be knocked clean off. Bones would shatter. Organs rupture. It would be a terrifying mess that would make even the most hardened doctor vomit.
With aura, he'd survive to endure all that pain without the sweet release of death.
Which is why having someone give him instructions on how to jump made him a little uneasy. "We're coming up on the jump site!" the pilot shouted through the speakers, his voice fighting to be heard over the wind whipping through the open bay. "When the light turns green, that's your cue to go! You're gonna want to take a running leap to get clear of the door, otherwise the wind might slow you down enough for us to hit you!"
Oh good. More hazards. Just what he needed.
"Once you've landed, we'll circle back and pick you up for another run!" As if once wasn't enough.
He really hated Sienna's plan, even if it sort of made sense. The airship was skimming above the forest close to the altitude of their jump point for the train, keeping a steady, blistering pace to match what he'd be targeting in just a few days. The biggest difference was that, instead of landing on something going that fast, he'd be hitting a stationary target at the same speed.
Blake had been all too happy to let him go first. As the more experienced aura user, he ought to be the best suited for the role. She'd watch him and try tomorrow, using whatever methods he learned to help her out. In other words, he had to try and fail so she didn't get hurt as much. The thought should've comforted him - his pain would protect her - but right now, all he could think was how unfair his role was.
"Ten seconds!" The call came far too soon for Adam's liking, but ignoring it wouldn't help. He'd jumped from an airship before, just never one moving quite this fast. The seconds ticked by as Adam stepped back, clutching either side of the opening as he counted down in his head, ignoring the voice overhead as he tried to focus.
He reached zero just as the light turned green and an ominous tone sounded. Before he could think better of it, Adam launched himself clear of the airship in a single motion, more pulling himself out the side than actually jumping. The wind hit him like a wall and disoriented him for a moment. Adam tried to turn as he tumbled, striving to get his feet under him before-
Adam slammed his shoulder into the ground, his aura doing its best to keep him in one piece but doing little against the jarring pain that shot through his body as he rolled head over heels across the ground, kicking up a massive cloud of dirt as he went. He wasn't sure when he stopped, as Remnant seemed to keep spinning long after Bane and Blake appeared above him.
"That didn't work," Blake summarized.
"Thank you for that…ugh," Adam rubbed his shoulder as he sat up, trying to massage away the pain from a limb that seemed confused how it survived. "For that expert analysis."
Bane at least tried to sound concerned. "What happened?"
"He didn't land it." Blake really ought to have gone into sports commentary with those impressive play by plays.
"My angle was off," Adam offered as an alternative. "It was a bad launch. I pushed too hard and lost my balance."
"Maybe try keeping your feet under you next time."
"You're welcome to go next," Adam said, not really in the mood for her snark right now. He'd just fought Remnant with his face and lost. Naturally, the only thing left to do was drag himself back into an airship and try again.
"No cutsies," Blake responded, shutting down his offer. She looked up at the sky, pondering for a moment before pointing out, "Why not jump out the back?"
Adam looked up, as if he could somehow spot the imagined airship she was studying. "The back?"
"Open the cargo ramp," Blake specified, finally returning her focus to the ground. "You could just drop out the back instead. That way, you don't have to worry about being thrown off balance as much."
Adam so wanted to poke holes in her idea. The train wouldn't be passing directly under them. He'd be taking it from the side, so jumping out the side of the airship made sense in his mind. Hitting the train would be hard enough, but the moment he landed, he'd have to avoid rolling off the far side while the world tore sideways at him. He had to ride through the absolute chaos if he wanted this to work.
But this wasn't a true representation anyway. They were just testing the basics - namely that he could hit a target with a significant speed differential. Even jumping out the side of the airship, his momentum would be almost entirely one direction. Jumping out the back wouldn't change that. He'd just be able to land facing the right direction instead of sideways. It'd also mean less twisting and turning in the air, letting him focus on the much bigger issue of actually controlling his landing. Eliminating variables and keeping things simple were the name of the game when it came to testing ideas.
There was just one part that annoyed him. "You couldn't've suggested it sooner?"
"I just thought of it." Blake shrugged, unconcerned with his lack of appreciation. "Not my fault you didn't think things through."
She had him there. Sienna had given him the idea, but he'd worked out the details himself. Matching the height and speed made sense to him, but in hindsight, maybe he should've started a little easier. Cut the speed in half and worked his way up to the real thing. Learn to walk before running. Instead, he'd skipped both and just yeeted himself in the deep end, trusting he would learn how to swim.
"Any other suggestions?" Preferably before he tried skydiving without a parachute again.
Blake thought on it for a second, but ultimately came up empty. The airship landed a few moments after, ending his short rest as he trudged back to the object of his punishment. Following Blake's advice, he told the pilot to open the rap instead of the side door. He had to move the light they'd set up inside so he could see it easier from his new position, but otherwise, the change looked promising. He could hear the wind howling past outside, but barely a whiff of it reached him on the ramp. When the light went green, he leapt from the back of the ramp, already feeling better as the wind buffeted him but failed to change his path much at all this time.
He hit the ground hard, but this time on his feet. Any joy at the improvement soon vanished as he tumbled forward, flipping across the dirt once more before skidding to a stop in nearly the same spot as before. He turned his head at Blake and Bane's approach, noting the small audience that had gathered to watch the show.
"Better." Was she mocking him? Sure, hitting the ground with his feet instead of his face helped, but they both still ended with him in a crumpled mess. "But we're not there yet." Brilliant deduction. What gave it away? "You need to bleed your momentum when you hit the ground. Here." Blake pulled Gambol Shroud from her back, turning the blade downward. "Use your sword as an anchor and dig it into the ground. That should slow you down faster."
That was it? "You want me to attack the dirt?" Fitting, as it'd attacked him twice now.
"It sounds dumb when you say it like that," Blake chastised as she knelt and shoved the business end of her weapon into the ground. "Like this." She pulled, carving a short line in the dirt. "It should slow you down and help steady you at the same time, though that means a lot of strain on your sword. How strong is it?"
"Strong enough to handle a little dirt." He'd fought off Grimm and Huntsmen with his blade. Turning it into an anchor would be child's play, though he'd push some aura into it, just to be safe. Better that than risk being down a weapon, especially when the real mission came along.
"That's all I've got. Bane?" Their friend shook his head. "You've got it this time."
He appreciated her faith in him, even if he didn't share it. "We'll see."
"Bet on it!"
They both turned at the sudden interruption to see Donavan shouting from the group nearby. Adam hadn't realized they'd been loud enough to overhear. It took him a second to realize he'd forgotten a rather important detail. His eyes drifted up to the top of Donavan's head. Fuanus ears. Or ear, in Donavan's case. He'd never asked what happened to the other one. Enhanced hearing just wasn't fair, especially when his horns didn't do anything but make it hard to comb his hair or wear a hat.
"Bet on what?" Bane asked, more willing to put up with Donavan's stupidity than either of them had ever been.
"On the landing," Donavan explained, not at all embarrassed to be singled out. "If Adam makes it, Blake owes him a kiss."
As dumb as it sounded, Adam couldn't deny it might work. Few things motivated him more nowadays. The real question was whether Blake would accept it.
Instead, she'd gone after a different detail. "And what if he fails?"
"Then you owe me a kiss." Donavan was either the bravest or the dumbest faunus he'd ever met. If Adam wasn't still reeling from his acrobatics lesson, he might've beaten Donavan to a pulp for even suggesting such a thing. Then again, if the idea of her kissing someone else infuriated him this much, then what better way to make sure he gave it his all? Though if he did fail, he'd make sure Donavan didn't live long enough to collect his winnings.
"Tempting." Blake certainly didn't sound tempted. "But how about this? If he fails, you can kiss him."
A smattering of laughter answered her offer, but Donavan had about as much shame as he did brains - none at all. "Deal!"
"You hear that?" Blake asked needlessly. "Sounds like I have competition."
"I think you'll be okay." Adam didn't swing that way, and even if he did, he'd swing far away from someone like Donavan. The airship waited for his third attempt. "Kiss for good luck?"
Blake's smile held a mocking edge. "Only if Donavan gets one too." She didn't bother waiting for his response, already backing away to make it clear he was out of luck.
Worth a shot.
Despite how ludicrous the bet was, it had Adam desperate for a win. Not just because of the prize, though he'd certainly enjoy claiming it when he won. Adam had always been competitive, so making it a challenge meant he'd do whatever it took to win. Watching Donavan lose would only make his victory all the sweeter.
"You can do this," he told himself, eyes fixed on the red light once more. His hand found his sword, helping to calm him at the familiar feel, it and Blake being the only things in life to never let him down. He'd faced worse odds before and come out on top. Today would be no different. He'd do what needed to be done, no matter how ridiculous or impossible it seemed, all because it needed to be done. Nothing would stand in his way.
Because he was Adam Taurus.
He was already moving by the time the light turned green. The wind tried in vain to steal his breath away. Remnant itself rushed at him with terrifying speed, eager to retain its undefeated title. Adam stared down his indomitable opponent, unflinching in resolve. An unstoppable force aimed for the immovable object with a vengeance. At the last second, Adam drew his sword and plunged it into the ground. His legs gave way on impact, dropping him to his knees. He slid across the dirt, barely staying upright as he clung bitterly to his sword for support. His hands burned with the effort, but he refused to let go.
It wasn't pretty, but in the end, Adam came to a stop, still clutching the weapon Remnant had failed to take from him. His knees ached from every bump and rock he'd passed. A cloud of dirt spread beyond him. He'd left a deep scar in his wake, his blade carving a narrow trench to mark where he'd passed. Adam panted slightly at the effort, but the rush of victory drowned out any complaint from his body.
So lost in the moment was he, that Adam didn't even move until he felt a familiar hand on his shoulder. Blake smirked at his dramatic pose. Adam rose to his feet, brushing off his pants legs. He was about to remind Blake of their deal when her lips pressed lightly against his cheek. "My hero," she announced, delighting in his annoyance. She really knew how to push his buttons, and yet, he loved her all the more for it.
He'd done it. It wasn't perfect, but it would work. If he could get on the train, he could take it. And not just the one in Vale. Atlas wouldn't know what hit them when he returned to their shores. Jumping out of an airship shouldn't have been so impressive - Huntsmen did it all the time - but it felt like a massive leap forward to him.
"Again."
Adam spent most of the afternoon leaping from the airship, each landing becoming cleaner as he got used to the feel. With each attempt, his tally across the ground increased like some sort of overcomplicated farming technique. Only once he felt confident he could pull it off cleanly did he finally take a break, passing what he'd learned on to Blake.
Annoyingly, she took to it a lot better than he did. If he didn't know better, he'd think it her faunus nature giving her an advantage. Cats always did seem to land on their feet, or so the saying went. He knew the idea of faunus taking on their animal counterpart's behavior was nothing more than human propaganda - an attempt to dehumanize them by making them more akin to animals - but Blake seemed to possess an unnatural agility that certainly seemed catlike. Combined with her love of napping in the sun and her nearly obsessive love of fish, he'd almost believe all the crap the humans peddled about them.
Not only did she pick it up faster, but she improved upon it. By the end of the day, she didn't even need to slow herself with her weapon, instead landing solidly without much movement at all. It honestly made no sense, yet he couldn't deny what he'd witnessed himself. Part of him wanted to try again, just to see if he could copy her, but he knew better than to change a working system. It wasn't broke, so why fix it?
Regardless, everything seemed to be coming together. They had a way to board the target and the perfect spot to attack from. Their success would be a rallying cry for the fledgling Vale branch of the White Fang and help them recruit those ready to finally fight back while providing enough dust to operate the remote base for a very long time. They'd leverage this success into a much bigger win in Atlas and remind the world that the White Fang meant business. Atlas and the SDC would have no choice but to acknowledge them if they wanted their people back, which would only serve to establish them as a legitimate power in Remnant that needed to be taken seriously.
The sun would soon rise on a new day for the White Fang, and Adam could almost feel the warmth on his skin.
Only a little shorter than usual, but originally I was planning to rush straight to the train mission. Then got carried away with the prep work and wound up with an extra chapter out of nowhere. Not the first time, and certainly not the last.
Pretty sure I've already said this before, but this isn't the same train from the Black trailer. You will, however, see some similarities in their plan, including their landing strategies. We'll be starting with the actual mission next chapter before I get distracted by more pre-mission stuff. Also, while I keep calling it an airship, they are in fact using bullheads here. Airship is more of the generic term (like airplane including everything from fighter jets to airliners) and seems to be used more in Mistral, whereas Vale always uses the specific name for bullheads. Adam has spent pretty much his entire life in Anima, so he'd be more accustomed to the specific term, but expect that to change a little as he gets more used to being in the new Kingdom.
Next chapter: Adam and Blake steal a train.