Fusilier

Ruined Mountain Glenn

    As they walked back to their dorm Ruby filled them in on what had happened at the CCT. She was talking a mile-a-minute and it was difficult to get everything she was saying. "So this woman had fire in her... clothes," Donnie asked as they walked. Blake managed to clarify it for him, "It's an old technique, people manage to imbue their clothing with dust to give themselves an advantage in combat."
    "Sounds like a good way to set yourself on fire."
    Ruby continued, "Well anyway she fought me until the General showed up and then she ran away. What am I going to tell them tomorrow?"
    They discussed it briefly before coming to a decision, "We'll leave it up to you. No matter what we've got your back."
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    The next morning was spent packing for their upcoming mission while waiting for the return of their leader. Donnie had already packed his webbing and haversack with as much ammunition and other supplies as he could manage. He had even managed to pack in a kettle and a pot (cooking out of his helmet was the last thing he wanted to dredge back up). The tricky part was figuring out how to sling his shotgun but he managed to find a comfortable spot across the haversack and his back.
    He attached his webbing in the manner he had been trained. In place of his entrenching tool he hung the axe and worked to collect a few of his personal belongings; a few more pictures to be added temporarily to his wallet and his old journal tucked into the chest pocket of his tunic. He stepped back to look over his haversack when Ruby returned. Immediately they surrounded her to ask how the meeting had gone.
"I kinda mentioned the hideout in the southeast to them... and the weapons they were buying."
"Are you sure that was a wise thing to do," Weiss asked.
"Well I- it just kinda-."
Blake intervened to save her, "I think it was smart. Atlas can accomplish much more than we could alone."
Ruby thanked her teammate for her help but still seemed conflicted about it. It was now that Yang stepped in to present the gray tube she had gotten in the mail that morning. "I know what'll cheer you up, Dad sent us a package." This did the trick as Ruby began excitedly reaching for the cylindrical package her sister had been holding. Yang popped the top off of the tube and held it opening down. A long, black object oozed out and bounced off the floor. To the surprise of everyone the object unfurled itself in the air to reveal it was actually a small dog.
    They all leapt back in surprise as the little dog yapped at them before leaping into Ruby's arms.
    "Zwei," she squealed as it licked her face.
    "How do you know that dog Ruby," Donnie asked while eyeing Blake who had leapt onto Ruby's bed and was glaring down at the animal.
    Ruby set Zwei down before answering, "Oh he's our dog." Donnie paused for a moment, "Wait, your dog? Didn't we visit your home during the break? Where was he?"
    "Oh yeah Dad had to send him to the vet for a bit."
"For nearly a week?"
Weiss interrupted the conversation, "That's not important right now. What is important is that this... this little gentleman is going to stay with us forever and forever yes he is!" Her voice dipped into an uncharacteristic crooning as she gushed over the small dog. Donnie was about to ask how he was supposed to eat while they were away when Yang smacked the bottom of the mail tube; pouring out a mountain of canned dog food accompanied by a small can opener. Any further questions regarding how Zwei was intended to use the can opener were silenced by the unmistakeable voice of Professor Goodwitch over the intercom beckoning all first-year students to the ballroom.
They all hurried out with Ruby straggling just behind. The ballroom had been cleared up nicely following the previous night's festivities. Students filled the room from end to end reminding Donnie of his first day at the academy. To his surprise he saw that even the foreign students had arrived. All separated into their own kingdoms section they watched the stage expectantly, where Professor Ozpin watched over them all. After awaiting some semblance of quiet to fall upon the gathering Ozpin approached the microphone and began his speech.
"Today we stand together united. Mistral, Atlas, Vacuo, Vale, the four kingdoms of Remnant. On this day, nearly eighty years ago. The largest war in recorded history came to an end. It was a war of ignorance, of greed, and of oppression. A war that was about much more than where borders fell or who traded with whom. But about the very idea of individualism itself. We fought for countless reasons." Donnie took a moment to glance around at the crowd, curious to see if anyone from the Mistral or Atlas crowds had reacted. He hadn't taken in much from Professor Oobleck's lectures but he did remember hearing that the Great War was something that those kingdoms hadn't enjoyed the ending of. "One of which being the destruction of all forms of art and self expression. And as you are well aware, that was something many could not stand for. As a result, those who opposed this tyranny began naming their children after one of the core aspects of art itself; color. It was their war to demonstrate that not only would they refuse to tolerate this oppression but neither would the generations to come, and it is a trend that has held to this very day. We encourage individuality, expressionism, and unity through diversity. As I have said, today we stand together, united. But, this bond cannot exist without effort. Which is why today, while the rest of the world celebrates peace huntsmen and huntresses will work to uphold it. But no matter which path you choose remember to be safe, remember your training, and remember to do your very best."
The speech was met with resounding applause as the groups began to separate themselves to crowd around the mission boards. "Well I guess that explains all the weird names."
"Wha-? Weird names?" Yang tilted her head at him.
"Yes, all the people I've seen named after plants and colors."
"That's not weird on Remnant Don. You heard that speech everyone is doing it."
"Yang I met a man the other day named 'Teal Mandarin' for God's sake. I've heard some strange ones in my time but that one is up there."
They were interrupted by an exasperated sigh from Ruby who had been trying to select a Search and Destroy mission for the team. Yang turned to her and asked what was wrong.
"It won't let me pick the mission we need," to illustrate her point she typed "RWBY" into the team registry again only to receive a beep in return as well as the message "Mission not available for first year students". She stopped to think, "I know, we'll mail ourselves there."
Any further planning was interrupted when Professor Ozpin approached them from behind. When he spoke Donnie could hear the amusement in his voice.
"You could, or-" he tapped on his scroll, "-we could bend the rules a little." Ruby typed into the registry again, this time receiving a message confirming their acceptance of the mission.
"Thank you sir but why exactly-"
"Oh no need to worry about that. Let's just say I am interested to see why the southeast is such a popular place these days."
He looked over the five of them briefly. "Although I am also curious to know how exactly you came across such information, but I suppose we may never know. The same way we may never know why there were reports of robots and rose petals in a night club recently." Ruby scratched the back of her neck sheepishly in response.
The headmasters gaze hardened, "But regardless of what you may be seeking in that particular sector remember that first and foremost you are still huntsmen-in-training and will be answering to your accompanying professional huntsman. They will have the final say in what you may or may not be able to handle and if your performance warrants it they will have full authority to pull you out."
"Don't worry sir, you can count on us!"
He nodded and waved them on; wishing them luck as they left for the landing pads. They had to hurry, after the board had accepted their registration a message had been delivered to each of their scrolls informing them that the professional huntsman assigned to team RWBY was already waiting with a bullhead.
On the way out Donnie was pushed aside as a crowd of students rushed out. One male student stopped and pointed, "Team CFVY's back," he shouted before continuing on. It was then that he saw them. They were making their way from a newly arrived bullhead, he could see even from that distance the bags under their eyes and the almost shuffling gait that all four were exhausted.
Blake jogged up to the bunny faunus of the group (it took a moment for Donnie to register that she was the same faunus he had threatened Cardin for earlier in the year), "Velvet are you alright? Your mission was supposed to have ended a week ago."
Velvet was slow with her response, "Oh no it wasn't anything too bad, there were just so many." She smiled at Blake, "But you shouldn't worry, you guys are going to be shadowing experienced huntsmen." At this she left to rejoin her team and Donnie noticed Coco at the head of the group. She nodded at him before continuing.
"Speaking of experienced huntsmen," Donnie spoke up as they continued on, "who are we even supposed to be shadowing on this?"
"I don't know it didn't say in the message."
Donnie's question was soon answered when before them appeared Professor Oobleck. The professor left little time for thought as he launched into his scathing critique of their performance so far.
    "You're late students, five minutes late to be exact!" He began examining the possessions they were bringing along.
    "There will be no need for those bags ladies... and gentleman. In your absence I have already taken the liberty of acquiring all necessary items needed for a stay in the field. Now students, we have a bullhead ready and waiting and we are already behind schedule." In a blur of movement he rushed back to the bullhead leaving team RWBY behind in a stunned silence.
    "Are we sure about this," Yang asked.
    Ruby did her best to inspire them, "Don't worry guys we'll just have to save the world with Professor Oobleck, and oh no that sounds bad." Her voice trailed off as her shoulders slumped.
    Her gloom didn't last long as Nora's voice cried out from behind them.
    "Save the world!? And without us!?"
    They all turned to find team JNPR approaching them. Jaune chuckled, "They'll be fine Nora. Where are you guys headed though?"
    "A search and destroy mission just outside the kingdom. How about you guys?"
    Ren answered, "We're going to be shadowing a sheriff in a village outside of Vale."
    Jaune looked over their shoulders, "Is that... Oobleck waiting for you guys?"
    His point was punctuated by the professor who shouted, "Ten minutes students!"
    Ruby gave a sheepish grin, "Well that's our cue. Good luck guys."
    Team JNPR returned the well wishes as they boarded the waiting ship and lifted off.
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    They spoke on the flight there. The doors along the sides of the bullhead had been left open; much to Donnie's discomfort as he fought off bouts of nausea, trying to focus on the conversation in an effort draw his mind away from the ground rushing below them.
    "So where are we going," he picked out Ruby's voice in the din.
    Blake answered, "Mountain Glenn, an attempt by the City of Vale to expand it's borders. They say the lack of natural boundaries as well as an increase of grimm attacks caused it to fail."
    Donnie spoke up, "S-So what happened. Did the-," he stopped to swallow the bile in his throat, "Did they just move back and leave the city behind?"
    He saw Yang nod towards the front of the bullhead, "Why don't you see for yourself?"
    As she said so he felt the lurch in his stomach as the aircraft abruptly slowed and drew up along what Donnie thought looked to be a sidewalk. Donnie quickly followed the professor and his teammates in leaping from ship. It was now that Donnie could focus himself enough to take in his new surroundings.
Mountain Glenn was an empty shell. They had been delivered to the edge of a street, he noticed somewhat nervously that behind them was a sheer drop that he could only guess ended in the untamed forest they had flown over. In front of them were the ruins of tenement blocks and office buildings in the style that he had grown accustomed to in Vale. Their empty windows were dark and foreboding. In the streets Donnie could see the evidence of the city's fate. The street was littered with small fortifications; sandbag barriers sat in front of metal constructions that blocked the road. He noticed that a few nearby buildings had chunks blown out of them. A nearby car had been flipped over onto its side, from where he was standing it seemed like he could just make out a large gash in its underside.
    He removed his rifle from his shoulder and turned his attention on the professor. He noticed Oobleck was staring at his and Ruby's packs.
    "Mr. McManus, Ms. Rose; I believe I instructed that all of you were to leave your bags behind. What is the meaning of this."
    Ruby answered for the both of them, "But you hadn't told us to start listening to you yet."
    Donnie could hardly believe his ears when the professor agreed.
    "Very well, in that case feel free to leave them here and we'll be back to pick them up at the conclusion of our mission."
    "But sir..."
    Oobleck leaned into her face, "What could possibly be so important that you feel the need to keep that thing."
    The only response was a single bark and the appearance of a small, fluffy head.
    "You took a dog, into a highly dangerous ruin filled with all manner of grimm... absolutely brilliant!"
    The professor snatched Zwei from her pack and spun with him.
They could barely make out his flurry of words, "Simply brilliant! Observations have shown that canines have been able to detect Grimm at levels higher than humans! Perfect for missions such as ours!" He paused and set Zwei down to compose himself before turning his attention on Donnie.
"Now, Mr. McManus, may I ask what you find to be so important?"
Donnie drew himself into almost a parade rest, his rifle tucked against his chest.
"I've packed more spare ammunition for myself as well as other supplies including food and cooking implements sir."
"Mr. McManus I've already assured you that-"
"Professor Oobleck..."
"Not now Ms. Schnee, and I'll have you know it's Doctor to you."
"Dr. Oobleck!"
He turned on her and was about to demand what was so important when he saw she was pointing at something behind him.
Dr. Oobleck turned and spotted the lone beowolf that was shuffling around in the street. Sniffing at patches of weeds growing out of cracks in the pavement.
The doctor tensed, "Good, now we've achieved our first goal. We've found the subject that shall lead us to our quarry."
"So we just follow it? How long is that gonna take?"
"Patience Ms. Xiaolong, it could be days, it could be weeks, why some lone grimm have been known to stay separated from the pack for whole months! And there's the whole pack!"
"What!?"
"And now they've seen us."
"What!?"
Dr. Oobleck shouted, "And now they've seen us!"
From around the corner had emerged dozens of beowolves and each of them had frozen, their eyes all staring intently at the group. Every member of team RWBY readied their weapons and assumed defensive stances in front of the doctor.
"What now?"
"Students, show me what you're capable of."
Donnie slipped his bayonet onto the end of his rifle and grit his teeth. The beowolves split off into groups, each one picking a target. He dropped to his knee sighted the first in the pack.
The rifle cracked as he began shooting for its eyes. When the second round smashed against the hardened bone over his face he took aim for its leg. This had more of an effect after a bullet pierced the beowolfs knee and it collapsed. He made to finish the job when the second grimm leapt at his head.Donnie ducked under the attack and thrust the rifle over his head. The blade of the bayonet sliced the monsters stomach open as it flew past. Before seeking another target he finished the first with a bullet that finally found it's place in its eye
Two more beowolves took the opportunity to charge. Donnie worked another round into the chamber as he brought the barrel around. They ducked to either side of him, hoping to flank him. He responded by plunging the bayonet into flank of the grimm to his left. He released the rifle with his right hand, hoping he'd be able to keep it down with the left. The free hand drew the revolver fired off four rounds into where he hoped what passed for a heart was located in the grimm to his right. It was turning to dust as its wounded friend was beginning to overpower Donnie. He emptied the remaining two into its throat.
The last in the group made its move by attempting to swipe at his side. Donnie dodged backwards and fell into a roll, losing the grip on his rifle in the process. He fumbled for the shotgun on his back, racking a shell while finding his footing. The beowolf was already on him causing Donnie to fire blindly. The buckshot ripped a chunk of black flesh out of its chest causing the incoming swipe from its claw to falter and fall short. He racked another shell and finished the job with another blast to its chest. He retrieved the rifle as it dissolved.
He noted that the girls were finishing off the rest of the pack while he reloaded his weapons. Dr. Oobleck had kept out of the fight and Donnie was having a difficult time determining whether or not the look on his face was one of approval. Donnie suspected it was about to be a long day.
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    So far he had been right, the rest of the day up until that afternoon had been taken up by a slow advance through the main thoroughfare. Dr. Oobleck was adamant that every building be investigated and cleared, most of them seemed to have been converted into some kind of nest or den for grimm. It didn't help that the man seemed content to sit back and observe the fighting.
    Although it didn't seem like he was doing nothing, he was always studying the buildings and wild plants intently, on occasion a notebook would appear from his jacket and a new scribble would be added before it disappeared again. In between his studies he took the time to question Yang, Weiss, and Blake. He only asked them one thing: why did they choose to be huntresses.
    Donnie shook himself from his thoughts and tried focus on the task at hand; He and Ruby had come across a makeshift barricade blocking the street and were thinking of ways to clear it.
    "We could always get Yang to knock us a way through."
    "Nah Yang's busy."
    "We could wait for her."
    "Oh come on Donnie we can blast this thing ourselves."
    He noticed her eyes flit to the grenades he'd hooked to his webbing.
    "You just want to use one of my grenades don't you?"
    "No, I-I just think we can do this without having to drag everyone else over here."
    Donnie laughed at her before turning to inspect the barricade again. It was made up of sandbags and what looked to pieces of furniture. The barricade was stacked a few feet high and upon closer inspection he realized what the pieces of furniture were being used for; the furniture used were tables and chairs, their legs had been sharpened into stakes and shoved into seemingly random locations. He also noted the center of the whole construction was collapsed somewhat at the top, some of the stakes there were angled upwards. With a shudder he realized they'd been snapped in half like something had forced itself over them.
"I don't even think one of my grenades can even get through that thing."
"What if we used a whole bunch of them?"
"I'm not wasting all of my grenades on that."
"And you won't need to Mr. McManus."
They turned around to find Dr. Oobleck standing before them. He looked at the sky before checking a watch he produced from his overcoat. The sky had turned a reddish hue and the six of them had barely gone a few miles into the city. Blake, Yang, and Weiss were gathering now and he motioned to get their attention as well.
    "We'll be stopping here for today. I'll leave the establishment of tonight's encampment to you four. Ms. Rose, please accompany me for a moment."
    Dr. Oobleck turned and started walking further down the street. Ruby shrugged at them and ran to catch up with him.
    Yang looked around, "Well now what, we just pick a building and set up some tents or something?"
    "That building there looked pretty safe," Blake advised.
    "Well I don't know about tents but I could get a fire going at least."
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    By the time Dr. Oobleck and Ruby had returned a fire was burning and Donnie was hunched over a pot which he was dangling over the fire. The others were busy setting up the bed rolls that Oobleck had packed for them (the few bags he had packed for the mission were surprisingly abundant with supplies). By now the sun was setting and the shadows had lengthened to plunge much of the outside world into twilight.
Ruby stopped to warm her hands and catch a look into the pot. She didn't find what was in it very satisfying, "Whatcha cooking Donnie?"
"Just a little stew."
He angled it to give her a better look; what was within the pot was less a stew as much as it was just some pale, boiling meat.
"That's stew?"
"Well I was kinda stuck with what the professor there packed. Although I guess it really isn't much of a stew."
Oobleck stepped up behind them, "It's doctor Mr. McManus and I'm sure it's a perfectly fine... meal."
Donnie took the pot off the fire and began filling small bowls with the watery meat. They dug in, each suppressing looks of disgust as they found the meat to have been salted beef. Donnie had hoped the boiling would help to dilute the salt but he found that it was ultimately in vain.
After the rather unfortunate meal they prepared to sleep for the night. Ruby volunteered to take the first watch that night; Zwei made himself comfortable at her side while she watched the street through the scope of Crescent Rose.
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Donnie was having trouble getting to sleep. He found himself spending the time staring into the fire. He realized he wasn't alone when he saw Yang turn over and lock eyes with him.
"You can't sleep either?"
"I guess so."
Donnie sat up and fished around in his pocket for his cigarettes. As he lit one he asked, "So you mind if I ask what's keeping you up?"
"It's about what the professor was asking, y'know about why I decided to become a huntress."
"Oh yeah you mentioned it was you wanted to help people or something."
"Except that's not really why. I've always lived life just going with the flow y'know. I want to live a life where I'll never know what might be around the corner, but how long can I do that? I'm not like Ruby, she's the one whose always wanted to be a huntress. Ever since she was a kid she wanted to be like a hero in a fairy tale."
Blake stirred and shifted to face them now.
"I wasn't really telling the truth either I guess. I wanted to be a huntress for the same reasons I joined the White Fang, I wanted to change the world for the better."
"So why did you leave them then?"
She stopped and looked at them before continuing, "I had a partner in the White Fang named Adam. He always talked about making things equal between humans and faunus but I realized that the kind of 'equality' he wanted would just be causing more harm. But when I'm a huntress what good can I do? How can I undo so many years of hate? All I'm ever good for is running away."
"That's not true Blake," Weiss spoke up from where she had been laying.
"But it is! Every time I've gotten into some kind of trouble all I've done is run away. Even my semblance, I was born with the ability to leave behind a copy of myself to take the hit while I ran away."
"That's not the way to think about it Blake. And I can sympathize, I wanted to become a huntress to make the world a better place too. I'm not blind to the things the Schnee family has done."
"Could've fooled me."
"And that's what I'm trying to correct. Look we all had these idealized thoughts about becoming huntresses but we need to remember that we're just kids and this is a job."
Yang spoke up, "Kids? Look at us, we're armed to the teeth and in the middle of a war zone."
Donnie nodded along, "For what it's worth I was hardly much older than Ruby when I enlisted."
They all turned their attention on him. Yang was the first to speak, "That reminds me Don: Oobleck never asked you why you're here."
Donnie laughed to himself, "Well I'm here because of Weiss. I'm still technically her bodyguard you know."
Blake interjected, "But what about when you were back in your world, why did you enlist in the military?"
The question surprised him, he looked back into the fire to think before answering, "Well I guess I could say it was some bit of loyalty to the Empire and all but I'd just be lying." He looked up and caught Yang's gaze, "I suppose it wasn't much different than Yang's reason."
"What do you mean?"
"Well one thing we always heard from the older folks around the village was how glorious their time in the military was. We had a few of them that would hang around the pub. These old men who had been these countless little colonial wars and came back like heroes. I wanted to be like them; to earn those shiny medals they always wore and have all those amazing stories of faraway lands."
He laughed again, "I guess it helped that not a one of them ever paid for another drink in his life."
He gathered himself again, "And well when the war started I was too young to enlist. I was furious, I thought that by the time I'd be old enough that it would have passed me by. I would be the one guy who didn't have what those old guys had."
He sighed and stubbed out the remnants of his cigarette, "Well I got my wish, by God did I get my wish."
He gave a mirthless grin before speaking again, "But that's enough doom and gloom for one night I suppose. We ought to get some sleep. It's going to be another long day tomorrow."
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A/N: Hello everyone of my readers! I just wanted to apologize yet again for how long it takes me to write these chapters. I've been getting caught up with college and working and this summer I kept getting distracted and procrastinating. So let me just thank you guys for keeping with me all this time!