Son of the Branwen

Chapter 73: Worst Case Scenario

Hawk: "How did it come to this?"

Hawk muttered to himself as he walked down the streets of Mantle, making sure that there weren't any Grimm hiding anywhere. The others had gone back to Atlas, but Hawk refused to join them. He hated this two sided war that Atlas was dealing with. Hawk paused and looked up as he saw three airships fly overhead across the night sky. So far, the scanners didn't detect any Grimm. But because of how scared people were, there could be another attack soon.

Hawk stopped at the corner of the sidewalk, glancing up at one of the large screens that was broadcasting Ironwood's message to the people of Mantle on a repeat. As he paused, he watched a woman quickly walking across the street from him, clutching her baby to her chest.

Hawk: "Ma'am? Are you-"

Woman: "Please! I'm going home! Don't arrest me!"

Hawk froze up, seeing the fear in the woman's eyes while she desperately attempted to shield her baby from him. Hawk looked down, and pointed to his right.

Hawk: "The patrol won't be coming around for another ten minutes. Be safe, and have a goodnight..."

The woman glanced away from Hawk, surprised that he was letting her go. Despite the fact that there were orders for the Atlas military to enforce a mandatory curfew for Mantle. The woman quickly left for home, and Hawk leaned against the wall behind him, sinking down to his knees as Ironwood spoke.

Ironwood: "Citizens of Mantle. Following the most recent Grimm attack, a temporary prohibition of assembly is in place. There are to be no public gatherings of any kind. Please conduct your business and return to your homes before curfew."

Hawk growled to himself, placing his head into his hands as his mind was filled with self-doubt. Hawk pulled the silver pin off of his chest to stare at it.

Hawk: "Auntie Summer... what do I do? This feels so wrong, but I can't tell what I should do anymore..."

Hawk glanced up as a camera drone and soldiers walked down the street. One of the soldiers paused when the camera spotted Hawk.

Soldier: "Huntsman, we need to keep working."

Hawk scoffed and pinned the silver bird back to his chest, motioning for them to keep moving.

Ironwood: "This is for your own safety."

As they went, Hawk was about to walk away when he heard a quiet noise. Somebody was crying. Hawk slowly followed the noise, coming to a large green dumpster in the nearby alley. He peeked around the corner, seeing two children holding onto each other while crying. One was a little boy with brown eyes and grey hair, with a light grey jacket and an orange scarf. The other was a little Faunus girl. She had a darker complexion with bright blue eyes, and slightly pointed ears and was wearing a big blue coat.

Hawk: "Hey there kiddos, why the tears?"

The kids gasped in shock as Hawk kneeled down to their level, giving a gentle smile to them. The boy quickly stood up, standing in front of the girl protectively. But he was shivering badly from either the cold or fear. The girl stared with big eyes, afraid of what might happen next. Hawk slowly unclipped his sword sheath and set it aside, holding his hands up.

Hawk: "Easy there, I want to help. I'm a Huntsman."

The kids didn't reply, but seemed less tense at the mention of Huntsman.

Patrol: "Hey! Stop right there! Wait!"

Hawk heard the distant shouts from one of the Atlas patrols, finding someone who was out past curfew.