//------------------------------// // Chapter 5: A Team’s Formation & A Beginning Mission // Story: Sunset Huntress: A New Beginning // by Wind Typhoon //------------------------------// Chapter 5: A Team's Formation & A Beginning Mission After a few minutes of riding, Sunset and Tempest eventually arrived at Beacon. "Come on, I'm curious as to what Ozpin wants to see us for," Tempest said as she turned off the bike. As they entered the school and started to head towards, the two bumped into two people who were running the opposite way. The four of them fell on the ground after they bumped in. "Sorry, we were in a hurry," a girl said. "Its fine, it was our problem for not paying attention," Sunset said as she and Tempest got up. When Tempest saw the people who they bumped into, her breath caught as she noticed the girl in particular. "Well, then sorry, but we have to go," the male told them before they both ran off. As she girl ran past, Tempest noticed a familiar weapon on her hip. "I recognize that weapon," Tempest thought. "Hey, come on, weren't you the one in a rush?" Sunset asked, breaking Tempest's trance. "Oh, yeah I'm coming," Tempest said as she followed Sunset. Eventually, the two arrived at Ozpin's office and saw a girl in a red coming out of the office. "Oh, you must be students that Ozpin wanted to meet with," the girl said as she turned to them. "We are, why do you ask?" Sunset asked. "Well, because Ozpin said that he was going to meet with two potential students and I figure you two must be them," the girl said in an upbeat tone. "Oh, well that makes a bit of sense," Sunset said. "Wait a second, are you a student here?" Tempest asked curiously. "Yes, I started last semester," the girl told Tempest. "Well, you must have impressed Ozpin a lot. You look to be about two years younger than most of the students here," Tempest commented. "You noticed, well you're right. Ozpin actually offered to make me come to Beacon after seeing how good I was after an incident with someone," the girl said. "That's amazing, what's your name?" Sunset commented and asked. "The name is Ruby Rose," the girl said. "Well, it was nice meeting you Ruby, but we have to get to a meeting," Tempest said as she opened the door. "It was nice meeting you two, I hope to see you next semester," Ruby said as she walked off. "She seems nice," Sunset commented as she entered the room. "Ah, I see you two have met with Ruby. She's a good kid, but I expect great things from her," Ozpin commented as they entered the room. "Did you need to see us Mr. Ozpin?" Tempest asked curiously. "Well, I wanted to speak with you and Sunset about a mission before you enter Beacon," Ozpin told the two as he stood from his desk. "What was the mission you had in mind?" Sunset asked. "The mission I had in mind is for you two, along with some of your friends, to go to an abandoned White Fang base on the edge of Vale," Ozpin told them. Ozpin then went to his computer and pulled up a map on a screen. "A few days ago, before I met either of you two, we received information that there were multiple abandoned White Fang facilities located throughout the surrounding area. We thought nothing of it, until we decided to send Tempest to investigate one in the forest. Tempest, after analyzing the files you gave me from that mission I gave you to see if you were ready, we found that there was only one file in there and it was labeled Project: Freelancer. Does that ring any bells?" Ozpin explained. Tempest and Sunset thought about the name in silence until Tempest snapped her fingers in realization. "I recognize that name; it's the code name for the Atlas Project to make a small, specialized army of Hunters and Huntresses known as Freelancers. What would the White Fang be doing with that?" Tempest commented. "Well before I get to that, Sunset have you read about that Project?" Ozpin said to Sunset. "I think I remember reading about that a while back," Sunset said. "Well, what both you and Sunset read about was the information that was released to the public. Atlas didn't release much except the basic details about the Project. The unsettling thing is that the files we found in the White Fang's position were nearly complete files about Project: Freelancer. Most of the details about the Project were present and that made me wonder if Atlas had been hacked into," Ozpin explained to the two of them. "Wait, you said most of the details were present, what did you mean by that?" Tempest asked. "Well, from what we deduced, it appeared that someone did try to stop the data from being stolen because we noticed that some of it was deleted. All the real names and code names of the agents were not there and all the logs that pertained to missions were mostly destroyed or some parts were missing," Ozpin explained. "So, I'm going to guess that you're telling us this because it pertains to the mission you're about to give us?" Sunset asked curiously. "Exactly, what I want you two to do is look to see if you can find if that place has more information on Project: Freelancer or anything else like that," Ozpin told the two. "Very well, how will we let you know when we are done?" Tempest asked. Ozpin thought about that for a second and thought about a good place. "I would like you to meet me at a coffee shop that I like to go to by the name of Stellar Roast," Ozpin told the two. "That seems fair, when should we do this mission?" Sunset asked. "I would recommend today as starting in two days, I need to start preparing things for next semester," Ozpin said. "Very well, is that all you wanted to speak to us about?" Tempest asked. "Yes it is, you may go now," Ozpin said. The two turned and walked out of the office. After they both left, Ozpin heard a call coming in from his computer. He turned to his computer and saw who was calling. "Well, I wasn't expecting a call from her anytime soon," Ozpin thought as he answered the call. "Hello, Ozpin are you there?" the caller asked. "I'm here and by myself, what did you need to talk about Sol?" Ozpin responded. "Well, I just thought I would call and see how everything is going before you started up school again," Sol told Ozpin. "Well, it's going well, I just sent two new students on that mission I was telling you about. How about you, how has your life been going?" Ozpin said. "Well, it's about the usual, the only interesting thing that has happened recently is my student becoming like me and having her own castle," Sol told Ozpin. "Ah yes, how is your student doing by the way?" Ozpin asked. "She's doing relatively well, the pressure of her job is getting her, but her friends are there to help her through a lot of the troubles," Sol said. "Ah, it's good to see that she has help from her friends in that case," Ozpin said a smile forming on his face. "Well, I better get going, I have thing that I need to do," Sol said. "See you later Sol," Ozpin said before he hung up. After he hung up, he got up and left his office to go for a walk around Beacon. "Ok, so what exactly are we going to do about this mission?" Tempest asked as they walked up to Tempest's bike. Sunset thought about that for a moment before she heard her Scroll ring as someone called her. "Hang on, I'm getting a call," Sunset said as she got out her Scroll and answered the phone. "Hey Sunset, are you there?" Nova's voice came from the Scroll. "Hey Nova, what did you need?" Sunset asked. "Well, you see something weird happened. Me, Storm, Nitro, and Nitro's family all got a message on our Scrolls," Nova told her. "Really, who sent the message and what did it say?" Sunset asked curiously. "Well, Ozpin sent us the message that said to meet together so that you and someone called Tempest could talk to us about something," Nova explained. Sunset processed that information and sighed as she heard Tempest do the same. "Ok, where are you right now?" Sunset asked. "Well, we're at Nitro's house," Nova told her. "Wait for me there, I'm on my way," Sunset said hanging up the Scroll and putting it away. Sunset then saw Tempest sitting on the bike. "Let me guess, your friend called you and said they were waiting at a house because of a message of they received from Ozpin?" Tempest asked as Sunset got on. "Same happen to you?" Sunset responded as she put on the helmet. "No, I overheard the conversation that you two had. I know where to go, so hang on," Tempest said as she started the bike. Sunset grabbed on and the two headed off to the meeting place. After a few minutes, the two of them arrived in front of Nova's house. "So, this is the house that they are meeting in?" Sunset said as she took off the helmet and got off the bike. "Yes it is, I know pretty much all the people that live here by the way," Tempest told Sunset as they approached the door. Tempest knocked on the door and it opened to reveal Nova on the other side of the door. "Sunset, there you are. How did you get here so fast?" Nova asked. "Well, I rode with Tempest here, the other student Ozpin mentioned," Sunset told him. "Oh, then I guess we can introduce everyone and you two can explain what we are doing," Nova said as he let them in. After introducing everyone to each other, they all meet up in the living room of the house. "So, what did Ozpin talk to you about in terms of the mission?" Phaze asked as she brought out drinks for everyone. "Well, do you guys know of any White Fang bases around Vale that have been abandoned?" Tempest asked. "I know of a few, I like to wander and see what I can find," Wind told the two. "The one we're going to look at is the edge of Vale," Sunset mentioned. "I think I know the one you're talking about, it's the one that is located to the northeast of the city," Nova commented. "That is correct," Tempest said as she brought out the map of where they are going. "That's awesome, when do we get to go?" Emrel asked in an excited tone. Shade then smacked the back of her brother's head which caused everyone to giggle at the sight. "You and me can't go you dummy, we have to stay here," Shade told Emrel. "You two can actually come along," Phaze told the two. "Really, we can!" they both exclaimed. "Well, Phaze can't necessarily leave you two alone, plus I think I'll take both of you with me to help," Tempest told the two. "So, I imagine that you two will need teams to help with the task?" Nitro asked. "Well, I think that is why Ozpin sent you all the messages, he wants you all to for teams with either me or Tempest," Sunset explained. "Well, if it's ok with you all, I'm going to stick with Sunset," Storm said after being silent for the entire combination. "I think me and Nova are going with Sunset as well," Nitro said. "I think that it would be good if we are with teammates who we are friends with and have two separate teams," Tempest suggested. "I actually think that is a good idea, it's easier to have better cooperation with people who know each other," Nova commented. "That does make a lot of sense, so I imaging that you two will choose the teams in that case?" Wind asked. "I think that will be a good idea, so do you want to go first Sunset?" Tempest asked curiously. "Well, if we want to go with people that I know of as teammates, I believe that I want Nova, Storm, and Nitro on my team," Sunset said. "In that case, I guess I'll take Emrel, Phaze, Shade, and Wind for my team," Tempest said. After the teams were decided and everyone moved to their respective leader, they all decided to work on a plan together. "So as far as me and Tempest know, we don't know anything about the layout of that place or where anything is stored and we can just assume that it is completely abandoned," Sunset explained to everyone. "Well, I've seen that place from a distance and it looked completely abandoned. No guards looking over the place, no people that work to maintain it, it looked completely abandoned from where I was standing," Nova commented. "Well, how about we make two different jobs for each team?" Wind suggested. "That would make the most sense, especially because if we have two groups doing two different things, we can get this done faster," Tempest commented. "I can see the advantage in splitting into two groups, but how should go about deciding which of us goes where?" Sunset asked. "Well, since Wind knows what the general area and shape of it is, I would say that Sunset's team should take the outside and see if anyone is coming to the facility," Tempest suggested. "I think that sounds good, so I guess that means that you five will take care of the inside of the facility?" Sunset asked curiously. "That would be correct," Tempest said. "So, is that all we are going to do in terms of planning?" Phaze asked. "I think so for now, we can decide what to do for our individual teams when we arrive at the facility," Tempest said as she got up. "I agree with that," Sunset said as she got up. "Well in that case, should we go to the facility?" Tempest asked. Everyone nodded and they all took off to the abandoned facility. After about an hour of travel, the nine of them arrived at the facility they were going to investigate. "So, now that we're here what is the plan?" Wind asked as he looked over the facility. "Well, since we know what team is going where, we know which part of the facility we are going to go," Phaze told Wind. "Hey Sunset, what is your team going to do on the outside?" Tempest asked. "Well, I suppose that my team can be on the lookout for anyone that happens to come by," Sunset said. "In that case, we should keep in constant contact so we know what is going on," Tempest said as she got out her Scroll. "I think that is a good idea for everyone," Phaze commented to the group. After about a minute or two, everyone had exchanged their Scroll information with each other. "Now that that is done, shall we get this mission started?" Sunset asked everyone. Everyone nodded in agreement as they all started to go and wait for their leaders. "Hey, good luck to you," Tempest said extending her hand. "Same to you," Sunset said as she shook her hand. As Sunset shook Tempest's hand, she felt a tingling sensation go throughout her arm. Thinking it was her imagination; she finished shaking Tempest's hand and went to go join her team. After the two teams split up, Sunset and her team went to the outside of the facility. "So, what exactly are we going to be doing leader?" Nova asked Sunset. "Well, I say we split up into groups of two for now and look around the perimeter to see if we find anything as well as keeping a look out for anyone coming to the compound," Sunset told her teammates. "So, how about me and Storm go together while you and Nova pair up?" Nitro suggested. Sunset thought about that and decided that it was the best course of action. "That seems like a logical idea, so you two want to take the east end while me and Nova take the west?" Sunset said. "That seems fair, so we keep in contact with each other?" Storm asked. "Correct, when you see something happen or you find something interesting, let me know by Scroll or come back to our area," Sunset said. Nitro and Storm nodded in agreement with Nova staying silent the whole time. "Ok, let's get this done quick, I don't want them to beat us," Sunset said as her competitive side started to show. The four then split into their teams and went to their respective ends of the compound. "So, I think Nitro is trying to get us alone so we can talk alone," Nova commented after they split up. "I think you might be right," Sunset said as they went over by the entrance to the compound. Nova looked around the area to check if the coast was clear when he noticed an out of place box right next to the entrance. "Hey, what's that box doing there?" Nova asked as he pointed out the box. "Why are you telling me about a box?" Sunset asked out of annoyance as he looked at him. "I don't know it just seems like an odd place to put one. Heck even if they did leave it behind, where it is right now wouldn't be a good place to put the box if it was something important," Nova explained. Sunset was about to retort when she thought about that for a moment. "You have a fair point there," Sunset told Nova. "Exactly, now let's…" Nova said as he looked at where the box was. Sunset followed Nova's gaze to see that the box that they both saw was not there anymore. "You saw that the box was there earlier right?" Nova asked. "I did, and neither of us moved it," Sunset responded. "Let's just move on before either of us gets a headache," Nova said as he started to walk away from the entrance. "Agreed," Sunset said as she followed Nova. The two walked away from the entrance to the facility and went to another part of the compound. Meanwhile, Nitro and Storm were searching part of a warehouse on the east side of the facility. "Hey, what do you think happened here?" Nitro said as he searched some of the crates in the warehouse. "You mean what happened to make the White Fang abandon this facility or what were the White Fang doing here before they left?" Storm responded as she kept a look out for anyone coming. "I was thinking only the first one, but you could tell me your opinions on both," Nitro told Storm as he opened another crate. "Well, to tell you my opinion on what they were doing here, what have you found in here?" Storm asked. "Well, I found various types of Dust, different types of weapons, and oddly enough some surgical tools," Nitro told Storm. "Surgical tools?" Storm asked out of confusion as she walked over to the crates Nitro was around. "Yeah, take a look in that one with the red cross on it," Nitro said pointing out the one he was describing. Storm walked over and looked in to find various types of surgical tools. "Why would they have surgical tools? I know they get hurt in battles, but the White Fang should be fine thanks to their Auras," Storm said. "I know, which makes me wonder why they needed to evacuate," Nitro commented. "What do you mean?" Storm asked curiously. "I've looked through about 20 crates already, but from what I saw in all of the crates; it doesn't look like they were in any danger of anything going wrong," Nitro told Storm. "But isn't it possible that they left some stuff behind when they abandoned this place?" Storm questioned. "Not exactly, there is just too much important stuff here to make someone think that they left some things behind. Heck, there are several crates that are full of various types of Dust and weapons and it all seems important as well," Nitro explained. "So, you think that something happened here that made the White Fang station here leave in a hurry? Because that's what I think happened," Storm inquired. "You might be right, but I can't help but shake the feeling that something else happened here," Nitro said as he moved to another crate. When he got up to the crate, he noticed that this crate seemed to be shaking a little bit. "Hey Storm, can you come here and tell me what you think of this?" Nitro asked as he looked at the area around the crate. Storm got closer to the crate and noticed the same thing that Nitro mentioned. "Is there someone in this thing?" Storm asked as the box moved more violently. "I think so," Nitro said as he lifted the top of the crate off. Inside the crate, the two of them found a tied up White Fang member. The two immediately took him out of the crate and untied him. "Thanks, I've been in that thing for a few hours," the male Faunus said. "No problem, we just wanted to help. Name's Nitro and this is Storm, what's your name?" Nitro told him. "My name is Palom," he told the two with a big grin on his face. "Hey, what were you even doing in there anyway?" Storm asked Palom. "Well, I was looking for my sister here when I got knocked out by someone. Next thing I remember is waking up inside that crate and being stuck there until you two came and saved me," Palom explained. "You were looking for your sister? Where did you last remember seeing her?" Nitro asked curiously. "We were inside the facility," Palom said. "We actually have some friends of ours in the building at the moment, let me call one of them," Storm said as she pulled out her Scroll. "You two and your friends are from Beacon, aren't you?" Palom asked. Storm and Nitro looked at each other and then looked back at Palom with a suspicious look. "Hey, I may be with the White Fang, but I don't care about this place anymore," Palom told the two. "Ok, as long as you say so," Nitro said as Storm called Tempest. After a few rings, she heard the line be picked up. "Hey Tempest, are you there?" Storm asked. "Yes I am, what did you need?" Tempest asked in a slightly annoyed tone. "Were you in the middle of something?" Storm asked in a disappointed tone. "Kind of, I was going to call Sunset to see if she could help me find the brother of a Faunus girl named Porom," Tempest told Storm. There was a moment of silence from Storm as she put the Scroll away from her mouth. "Hey Palom, what is your sister's name?" Tempest asked Palom. "Her name is Porom, why do you ask?" Palom responded. Tempest slowly nodded and brought the Scroll back to the mouth. "Hey, could you put the call on speaker?" Storm asked. "Sure, but why do you want me to do that?" Tempest responded. "Just trust me, you'll have an easier time understanding if you just do it," Storm told Tempest. Storm quickly made her call speaker as well so Palom and Nitro could hear the call as well. "Ok, the call is on speaker for me," Tempest told Storm. "I don't see why you're doing this; we need to find my brother," an unfamiliar voice told Tempest. Palom immediately recognized the voice and called out in response "Porom, is that you?!" Palom asked out of surprise. "Palom, is that you?" Porom responded in a equally surprised tone. "It is me, without a doubt. Where are you sis?" Palom responded. "I'm still inside the facility. Where did you go, I've been worried sick," Porom said. "I was knocked out by someone, tied up, taken to a warehouse on the edge of the compound, and stuffed in a crate. I would have been stuck there if it weren't for Storm and Nitro here," Palom explained. "We were just looking through some of the crates here when I happened to find him," Nitro chimed in. "Thank you both for finding him, I really appreciate it," Porom told Nitro and Storm. "It's no problem, but what were you two doing here anyway?" Storm responded. Palom and Porom both fell silent as they thought about what to say. "Should we tell them sis?" Palom asked. "I don't see why not. Besides, I don't think we should stick around with the White Fang any longer," Porom told him. "Wait, are the both of you with the White Fang or not?" Tempest asked the two of them. "Well, it's a long story, but let's just say that we've wanted an excuse to get out of the White Fang for a while," Palom responded. "Ok, what do we do with you two at the moment?" Storm asked the two. Palom and Porom were both silent as they considered their options. "Well, at the moment, I think the best thing for us to do would be to meet up," Porom suggested. "I agree, the sooner we get out of here and away from that thing the better," Palom said. It was at that point that Storm and Nitro got a bit confused. "Hey Palom and Porom, what exactly were the White Fang doing here anyway?" Tempest asked curiously. "I don't know the exact details, but I know it had yellow eyes," Palom commented. That statement caused Tempest, as well as Storm and Nitro, to involuntarily tense up. "Hey Palom, was this thing a Grimm by any chance?" Storm asked. "It was, why do you ask?" Porom responded. When Porom said that, Storm and Nitro immediately looked back at the entrance to the warehouse. "Ok, so how about we go meet up with the rest of our respective teams and leave the compound?" Tempest suggested. "That seems fair; we'll call you later and see where we can meet up?" Storm responded. "Ok, see you later," Tempest said before hanging up the call. Storm put her Scroll away as Storm and Nitro looked at Palom. "So, where is the rest of your team?" Palom asked. "They're on the other side of the compound, come on," Nitro said as he ran ahead. Palom nodded and followed Nitro with Storm behind the both of them.