Falling Skies

Chapter 1

Deus Vult

Abkhazia, 1500 hours, July 15th 2014

A convoy of four ERDL splinter camouflage Russian made GAZ Tigr and two Ural-4320 logistic trucks weaved their way around the narrow mountain road overlooking the densely forested valley below. The convoy had crossed the Russian-Abhazian border an hour ago after leaving their start point just beyond the Caucus Mountains in Southern Russia. No incidents had occurred throughout the long and dull journey. The Hot summer air would have been unbearably if not for the armoured car's AC unit. The lead car approached yet another bend in the road between two ridges of the mountain with yet another steep jagged cliff drop off into the dark green forest below. An earsplitting explosion penetrated the lead vehicle, sending it up in flames killing all inside while dust and smoke reached into the air. At the same time a sniper shot took out the driver in the following armoured car. The drivers slumped body collapsing onto his steering wheel sending the car into the cliffside and flipping it onto its side. Killing the mounted gun operator as he was crushed between the car and the cliff.

Not even fifty meters away, perched only a few meters above the road on a rocky ledge obscured by vegetation, a team of four men dressed in Multicam BDUs observed the now immobile convoy as the survivors hurried around grabbing the wounded and coming to terms with the sudden attack upon their lead units. Russian shouts and yells could be heard clearly from their positions.

"Call your targets. We'll take them all at once." Predator One spoke. Dressed in his Multicam BDU, a light earth brown baseball cap adorning his head with his heavy IBA armour and Oakley SI Ballistic M Frame sunglasses.

Predator Two, Three and Four complied. Predator One lined up a bead on one of four Russians who had just pulled one of their comrades from out of the overturned vehicle.

"Targets marked. Five. Four. Three. Two. One."

The Sound of four simultaneous shots rang out as the four Russian's tending to their friend collapsed to the ground.

"Pop Smoke."

All along the Convoy's position, pre-placed smoke grenades detonated in quick succession filling the air with a thick grey smoke that obscured everything. Throwing the survivors into further disarray.

"Secure the Convoy, engage all targets."

Standing up the four men threw their pre-prepared rappel lines down the side of the ledge.

"Close on the target. Hook in, let's go."

Quickly descending the cliff face the four reached the dirt road.

"Move up."

The four-man team quickly advanced upon the nearest vehicle, the one hit by the IED when predator two saw one of the Russians stumble out of the smoke. Two quick shots from his suppressed MK 17 assault rifle. Due to the proximity to the other Russians, the suppressor made very little difference. The Russians started to fire blindly into the smoke in an attempt to hit something. Bullets whizzed through the air around the operators.

Predator Two activated the thermal optics on his Hyperspectral imaging goggles that sat where the usual NVGs would have gone and turned the colourful world into one of the blues, purples, greens, reds, and oranges and yellows depending on their heat signature. Before him appeared fourteen humanoid signatures. There clothes showing up as green to a dim yellow while their exposed flesh became a bright orange or yellow. Aiming his Digital scope at the nearest signature standing next to one of the transport trucks, he tapped the trigger sending a round hurtling at the target, impacting the head. Wasting no time he moved onto the next target as his squamates did the same as they continued their advance through the smoke towards the rear of the convoy. The Echo of Predator teams focused and the efficient fire soon cut down the remaining sporadic fire of the Russians who fell before their machine-like precision.

Predator two noticed one making a run for it trying to reach the safety of whatever he could hide behind. A quick double tap sent the man tumbling to the ground. Two holes in his head.

"All Clear" Predator Two sounded.

"Damn Nomad, as precise as ever." Predator three commented.

"Wouldn't be much of a marksman if I wasn't." Nomad snarkily responded.

"Nomad. Stonewall. Lock it down. Griffin, Predator has secured the convoy." Predator One said over the radio to their handler who was sitting comfortably back in the carrier that had brought them to the region.

"Copy Predator. Get a feed on the cargo, we'll verify from here."

"Roger, Form up on me." Predator One ordered. By now the smoke had begun to clear as a result of the cool calm mountain breeze with rays of sunshine starting to penetrate the smokescreen as well as little gaps acting as windows to the surrounding view of forest and mountains.

"Eyes up I don't want any surprises. Nomad, check the truck, if the package isn't here we'll move on to the other."

"Rodger." Nomad activated the flashlight on the left rail of his gun as the back panel was unclasped from the truck. Making a squeaking noise that suggested it need some oil. Lifting himself up into the rear of the truck his torch illuminated various crates of various shapes and sizes as well as a few barrels. His eyes immediately landed on the open crate with a warhead of some kind in it with two wires leading below it. The image was re-laid back to Griffin via his helmet camera.

"Griffin, you reading this?" Nomad asked as he walked over to the side of it and looking at it from different angles.

"Roger. We're capturing. We'll do a comparison to be sure but it's looking good." Came over Nomad's headset as he slung his rifle over his back.

"Copy that." Nomad was making his way out the back of the truck when a beeping and vibrating noise was heard coming from a small panel on the side of the crate holding the warhead.

"What the hell." An edge of worry crept into his voice. He quickly and carefully opened the panel up to reveal a timer and a small plastic charge was the source of the noise.

"Predator get out of there!"

"Bomb! Get clear! Get Clear! Move!" Nomad yelled as he scrambled out of the truck and jumped off the back. Stonewall would have been standing outback was frozen for a second before turning and running as fast as he could after Nomad. Predator One and Four were already ahead of them both as they all beelined for the turn the convoy had come from.

"Run! Go, Go, Go, Go!" Nomad Looked behind him as they neared the bend in the road and saw Stonewall passing the rear two armoured cars. As soon as Stonewall had passed them, the warhead detonated. The Shockwave and dust cloud overtook Stonewall obscuring him from view as well as the two cars. Nomad felt himself lifted off his feet and tossed around by the force of the explosion. He hit and rolled along the ground as his hands tried to claw onto the dirt road to stop his movement. He felt his lower body suddenly drop as it found the cliff as his hands finally killed his momentum. An armoured car toppled over the cliff next to him as he watched it plunge into the darkness? below.

"Predator Respond!"

The world above him on the cliff when he managed to get both his elbows on the road was light in an orange glow from the fires and cinders in the air. Debris were strewn all over the road. Once again smoke covered the narrow dirt road. Nomad could see Stonewall, he had a piece of metal from one of the cars impaling his back through his lung and he wasn't moving. He could see the rest of his unit either. Nomad let out a cry of pain as he felt a burning sensation of his left arm. A Napalm-like substance had made contact with his exposed his skin where he had rolled up his Crye combat shirt. The ? was filled with this burning like substance as well, it clung to everything it touched. He started to pat it down with his other arm but that only spread it further down his arm to his wrist which wasn't covered by his Kevlar gloves. He grunted in pain from the now multiple burning sensations along his arm and he became more vocal after he felt new ones on his right arm. The substance eating away at his flesh? with the extremities, a burning yellow with the rest of the expanding would a glowing orange. He cries became louder out of a mix of pain and determination as he started to slip off the roadside cliff as he desperately struggled to find purchase to no avail. His left hand managed to briefly hold himself on the edge as his right hand fell to his side.

"Scramble the recovery team! I've got men down in the field!... My whole team's down…"

With one final yell, Nomad's hand lost its grip on the cliff and he began to plummet the large fall into the forest below.

A strange thum noise filled his hears and everything seemed to stop and freeze in time. Or rather, everything did freeze. He couldn't move his body in any way, only his eyes. He could see the grains of dirt, the cinders and the Napalm substance in the air around him. He could see the cliff from where he fell and the smoke in the air. An and if he strained his eyes he could see the tips of the tall and ancient pine trees. As well as a flock of seven birds.

Huh, what the hell is going on? Am I dead?

This is getting very tiresome. Human's think they're all-knowing. But they've lost sight of what's right and what's wrong. They think the laws of the universe don't apply to them anymore. Each sentence was said by a different bird. Nomad felt as though they were looking at him when they spoke.

What is happening? Is this some… death induced… vision?

Human's no longer empathise with others. And they have renounced their faith in their almighty creator.

Our creator?

You heard the bird.

You're asking me to believe that God. As an entity. Not only exists but also chose to freeze time, at the exact moment I died and is now talking to me through a flock of birds?

That's correct.

Impossible. This is some kind of near-death hallucination. I'm a rational and logical person and believe in logic and reason, not in God's existence.

What. All the Birds said at once.

Furthermore, even if you are God why should I trust you, aren't God and the Devil supposed to inhabit the spiritual world. Hypothetically if God did exist, then I doubt he would do anything this absurd and fucked up to get a point across. So, you must be something else.

Like the Devil?

Or Perhaps something similar. Forgive me for the lack of creativity, but I think I'll call you being X.

Have you no respect of the Divine, was it not I who laid out the basis of all morality, the Abrahamic laws?

The ten commandments right. I'd like you to consider that not all of mankind follows the Abrahamic beliefs. And besides, I was born into a world blessed with a culture of science and raised in a country blessed with an extraordinary moral sense, even for this world, as a biologically and sociologically a military man trained and honed for combat with the best support and equipment. What need have I for a God?

As the being in charge of reincarnation I must abide by strict rules, but for you, I will make an exception.

Reincarnation, you mean after we die we are reincarnated and re-born?

Either into heaven, hell or back on Earth depending on how you have lived and your faith. Not that is no longer your concern I'm afraid.

Wait a minute are you not aware of the principle of full disclosure, and if you are God shouldn't you abide by your own rules and avoid spontaneous and impulsive decisions?

I manage over seven billion people on this planet and it's exhaustingly over-working having to reincarnate non-believers.

They say a sign of over-working is a lack of organisation or a flawed work model. Nomad unwisely quipped. You failed to sufficiently analyse your own creation's needs. Of course, there's no faith in a world of advanced science where almost everyone's core needs are met. Nowadays you only belong to the week and desperate who look for someone to cling to when times get hard. A successful, hardworking person would never need you.

So you're saying you have no faith because all your needs are met. You have a good social class and you've never been in dire straits until now. So what if I placed you in a situation where those things weren't present, into dire straits. Do you think then? Your faith would. Be awakened in me?

Well, technically, but I think your jumping to conclusions about me… let's not be hasty now. I don't want to break any rules about reincarnation or rebirth or whatever you said.

The Birds all spoke as one again, "Try to survive as long as you can in this new world. But remember, if you die before a set time there will be no more further reincarnations for you. Go.

Wait? What? Another thum filled his ears as he once again heard his scream from his fall from the top of the cliff as he resumed his fall before impacting the earth and rock below him.

Michael Galster

"Ah, Mr Galster If you'll follow me please." It was a woman of indiscernible age, though if he had to guess he would say somewhere around late twenties or earlier thirties, with blonde hair and a stern expression that screamed disciplinarian. One arm was held at her side, pinning a number of books to her hip, while her other hand held what appeared to be a riding crop. Michael bit back the urge to comment on that seeing as he needed to make a good first impression with his new co-workers.

"Of Course Miss…?"

"Glynda Goodwitch, as Ozpin has informed you I am the deputy headmistress," She explained as they walked through the school hall. There was about a week before the students returned from their mid-term break and as such the school was eerily quite for a place that was probably very noisy. "You have the week to become acquainted with the school's layout and facilities, I assume that you have prepared the necessary materials required for the course you will teach?"

"I have, though there are a few activities and practices I want to run by Ozpin first. I can teach them theory, history and the basics but I will need to make them practice using the materials I teach in order to effective."

"The headmaster would be more than willing to accommodate provided the students aren't put in unnecessary danger or put the school over budget."

"Understood. What class sizes should I expect?"

"The course will be mandatory for fourth years but if students take it before their fourth year then they don't have to in their own fourth year."

Michael and Glynda rounded a corner where Glynda abruptly stopped.

"Here we are, this where you'll be teaching during your time at Beacon," She gestured toward the door. "Inside you'll find the tag that identifies you as a teacher at Beacon and your work scroll. If you have any more questions feel free to ask any other members of staff."

"Thank you, I'll get my materials sorted then put my things in my room then." Glynda nodded. She spun on her heel and walked away. Opening the door, Michael stepped into the classroom where he would be teaching. Looking at the room he saw a large chestnut brown wooden desk at the front with rows of tiered seats leading up toward the back of the classroom. There were two windows on the left side of the room that looked out over the city of Vale. He set down the bag he had all his materials in next to the swivel chair. Sitting down in the Chair, he swivelled round to gaze over the classroom. A smirk forming on his face.

Well Being X, looks like this lowly weak mortal still has no need of you.

Blake Belladonna

"Hurry up, we're going to be late!" Ruby said vanishing in a flurry of rose petals as she activated her semblance as the rest of her team hurried behind her.

"Remind me again why we are taking this optional course, I have better uses for my Monday afternoon," Yang complained as she chased after her sister.

"Because we won't have to take it in our final year and it opens up more possibilities for the mission we get to do at the end of the term," Weiss answered as the rounded the last corner before the classroom. Blake could see Ruby waiting outside the door to the classroom.

"Come on, hurry!" Ruby opened the door as they reached her and they all entered the classroom together. The classroom wasn't much different from others in Beacon. Looking where the students were seated she noticed that most were fourth years. She didn't see any third years and the only second years were team CFVY. She also saw JNPR was there as well.

"Ah glad to see you finally made it. After you had five minutes to get here. Try to be more punctual in future." A condescending voice admonished.

No. no. no. no. no. no. no. no. no. no. Blake's eyes fixed upon the teacher. No, he can't be here. WHY is he here, he shouldn't be here.

"Is there a problem?" The Professor asked her.

"No Sir," Blake answered quickly as she quickly hurried off to where the rest of her team had seated themselves.

"So.," Yang said to her as she sat down.

"So… what?"

"Starring at the professor are we," Yang said suggestively.

"It's not like that Yang," Blake responded.

"Just teasing Blakey, no need to be defensive."

"Now then, seeing as we're finally all here, I'll introduce myself. I'm former Marine Captain and CEO of The Aegis Corporation Private Military Branch as well as the current heir of the Aegis Corporation, Michael Galster. I'm here to teach you the new Military Studies course. This course as you know will teach how wars are fought, won, lost and justified, as well as the tactics and strategies used in them all the way from the first war in the waring states period up to modern counterinsurgency against the White Fang."

"Now this course was demanded by the remaining military of Vale and of other militaries due to the rise in incidents between huntsmen and armed forces working together in the field. Mainly with the rise of hostage situations with the White Fang. You newer huntsmen have a tendency to ignore procedure and the lessons learned by the armed forces. As a result, a lot of unnecessary deaths have occurred. As a result, it is now mandatory for all huntsmen to at some point take this course."

The holo-disk hummed blue as it started to boot up. The professor set it on the floor in front of him, ready to activate it at a moment's notice. "I'm not surprised to be honest if none of you has much knowledge of this stuff. Most of you have lived very stable lives in the kingdoms. Only a few if any will know just how detailed military operations can be."

He paced around the classroom and picked up his Scroll, which would relay documents and pictures he would show to the class. "Which is why I am here. The Council has decided to create the Military Studies class here, and specifically assigned me at this position."

"When you all leave this class over the course of your stay at Beacon, you will have your heads brimming with every single tactic and method the military uses. If you don't, well I may have to beat it into you until you do."

The brunette scanned the classroom, which erupted into whispers. "And that means from now on, we will operate as a smaller version of the military," he yelled, "You refer to me as Professor Galster or Captain Galster. Whichever is better for you."

The holo-disk activated, covering the room with complex holograms and several video feeds. The class oohed and awed, sending a small smile on Professor Galster's face.

"Now then…" The Professor swiped on his Scroll, revealing a PDF file of notes he was about to lecture on. "Class is in session. A side note before I begin the first lecture, this course will heavily revolve around independent study where you will do the majority of the work of this course. I will be available should you need any tutoring or need any questions answered. We'll start today by going over the history of warfare in Remnant."

"The Warring States period saw the largest amount of fighting on remnant before the Great War or World War as I call it. The Warring States period saw the rise and domination of the world by the four kingdoms we see today. The use of large bodies of Infantry foot soldiers with huntsmen or Calvary as shock troops developed during this time. However, the armies of the day only used between 10,000 men to 100,000 men depending on the size of their respective kingdom and casualties never quite reached anything above 20,000 at worst. That all changed with the discovery of dust. With dust, the first firearms were created. Mass wave tactics and rank and file tactics dominated the next two hundred years until the world arrived at what it nearly looks like today. During that time there weren't any large or wide-scale wars. The presences of the Grimm was ever increasing but was manageable to the large militaries of each kingdom." With each point he would swipe his scroll with a different image would appear of the hologram with the key points bullet-pointed next it. On it the hologram there were images of knights, archers, riflemen, horsemen and paintings of early huntsmen.

"Now I know many of you don't want me to go on and on about history but history in my mind is one of the most important subjects to study as it shows us why things have happened the way they have and how tactics and strategies have developed over the years. Before the Great War, both humanity and the Faunus were fractured and used very basic tactics and strategies. I want you to turn to page 34 in chapter 1 of your textbooks." Blake like everyone else opened the textbook on their desk Titled The Complete Military History of Remnant by Colonel J. Irons. Opening the book to the specified page Blake saw it was on the Great War and Faunas Rights Revolution, mainly on the White Fang's militancy.

"Why would people even fight each other? There are bigger problems out there. Like Grimm and bag guys." Blake heard Ruby mutter to Yang. Due to experience, Blake couldn't agree more.

"An astute question miss Rose, why do we fight each other with the threat of the Grimm hanging above us?"

Michael Galster

"I'll tell you why. Now we are experiencing a time of peace and live in relative harmony, all fighting together against the forces of Grimm. Fighting each other is a waste of time. So why do we still fight each other? Because, no matter the era, humanity, and the Faunus, will always find a way to fight again."

Michael noticed a few students bristle, likely the idealists and optimists. "What do you mean? Once all the Grimm are dead and there are no more threats, we should be living in peace again! There are no more reasons to fight anymore!" Michael noticed a rabbit Faunus, a miss Scarlantia, had spoken up

"Yes, that would be ideal. Sadly, that is never the case. Remember what happened with the Faunus? The Faunus Rights Revolution? Humans and Faunus fought, even with the looming threat of Grimm. People will always find a way to wage war with one another. No matter how peaceful the era." I could point to literally any war in history from Earth as they were fought for literally any reason imaginable. Revenge, ethnicity, religion, greed, money and resources, conquest, hell there were two wars fought over the sale of opium.

It was the turn of miss Belladonna to raise her hand. "You don't know that. Maybe when we finally kill all the Grimm things will be different."

Every single war that occurred in Earth's history flashed through Michael's mind. All labelled at the time to be the 'War to end all wars'. Earth's own great war had lasted four years compared the ten on remnant and that had caused eighteen million dead and twenty-three million wounded, at that was looking at just the soldiers, airmen and seamen fighting the war, not even looking at a civilian and economic loss using the same tactics and similar technology. In contrast Remnant's Great War lasted ten years and only five million were lost with nine million wounded. The people of Remnant had no idea about the implications of their own humanity. Humans are naturally born to find differences and fight. It was just how they were. Hell, before he died, there was major fighting and bloodshed in the Middle East.

"That may be so. But problems like racism and hostile relations and inequalities of any kind between anyone will always spark fighting, with or without Grimm. Enough of this. We need to get back to the lecture. If any of you wish to discuss this matter further you can find me either in here or in my office after class."

"In real life, strategies are not enough to win a fight. Just relying on tactics alone will not allow you to succeed. There are two things that are required to win a war. Have well trained and equipped troops. And second, Learn about their art."

It didn't surprise him that the students began to whisper to one another with the mention of his last point. Okay Imperial Grand Admiral Thrawn, let's see how much of your knowledge I retain.

Yang almost smirked. "Art?" she whispered to her teammates. "This is a military class, not some third-grade painting program."

Michael straightened. "Silence!"

The class shut up.

"If you want to talk you will raise your hand? Do not force me to enforce some punishments in this class. While I may not be able to use punishments regularly used in the military, I still have very fitting ones that were passed by the Council."

Michael paced around the class, making sure to make eye contact with everyone there. "Learn about the art, class. When you understand an enemy's art, their philosophy and culture, you understand how they think. When you understand how they think, you understand the enemy. If you know yourself but not your enemy, then for every victory you gain you will also suffer a defeat. If you know yourself and know your enemy, then in a hundred battles you will never be in peril. If you know neither yourself and nor your enemy, you will succumb in every battle." It is a Godsend to have read Sun Tzu's Art of War and be able to quote it.

The saying was similar to the one used in the Atlas Military officer school. To understand the enemy, you must first understand who they were and what they stood for. That rule applied for every single being on this planet. The White Fang hated, though the word hated seemed tame when describing how the white fang felt toward humans; they preached about the eradication of the human race sometimes. And understanding that would help him and The Aegis Corporation PMC branch in fighting against them now and in the future. Decrease the discrimination of the Faunus, you remove a large chunk of the recruiting base of the White Fang.

"Understand?" Michael said as he gazed across the sea of heads.

The students nodded, and she swore she heard somebody say, "Yes Sir" in the back row somewhere.

"Good. Now back to the subject at hand. This year, I will be teaching offensive and defensive strategies throughout the course of the two semesters we have. The first term will be offensive and second will be defensive. I advise you all take extensive notes for each of them, as there will be a large exam at the end of each term."

The Michael pulled up the next file he had on his Scroll. "Today we're only going to cover three to get the hang of things."

Most of the class pulled out their notebooks while some secretly took out their Scrolls to photograph the notes. Personally, he didn't care what they did. As long as they had the notes somewhere on their person was good enough for him. The slackers that didn't pay attention would pay for it. Some of them would pay for it very soon.

"First of the three strategies we will be learning today is the concept of Air Superiority. The Aegis Corporation PMC branch or as you know them, Aegis Defense Services, excels at this, with state of the art aircraft and weaponry. A single Sidewinder missile is enough to take down a fully grown Nevermore."

To demonstrate, He pulled up a video of a test run of such in a recent attack against a nest of Nevermores straying too close to the Corporation's island which was at this point a pseudo-nation. He had to be cautious as to what he showed as a lot of the Aegis Defense Services capabilities were unknown to Remnant, all being based on the weapons, vehicles and tactics of his world.

The class observed as an F-14 Tomcat blasted across the sky, heading closer to a screeching black object. They heard the speakers on the disk humming as the sound of the targeting system made the increasing closer together beeping noise as the missile attained a lock on the target. Once the Beeps had merged into one, continues beep the missile fired. The overgrown bird had barely enough time to squawk as the missile tore through its body, blowing it into fine dust.

Michael closed the file as students started to write down notes. "Now when an enemy has no chance of taking to the air, they become stranded. The main mode of transferring supplies to them is by air. And when we take that away, it is only a matter of time before they are without resources. When talking about air combat, there are two terms I want you to be familiar with, Air Superiority, when you have the advantage in the air, and Air Supremacy, when you have undisputed control of the air. The latter is the goal of any air force in warfare, with it you can systematically destroy the enemy's capability to wage war by targeting their forces, infrastructure, defences and political and economic targets. You can stop logistical and troop movements on the ground while being able to freely move your own." The allies use of airpower in World War Two and the wars in Vietnam and the Middle East came to mind, where air power was used to devastating effect.

He chuckled. "God knows how many times I have seen this used in the military."

"Next is a blockade. This is similar to air superiority, except it mainly takes place on the ground and sea. This was used several times in the Great War when Atlas wanted to choke the supply of resources from smaller islands surrounding the kingdoms. Vale used it to an extent also."

To emphasise, Michael pulled up several pictures of ships and ground troops surrounding a large area, attacking any supply ship that came close.

"Now there are several different steps to blockade. It isn't simply surrounding the enemy with as many soldiers as you can. It is far more complex than that. You need to read the enemy. Realistically, this would take several weeks or even months of careful spying or with some idea of how you would go about before you get there well in advance. For example, if you choose the wrong day to a blockade, you can expect to be taken down by reinforcements who were scheduled to come by that exact same day. Come when the enemy has a moderate amount of supplies. Build up from there and then you'll be strong enough to stop reinforcements."

Miss Nikos raised her hand. "Professor, how exactly is this different from siege warfare?"

Michael pointed at her with approval. "Very good question, Miss Nikos. Not many people would have caught onto that."

Pyrrha smiled slightly. It was always nice to get praise, although she was far too modest to admit it.

"And to answer your question, blockades cannot be confused with siege warfare, as blockading is usually directed at a region or kingdom, rather than being directed at a castle or a fort. There are many different ways of doing this, on land, it is ground troop supported by all elements forming a cordon around a target area, and navally there are two. Though there is one more ethical than the other. The first is the traditional sense, large ships, either surface fleets or airborne fleets form a blockade of an area and just prevent anything from entering, this has been the only use of naval blockade in history so far, but there is a second available only to the Aegis Defense Services. Unrestricted Submarine Warfare. Submarines are able to stay underwater for long periods of time undetected, this allows them to avoid combat with military vessels and hit purely civilian targets, mainly trade ships. In this way, you blockade a Kingdom without needing to engage the enemy's fleet if it's stronger than your own."

He noticed Miss Rose was frantically scribbling down notes as he droned on. He could see from the frown on her face she didn't particularly like this class so far. It was too likely too much of an assault on her ideals. War was bad. But she did need to pass this class. And they did have to work with military branches at some point in life, so what choice did she have.

"And lastly is Flank Attack. This is one of the most powerful strategies by far. Get it right, and you'll go down in history as one of the great military leaders in history, get it wrong or to fail to complete it. Well… the results vary. But they are usually aren't pretty."

"Flank attack in military terms refers to the attempt to encircle and completely destroy as much of the enemy force as possible with the idea of wiping it out completely. This goes hand in hand with the deceptive battleplan that we'll go into later. There are a few examples of it in history, During the Vacuo campaign when Vale forces arrived to help Vacuo against the invading Mistral Forces. General Nicholas Arc led the Vale forces. He started by making the Mistralians think the main offensive would come through the desert and pin them against the coast as they had done to the Vacuoan army. Then using various electronic and physical measures he deceived the Mistralian forces to believing what they expected while planning a right hook up their desert flank. While an attack would come from the left coastal flank it was not the main focus of the offensive."

"The initial start of the Operation was a success, the right flank forces broke through and pushed all the way to the first of the two ports in western Vacuo. His follow-through was lacklustre. The riskiest part of any Flank attack battleplan, the closure of the encirclement. General Arc's forces had managed to nearly encircle the entire army of Mistral in Vacuo and were on the cusp of cutting off its only escape route. However, when linking two separate spearheads you run the risk of blue on blue fire or friendly fire as you know it. This caused the general to become overly cautious and slowly advance his forces on the last port, much to his field commanders dismay, as a result, Mistral was able to save most of the army it sent and allowed the war to be prolonged for another two years."

He paced around the classroom. "If this had succeeded, however, Mistral would have been open to an assault from its Eastern Coast. And the second front in Mistral could have ended the war sooner and prevent two more years of fighting."

Michael looked down at his scroll. Twenty-five to four already, better wrap this up then.

"That concludes everything we'll cover in today's lesson. Your first assignment from me will be to research the three strategies I talked about today. You will write up who used them, when were they used, how they were carried out and how effective they were, I expect at least three pages at an absolute minimum. If any of you require resources on your scroll you can find the app, Military Studies. On it, I have placed scholarly articles, essays, papers, firsthand accounts from the lowliest private to the highest general. As well as good documentaries and books. I also added clips and videos of actual combat, training and use of weapons and vehicles. You can choose to either use or ignore this as you please. But something you will learn whether you fail or pass this class is to use every single resource at your disposal to succeed. This assignment will be expected to be handed in on our Friday lesson. If any of you have any questions pertaining to this course either see me after class or come find me, I'll be in my office which is in the second-year dorms third floor. If no one has any questions, the class is dismissed."

Michael expected the entire class to leave, they still had three minutes until the bell went, however, one student had their hand raised.

"Yes, you at the back?"

"Sir, will there be any trips this year."

"Honestly. I'd like to take you all to Vacuo where you could get some practical experience but seeing as cleanup of the deposed White Fang government from a couple years ago is still ongoing and the region is hardly stable, I doubt the headmaster would allow such a trip. And I doubt any of you would like to tour a military installation and have things pointed out to you like toddlers, so at this current time, no. There aren't any school trips scheduled but that may change. If there are no further questions you all are dismissed."

With that, the class began to shuffle out the door to their last lesson of the day. Now he had to prepare to deliver the same lesson twice tomorrow for the remainder of the fourth years and a handful of third years. After he had done that he had paperwork to get back to.

"Professor?"

"Hmmn?" Michael looked up to see Weiss Schnee, heiress to the Schnee Dust Company. He'd met her older sister Winter while in the Vale Marine Corps. She was frosty at first but eventually, he got past that and they'd formed a professional relationship, but the rivalry between their respective militaries remained. "Yes miss Schness?"

"Professor, you said you were the CEO of Aegis Defense Services Branch."

"I did."

"Then how come you are teaching here at Beacon, don't you have a company to run?" He noted the slightly accusatory tone mixed in with some curiosity.

"As you are aware I'm sure, the Vale Council in its infinite wisdom," the sarcasm in his voice was palpable, "Decided to over the years decrease the budget for all the armed forces of Vale. That led to downsizing the Vale Airforce, Army and Navy and a year and a bit ago the disbandment of the Vale Marines. Now that inevitably put a lot of people out of work as you can imagine. At the time due to my adoptive family, I was granted a high position in the Aegis Corporation by my adoptive Grandfather, who had been grooming his grandchildren to take over the company. The rise of organised bandits, the militancy of White Fang and increased presence of Grimm created problems with international trade, and the remaining forces of Vale and the other kingdoms bar Atlas were unable to effectively protect the various trade routes and logistic capabilities of all the kingdoms." Wiess nodded as she followed along.

"And as a businessman, I saw an opportunity. I approached every single former soldier, airman, marine and seaman who was left without a job because of the council and offered them a job. Mercenary Companies have been technically illegal since the great war though the rule has never been enforced due to there not being any large-scale mercenary companies anymore. So I created the Aegis Defense Services, the world's first official Private Military Company. Now the Marines had been completely disbanded. So when most accepted the offer I just had everyone assume their previous role within the Aegis Defense Services. The former soldiers were combined with them and using the Air and Navy personnel we created our own Navy and Airforce, we then extended offers to former servicemen and servicewomen in the other kingdoms. Then we offered our services in protecting what the military couldn't. And as the command structure is in place it doesn't require me to constantly micromanage it. I have Generals, chiefs of Staff, Commanders, Admirals, Colonels who do that for me. I just approve budgets and sign off on contracts."

"So you're saying you're not needed to run the company, just as a figurehead who oversees everything. That doesn't seem very responsible. Sir" She quickly added.

"So would taking someone who knew nothing about fighting Grimm and throwing them into a forest full of them and telling them to eradicate any Grimm found. I know how to lead squads and platoons, I know how to run a business model like the one I have. I don't know how to lead an entire army, I have neither the training nor experience to do so. I allow people who know what they're doing and know how to do it run it independently of me, they still have to inform me of what they're doing and how it financially affects the company. It just means that my evenings are spent looking over documents rather than having time off like most the other Professors at Beacon. Besides, the council offered the job here and my Grandfather, as I am sure your father told you to, told me to accept the position for a time to establish connections with huntsmen."

"Thank for explaining that Sir. I won't take up any more of your time."

Michael was sipping his tea as he read the latest report on the Financial gains of the last quarter after he'd done that he had to look over the latest requests from the Research and Development department. His dorm and office weren't particularly big. A single bed that could fit two people if absolutely necessary was squeezed into the right corner of the room next to the window, which the size of which left him far to exposed to sniper fire should they be positioned on the Fourth year dorm only a hundred or so meters away. He had a small desk where he kept loose odds and ends. A wardrobe was stuffed on the opposite side of the room with the entry to the bathroom consisting of a shower, sink and toilette. Exiting there one would find themselves in the combination of office and kitchen. A desk where he could mark work and go over paperwork. There was also the swivel chair used in conjunction with the desk and small brown leather chair and sofa. The kitchen wasn't anything special, a few draws, cupboards, a fridge freezer but nothing that would allow you to cook hot meals.

He hadn't brought much with him. His semblance, which had been unlocked along with his aura by Being X in a useless attempt to be praised, his semblance took care of storing clothing for him as well as his weapons. He had mainly brought paperwork, his work laptop and materials for his class. Not being a sentimental person, favouring logic and reason over emotion, he was sentimental over a few things. The exceptions being the Photo of him and his unit in the VMC which showed him kneeled in the first row, wearing his desert combat gear, arms over the two buddies next to him surrounded by forty other fellow Marines, all dressed like him with smiles that matched his own. The other was the Photo of his Adoptive Grandfather Leonard Underwood, who essentially ran the Aegis Corporation, shaking his hand, proud smile on his face. It was the day Michael had been made CEO of the Paramilitary Branch of the company. The last item was the ring he wore on his right hand. It was an onyx black with golden carvings forming an intricate pattern with a gold oval on the crown which highlighted the blue sapphire stone. It was given to him when he was informed he would become the heir to the Corporation. Each represented a new highpoint in his life, each achieved without the help of that pretend God, Being X.

He felt his phone, scroll he mentally corrected himself, buzz in his pocket. A transition from being from Earth in this new world with new yet similar technology meant similar objects had different names. Taking the scroll from his pocket he saw it was from Glynda.

Dear Prof. Galster

The Headmaster would like to see at your earliest convenience, tonight would be preferable.

Prof. Goodwitch

Sighing he stood up and started to make his way to the headmaster's office. Better to see what Ozpin wanted sooner rather than later.

What could Ozpin want, I've been here a week and taught a single lesson. So unless that one lesson was a complete dumpster fire I shouldn't be in trouble. Unless there's an ulterior motive to it. No. think logically. You've broken no rules or laws while at Beacon, one lesson unless it was impossible? shit would get you fired on your first day. So it must be something else. Heir to the Aegis Corporation? No, Beacon has a large budget from the Council, not mentioning the large donations the school got from donors and fundraisers. Weiss Schnee is also an heiress. I haven't caught wind of Ozpin talking to her, so that's not it. CEO of Aegis Defense Services? A definite possibility, only large scale PMC in the world and functions with the same scale and ability as any Kingdom's military. Could he be interested in hiring us? But what would he need us for? Security? What would he need security for, a school for huntsmen and all? So what? What could he want? Unless it's something to do with me running the said military. If it wasn't for the fact I have no concrete way of dealing with Cinder I would be free to operate as I wish…. Unless Ozpin might know about Cinder. And If he's a potential enemy of Cinder… the enemy of my enemy is my friend….

Before he noticed he had reached the elevator at the base of the Beacon Spire where Ozpin's office was situated at the top off. The elevator journey wasn't anything amazing. Just a regular lift. For some reason, he expected something more… grand. A little ding chimed signalling the lift had reached its destination. The doors opened to reveal the headmaster's office. A large spacious room with an expensive looking coffee machine to one side. A large wooden desk sat at the end of the room by the window that looked beyond the academy, over Vale and out to the horizon on the sea. Ozpin sat in his chair gazing upon the view.

"Headmaster, you asked for me." It was more of a statement than a question.

"Ahh, Mr Galster, glad you could make it on just short notice, I hope you weren't doing anything too important?" Just get the small talk done, then you can find out what he wants.

"Nothing that important, just some paperwork that needed to be sorted before it stacked up."

"I know that feeling," Ozpin responded before he took a sip of his coffee. Michael didn't much like coffee, being more of a tea man himself.

"Is there a reason you called me here. I doubt it is just for a social call." Michael said deciding to get to the point, subtlety only got you so far in life.

"I see you're a man who appreciates directness, then I'll be straight forward. There are two reasons I called you here. Firstly, how has your first-day teaching been?"

Michael was momentarily taken back by the question, not fully expecting it but recovered quickly. Hopefully before Ozpin noticed though he doubted the sagely man wouldn't have.

"Wasn't as bad as I was expecting to be honest. Students were quiet, seemed ready to learn. But most surprisingly the time went past rather quickly." He answered honestly. But that's not the question you want to ask Ozpin. Is it?

"But now, more importantly, I want to know why your little private army has become more… active, lately." Michael almost missed it, the dangerous edge to the end of Ozpin's question. It was subtle, really subtle. But Michael hadn't gotten as far as he had by being inattentive.

I can't answer completely truthfully because that would sign my own death certificate, Ozpin would not hesitate to kill or capture me if he knew the truth, but I can't lie either as that would have the same effect, only it would end more subtly. So I can't lie or be truthful, then I'll give enough truth to stay his hand without lying at all. I'm in no position to do otherwise. I also don't know how much he knows as well. Shit. He has the upper hand and he knows it. Well then Ozpin, let's see how well you play the long game.

"As you know both the men, women and I of that 'private army' don't particularly care for our former kingdom. Especially as they seem to be ignoring that one group that so many of us died to stop. The doing of such being the action of a bunch of, fucking retards." He made sure to say the last two words slowly and clearly in a condescending manner.

"As such we aren't particularly to happy about that. As I'm sure you can imagine," His words laced with a tone that screamed suppressed annoyance, "as such we've decided to take matters into our own hands as we seem to be the only ones who want to do something to stop the White Fang. As such," His voice changed from a mocking one that would've made an old squadmate proud to a more serious one, "We've had our intelligence and cyber warfare division gather as much intel on White Fang cells, base locations, supply depots, assets, supply lines, businessmen and politicians who either work for them or are in their pocket as well as any other perceivable target that we could possibly hit that would hurt the White Fang by air, sea or land. I had planned for operations in Mistral, which would be the focus, as well as Vacuo and Vale. Going to Atlas would be seen as an act of war and I'm not touching Menagerie with an infinitely long pole."

"So you're saying that your intentions are to purely attack the White Fang. Continuing the spiral of violence and bloodshed between Human and Faunus."

"You do realise that I employ Faunus and Humans equally right?" Which came out more mockingly than he intended to, "and you make it sound like I'm preparing to launch a pre-emptive strike upon the four kingdoms. I'm many things, but suicidal is not one of them. I'm not about to fight something I can't win."

"And how would you go about dealing with these targets you've identified?"

"The respective governments would be informed moments before the operations took place as to ensure that no leaks will warn the White Fang. I all ready have permission to move our forces within the Kingdoms bar Atlas as I provide security for various assets all over the world. We are planning on having our forces positioned within a month when we will launch the synchronised assault," Now to extend the hook, "Should their leader be found then Operation Queen-slayer would be put into effect where the queen would be hunted down and executed. But for more information on that, absolute privacy and confidentiality would have to be assured. I assume that's everything you wanted to ask Headmaster?"

"Yes, thank you. This conversation has proved very illuminating. I hope you have the most pleasant experience teaching at our fine academy." With that cue, Michael turned and exited the office.

When both options are terrible, play both sides until a victor emerges.

Ozpin

Ozpin sighed as he sat down and took another swig of his coffee. Michael Galster was an enigma. After Qrow had broken into the Aegis Corporations head office. A feat that Impressed even him. A dangerous fact emerged. The queen had approached the Corporation, specifically Michael. For what purpose was still unclear and the outcome of said meeting was even more obscured. Seeing as young Michael was still breathing that meant he had likely sided with the queen. But if Michaels' talk of this, operation Queen-slayer, was any indication as well as his emphasis on how confidential it needed to be. It was likely he either wanted an out or never truly joined the Queen. Either way, he was at Beacon, where he could be monitored far more easily than out on small soon to be island nation in the middle of the sea between Vale, Mistral and Vacuo. Michael was a pawn, and Ozpin suspected he knew it. But a pawn was not to be underestimated, it could hold down an area of the board, be sacrificed for the greater good, but most importantly, if it reached the enemies side of the board, it could become whatever piece it wanted to be. The pawn was a powerful piece, and Ozpin knew it.

"So does that bestow any peace of mind upon you old friend?" Ozpin spoke to the man who'd been listening upon the recent conversation.

"Some. But it feels like he's not being entirely straight forward with us either." General Ironwood of the Atlas Military and Headmaster of the Atlas Huntsmen Academy spoke.

"So it wasn't just me then. There's another reason behind Aegis's recent activity. He wasn't lying when he said they were going to deal with the White Fang, which I admit isn't an entirely wrong thing to do even if I don't agree with the method. But he's here so we can keep an eye on him."

"I still suggest caution, the less patriotic and more realistic of my analysts have their doubts as to an easy victory of Atlas over Aegis. Their technology and way of warfare, as well as their use of non-dust based energy sources, makes them a wildcard that we've never faced."

"A wildcard that would be most useful if it were to be in our hand."

A/N: This story was based on a conversation I had with a friend after rewatching volume three and discussing how modern governments would have reacted to the White Fang based upon the lessons learned in the War on Terror. So the conversation evolved into why the White Fang was able to operate the way it did seemingly left unchecked by the Kingdoms, which other than Atlas seemed to have no military forces other than Huntsmen. While RWBY is meant to be a show about cute girls with weapons that are also guns and I'm probably taking it too seriously and over analysing it, I still felt the urge to write about a group that actually will do something about the White Fang. I had also been watching House of Cards and loved the Character of Frank Underwood (despite the allegations against Kevin Spacey he still is an amazing actor). So, I thought why not combine Frank Underwood's ruthless pragmatism, a few ideas from Youjo Senki and combine them with a person who has military experience, drop them into RWBY, place them somewhere they can affect the White Fang and the world in a significant way and see where things lead.

Cover art is not my own, the original image can be found here at Deviantart by MarcWasHere titled Special Operations Aussie