Summary: Four U.S. Army Rangers and one U.S. Navy Seal get sent to Remnant after a patrol in a war torn settlement goes wrong. Now armed with only their wits, courage, and ingenuity, can these five soldiers survive in a monster infested world while the people are divided among themselves, or will they fall prey to the Grimm? They are American Soldiers, and everyone knows that they will never surrender.

I do not own RWBY, that belongs to Roosterteeth, and the late but still amazing Monty Oum (we miss you buddy). I do not own the cover image! I will remove it if asked to! I only own my OCs.

Inspired by Maine23's Thunder Run (RWBY/Harry Potter Crossover). Even though it is only one chapter (so far) it helped give me the idea to write an RWBY fanfic such as this (If your reading this Maine23, *thumbs up*) There are other RWBY fanfics featuring the U.S. Army, Navy, etc. that inspired me to write this, but I um... forgot the names of said stories D:

This story will take place in RWBY Volume One.

ANOTHER WARNING! ONE OR TWO OF MY OCs WILL GET HIT WITH PTSD (Post Traumatic Stress Disorder)

Pairings that will most likely happen: OC1/Ruby, OC2/Yang, OC3/Weiss, OC4/Blake OC5/Velvet

Rated M for violence, blood, gore, and swearing so far, you have been warned

Please remember that everything I write in this fanfic is just fiction!

I'm not good with military call signs or squad designations or anything like that. So if you can, pm me helpful advice on it so I can make the OC's more military like.

(Planet Earth, The Middle East, Present Day)

It was around midnight in the streets of Baghdad, the full moon shining high above in the clear, starry sky.

The sand covered streets were supposedly empty, and not a single sound could be heard except the occasional desert insect, all looked peaceful.

The silence was eventually disturbed when a loud engine growled to life and an armor plated vehicle with desert camouflage, and eight off road tires could barely be seen prowling through the streets. it's headlights were off, giving it the element of surprise should it encounter any trouble, and although the sand did a good job covering it, the American Flag was painted on the side of the vehicle, the words U.S. Army written below it, in black.

This was an M1126 Stryker ICV (Infantry Carrier Vehicle). It's armor plating was 14.5 mm resistant, and it's main armament was an M2 Browning machine gun which was currently being used by a masked U.S. Ranger wearing a pair of night vision goggles, watching the ICV's surroundings carefully, a triple chevron could be seen on his shoulders, right below it was the American Flag.

There were around eight soldiers inside the ICV (not including the gunner).

Seven out of the eight soldiers bore the United States Army Rangers emblem on their uniforms, while the tenth bore the United States Navy Seal emblem. All of the soldiers within the ICV appeared to be male.

Two of the Rangers were operating the ICV. One was in the driver seat, watching his surroundings, while the one behind him had his eyes on a laptop resting on his knees, awaiting a new set of orders should anything happen. The ranger using the laptop would have used the on board computer but the damn thing had shorted out not to long ago.

The other five and the Seal were all strapped into their seats, minus the seal who was pacing around the cabin, eyeing all of the Rangers carefully, making sure that they were ready to go should anything happen.

One soldier was currently manning the ICV's gun, two soldiers sat in the right side of the vehicle, while the other two took the left all of them awake and were either checking their weapons or were passing the time using whatever personal belongings they had snuck aboard the ICV.

The ranger's names were Private First Class Christopher Landon, Corporal Logan Jones, Staff Sergeant Thomas Gregor, Sergeant Alex Clinton, Private Nicholas Cooper, Private Paul Baxter, and Corporal John Monroe, while the seal's name was Lieutenant Shawn Damian.

(Trying to include basic info about the OC'S in this part, and no, I HAVE NO IDEA IF I SHOULD HAVE INCLUDED THE OC'S EDUCATION! LET ME KNOW IN THE REVIEWS IF I SHOULD EDIT THIS AND ADD THEIR EDUCATION (I have to make up everything for these OC's so it will take time), I'd also like to point out, I don't know the average age for soldiers at certain ranks, I will also edit this later to include more info if I have any more ideas for this part)

Christopher Landon was the teams Heavy Weapons Expert, armed with an M80 Light Machine Gun, FGM-148 Javelin Missile Launcher, and M11 Sidearm. The armor he was wearing was the standard issue U.S. Ranger uniform outfitted with Digital Desert Camouflage, and had a bullet belt draping from his right shoulder to his left hip, and on his shoulders was the single chevron. Chris was a 24 year old, 6'2" white skinned man with dark brown hair, black eyebrows, blue eyes, and had a very feint cut like scar on his temple. His hair had been nearly shaved completely, ranging down to a half centimeter buzz cut, everyone had liked to called Christopher 'Chris'. Chris had grown up in Georgia with a family of four. He had joined the United States Rangers three years ago, wanting to serve his country and eliminate terrorism. The most noticeable feature about him was his growing southern accent. Chris was also proven to be the strongest out of the team, considering that he was carrying both an LMG and a Missile Launcher. Chris was sitting in the far left of the ICV, his eyes glued to a photo he had in his hands.

Corporal Logan was the team's medic, which he had a red cross inside a white circle painted onto his helmet and a red cross was stitched onto the shoulders of his uniform, there was a double chevron above the cross as well. Logan was equipped with a Heckler & Koch MP5, it's attachment included a kobra sight, and on his right thigh was a Beretta 92. Logan was equipped with the same uniform as Chris. Logan was a 25 year old 6'1" white skinned man, had dirty blond hair, blond eyebrows, and hazel eyes, his hair was about two inches in length, and was neatly groomed under his helmet, and on his chin were hair stubble's threatening to grow longer if not shaved, something he reminded himself to do when he got back to base. Logan used to work as a paramedic in the fire department before he enlisted when he was 20. Having had experience in the medical field, command had made him a medic and had shipped him off too medical school to complete his training. Logan was sitting on the left side of the ICV checking his equipment.

Thomas Gregor was the teams Tech Specialist, his uniform was slightly different then the others, on his belt was equipment meant to disable wired explosives or to help him hack into enemy networks, on the back of his vest was a radio, and a slot meant to house the laptop he was currently using. Stitched onto his shoulders was a triple chevron with a curve stretching below the bottom. The weapons Thomas had on him was an M231 FPW (Firing Port Weapon) Carbine, and on his thigh was a Colt M1911. Thomas was a Caucasian skin colored man around 28 and 6'3", had blond hair, and grey eyes. His family was from German decent, and had moved to the United States in the late 1990's due to financial problems the family faced. Thomas had earned an MIT in technology during his college years and had decided to put them to good use in the military after joining when he was 19. Gregor was currently riding shotgun inside the ICV, laptop in hands awaiting a new set of orders.

Alex Clinton was one of the team's riflemen, and on his uniform was a triple chevron. Alex was equipped with an M4A1 equipped with an ACOG scope, and on his thigh was a Beretta 92. Alex had Caucasian colored skin, was about 25, and 6'4", had one and a half inch long red hair, and red eyes. Alex was a resident of Oregon, in a family of three. The family was made up of his father, younger sister, and himself, Alex also had a noticeable British accent, something he had gotten from his father. Alex was mainly the strong quiet type of the squad. He had been this way ever since he had found out that his mother had died in a car accident three weeks ago. Despite the counseling sessions he received, he still hadn't fully recovered, never-the-less, he still follows orders his squad leader gives him. Alex was currently operating the Browning machine gun on the top of the ICV, watching the environment very carefully. He had a pair of Night Vision Goggles equipped, so he could see if anyone was about to attempt an ambush.

Nicholas, or Nick as everyone likes to call him, or in Chris' case, Nicky (Chris had liked giving nicknames to most people he knew) was the team's newest edition, and newest soldier fresh out of Basic Training, however, unlike everyone's uniforms, Nick's uniform showed no chevron. Nick was the team's sniper, and if they heard correctly Nick was a natural sharpshooter, and almost every shot he made hit their mark. Nick was currently Equipped with an M24 Sniper's Rifle equipped with a 6x to 12x scope and deployable bi-pod, and his sidearm was an M11 with extended magazines. Nick was a white skinned 18 year old and was just about 6 feet tall. His hair was almost three inches long, and was light brown, and if the sun shone on it correctly, people would assume it was dirty blond, and his eyes were the color green. Nick had hoping to prove himself worthy to be a soldier since he was in high school, and after (countless times asking) his father took him to the shooting range, Nick had practiced constantly, and on his downtime he would study every weapon he could, making him a weapons encyclopedia. Upon being given a sniper for the first time in training, he had surprised his instructors with how skilled he was with a rifle. Although some of the soldiers don't see why, Nick had named his sniper rifle 'Thunder', mainly because of how loud each shot is. Nick was sitting on the right side of the ICV, currently leaning forward on his seat, staring at the floor, his sniper rifle out pointing barrel first at the ceiling. This was his first mission, and he was beyond nervous, if the uncomfortable shift he did every five minutes was any indicator. Nick knew the risks when he signed up and was praying to every possible god he can think of that he would make it out in one piece.

Paul was the team's support specialist, and was carrying extra ammunition packs for the squad should any of them run out in the field, Paul's uniform had a single chevron on each shoulder. Paul's weapon of choice was an M16A2 with the M203 grenade launcher attachment, and a Beretta 92. Paul was a tan skinned 22 year old about 6'5", his hair was 1 inch in length and was dark brown, and his eyes were chocolate brown. Paul had been hoping to help end terrorism, or at least lower it to a point where everyone can live safely. Most of his family had been either in the Army, or Marines, especially since the First and Second World Wars. Paul sat next to Nick throwing sympathetic glances at him, knowing that whatever he was about to see outside the ICV was going to be hell for him, and could only hope that Nick had the stomach and mind to keep himself strong. Paul had also somehow snuck an Ipod (not advertising/sponsoring Apple products or any songs I may mention in the future) past his military superiors and had just barely managed to persuade Shawn to let him keep it.

John Monroe was the team's second rifleman, his uniform had a double chevron on the shoulders. John's weapons was a SCAR H equipped with laser sight, and vertical grip, and his sidearm was an M9. John was about 20 years old, and was 6'2", his hair was one and a half inch blonde hair, and had grey eyes. John had wanted to be a soldier since he was a boy, and had now been trying to rise through the ranks, attempting to prove he was a good soldier, and hoping to prove that he had it in him to lead his own squad one day. John was currently driving the ICV keeping his eyes on the road and on the objects in front of him, wary that there might be someone hiding behind just about anything.

Finally, the Navy Seal Shawn Damian was the leader of the squad, codenamed Skeleton Squad. Shawn was wearing the standard issue U.S. Soldier's armor equipped with desert camouflage, on his shoulders was two silver colored bars stitched onto his uniform, his weapons of choice was a SCAR H with reflex sight, laser sight, and had an M26 Dart shotgun attachment below the barrel of the gun, and his sidearm was a Beretta 92. Shawn was a bronze skinned 33 year old, around 6'5" had 2 inch long light brown hair, black eyebrows, and hazel eyes. Shawn was a New York cityboy who had grown up in Manhattan. He had always been a natural leader and had proven it during his years in officer school when he had joined at the age of 19. This was Shawn's second Tour of Duty, so he knew exactly what to expect more then all of the soldiers under his command. Shawn had always favored leading a frontline assault instead of being cooped up in a command center like most officers.

Skeleton Squad's objective was to run a forward patrol, and link up with Echo Company on the other side of the city so that they could assault a forward command post owned by the Taliban.

(Third Person POV)

Nick was on the verge of shaking, not out of being cold, the A.C. felt fine to him, and it was still pretty hot outside the ICV. No, he was shaking out of anxiety, this was his first mission since he left boot camp. Nick knew the risks and chances of death fighting in Iraq, and accepted them, knowing he was fighting for what he believed was right for his country.

He also knew that if he was captured he would most likely not survive, he had heard that Terrorist factions tend to 'make an example' out of their prisoners.

Nick was using every ounce of willpower he had not to lose it, but was slowly failing.

It wasn't until Nick felt a hand touch his shoulder and saw a pair of boots standing in front of him.

Nick looked up and into the hazel colored eyes of his C.O. Shawn.

"How are you holding up soldier?" Shawn asked, concern in his eyes.

Nick had learned that Shawn cared deeply for the soldiers under his command. What Shawn regretted about his job was that he couldn't always bring everyone home, knowing that the enemy never plays fair in battle, and that he would most likely lose one of his own.

Still, that didn't mean it was impossible, Shawn always tries hardest to bring the troops home alive.

"Nervous... sir." Nick replied honestly, very slight amount of fear in his tone.

"I've heard this is your first mission rookie, you got a name?" Shawn asked.

"Private Nicholas Michaelson Cooper Sir" Nick replied curtly, Shawn nodded.

"Welcome to the frontline private, I'm Lieutenant Shawn Damian, you can call me Sir, LT, or Lieutenant, understood?" Shawn said in a commanding tone.

"Sir yes sir!" Nick answered instantly.

"Alright introductions. *he points to the gunner* our guy manning the turret is Sergent Alex Clinton, the guy sitting next to you is Private Paul Baxter, our teams support specialist, if you need ammo, or cover, he'll gladly oblige *Paul nodded in response*. The two behind me is Private First Class Chris Landon, and Corporal Logan Jones. Chris is our heavy weapons specialist, he'll take care of the heavy armor while we deal with the grunts. Logan's the doc, if you get shot anywhere, keep your eyes out for Logan, and he'll make sure your patched up. Our guy driving the ICV is Corporal John Monroe, and our guy Riding shotgun is our tech specialist Staff Sergeant Thomas Gregor. John and Alex are the team's riflemen, our frontline grunts" Shawn said, introducing everyone. Chris was looking at Nick with a raised eyebrow.

"Hey LT, you sure this guy's Ranger material? He looks like he can't shoot straight to me" Chris said in a southern accent questionably.

"Private Cooper proved himself to be a natural marksman in basic training, are you questioning Command's decision?" Shawn said in a stern tone with narrowed eyes at Chris.

"Sir no sir!" Chris said.

"Sir, new orders coming in! You might need to see this!" Gregor said leaning off the side of his chair to face Shawn. Shawn then moved towards Gregor and the second he was out of sight, Chris leaned forward on his chair.

"Just a little tip Nicky, keep your head down and you'll be fine" Chris said. Nick knew that tactic would help keep him alive but was a bit confused on why Chris had called him 'Nicky', Logan who noticed his confused look spoke up.

"Chris likes to give people nicknames or say their names differently, you'll get used to it" Logan said.

Nick nodded before looking back down to the floor, ignoring the radio chatter coming from the front of the ICV.

It wasn't until the ICV stopped and the rear hatch slowly began opening and Lieutenant Shawn began making his way towards the squad, rifle in hands.

"We got an update from HQ, Taliban forces HAVE been sighted in this area. Command wants us outside and to cover the ICV during the trip" Shawn said, and with that everyone (minus Alex and John) began getting up, weapons in hands.

"Gregor I want you to stay here, take over for Clinton if anything happens, keep them away from Monroe! Understood?" Shawn ordered.

"Sir yes Sir!" Gregor said as he kept his M231 pointed towards the door.

"Everyone, grab a pair of night vision goggles before you head out! It's still dark so they have an advantage!" Shawn said as he pulled out a pair of night vision goggles from his duffle bag.

Everyone minus Gregor took a pair, and after equipping the goggles, everyone gave Shawn the thumbs up.

Before Shawn stepped out, he reached into his uniform and pulled out his dog tags, attached to the chain was a silver cross. He held the cross up to his face and kissed it for good luck before he stepped out, with Nick, Chris, Paul, and Logan following him.

Nick was the last one out of the ICV before the hatch closed and the ICV slowly began to move.

Nick ran in front of the ICV to catch up with the rest of the squad, keeping his eyes out for anything suspicious.

The squad was in an arrowhead formation, Shawn in the lead, while Nick and Chris took the left and Logan, and Paul took the right, all of them had their weapons pointing forward and towards any possible hiding spot, that involved parked cars, rooftops, fences, etc.

No one said a word, and not a noise could be heard except the growling engine of the ICV, the soldiers never let their guard down, knowing that if they do, they would be prime targets to the enemy.

"Eyes open, they could be anywhere" Shawn said quietly, and after ten minutes of silence Alex spoke up.

"I think I saw something!" Alex whispered through his radio as he aimed the ICV's Browning ahead towards a few abandoned cars.

Everyone was alert and ready and it wasn't until two bullets collided with the ICV's hull that the squad immediately took cover.

Alex immediately began firing the Browning machine gun towards the source of the gun fire. What the squad saw was about over two dozen insurgents slowly making their way towards the ICV.

"Skeleton Squad open fire! Cooper! Start picking targets!" Shawn yelled as he began firing his SCAR H towards the enemy, catching one trying to get inside a building.

Nick hid behind a small battered sandstone wall, deployed the bipod of his rifle and immediately looked into the sniper's scope.

He caught sight of three insurgents. After pulling the rifle's bolt back all the way, and pushing it back into place, the rifle making a satisfied click in the process, Nick aimed at the nearest insurgent's head, which was hidden behind a mask, and pulled the trigger.

Nick's M24 let off a loud crack, and a sudden jolt from the recoil and the bullet went flying towards it's target, striking home, directly into the insurgent's head.

Nick then pulled the bolt back, and upon seeing the spent cartridge eject from the rifle, he pushed the bolt back into place and began choosing another target, striking another insurgent, this time into his neck.

What Nick didn't know was that on a nearby rooftop an insurgent equipped with an AK-47 was aiming right for his back.

Right before the insurgent could pull the trigger, Paul noticed the insurgents act and sprinted towards Nick.

"Nick watch out!" and before Nick could react he was suddenly pushed to the ground and the sound of an AK-47 went off.

What Nick saw next stopped his blood cold.

In front of him was Paul with several bloody holes in his back. Nick went white as a ghost seeing his brother in arms like this and upon looking up, he noticed the insurgent now aiming at him.

Quickly drawing out his sidearm and fired three shots at the enemy insurgent, two of his shots striking the target while the other missed.

After dealing with the insurgent, Nick felt everything around him grow quiet as he looked at his fallen comrade, his arms were shaking madly in fear, bullets flying past him as he continued to stare.

It seemed like hours in his head before Logan ran in front of Nick and on top of Paul, checking desperately for a pulse while Shawn grabbed him and forced Nick to look him in the eyes. Shawn was yelling something Nick couldn't hear as he looked around.

Finally, Nick began hearing everything again, the loud crack of gunfire and explosions originating from grenades.

"I said what the hell happened?!" Shawn yelled.

Nick snapped out of his shocked state and looked at the Lieutenant.

"It's Paul sir! There was a fucking insurgent on the roof, and I didn't see him until Paul threw me out of the way!" Nick said shakily.

"Is that insurgent still breathing?!" Shawn asked/demanded.

"Negative Sir! The insurgent is KIA!" Nick said.

"We got more baddies headin' straight for us LT! Too many for me to handle!" Chris yelled nearby.

As he said that, more and more enemies began charging towards the squad, rifles at the ready, eagerly wanting the Rangers dead.

"Fuck! Grab Paul and get back inside the ICV! NOW!" Shawn ordered.

Logan began picking up Paul and held him over his back before trudging towards the ICV hatch which began opening.

Alex and Chris were holding the insurgents back while Nick picked up his M24, and Paul's M16A2 and ran back towards the ICV with Shawn in tow.

"Chris! Get your ass back on board the ICV!" Shawn commanded.

Chris reluctantly got up from his spot and ran back towards the ICV, with Alex covering him.

While Chris was running, Logan had placed Paul onto his stomach so he could deal with their wounded comrade, and Nick had slumped himself into one of the ICV's chairs breathing heavily, throwing panicked glances towards the hatch.

Shawn had noticed his panicked glances and frowned in sympathy. Nick was close to snapping by the looks of it. Post Traumatic Stress Disorder was a nightmare for soldiers, especially those returning to civilian life. Shawn could only pray that Nick would eventually recover from his ordeal.

Shawn's thoughts were interrupted when he heard the ICV hatch closing and witnessed Chris jump in at the last second.

Shawn then made his way towards the cockpit towards John.

"Everyone's on board! Punch it!" Shawn ordered, and with that, John began pushing the ICV towards it's maximum speed of sixty-two miles per hour.

Shawn watched as Monroe barrelled through debris and the insurgents both living and dead while Alex was continuously shooting the ones trying to stop the ICV.

Shawn then made his way back to the squad to see how they were holding up.

Chris was drinking water out of his canteen while throwing sorrowful glances at Paul and Logan, while Nick was hugging his chest shaking madly. Shawn had his eyes glued on Logan who seemed to be facing the floor rather then Paul, who remained motionless. Gregor was watching the scene as well, keeping his eyes on Nick.

Logan sighed deeply and placed a blanket over Paul, confirming Shawn's growing fear. Skeleton Squad had suffered a KIA.

Before Logan placed the blanket or Paul's head, he reached into the collar of his shirt and broke the chain connecting Paul's dog tags to his neck and handed them to Shawn.

"He didn't make it Sir... he's gone..." Logan said sadly before covering Paul completely.

Shawn then read the tags he was given.

Baxter Paulus J.

734-81-0332

A Negative

Catholic

Shawn clenched his fist with the Tags in it before placing the tags in his pocket.

"Corporal Monroe! Get us to Echo Company A.S.A.P!" Shawn ordered, he was going to bring his men home one way or another.

"I'm going as fast as I can sir! And it's hard to drive with all the junk and these damn soldiers in the way!" John yelled as he had to swerve past the ruins of a car, which made Shawn nearly fall to the ground.

"Do what you can, Gregor, get on the horn with command, let them know we have a-" Shawn didn't get to finish his sentence because everyone heard a loud snap and a series of thuds coming from the turret.

Upon looking at the source it made Shawn's eyes widen slightly.

On the floor of the ICV was now the corpse of Sergeant Alex Clinton, his eyes were rolled to the back of his head and on his neck was a bullet wound bleeding profusely.

Logan immediately moved Alex's body away from the turret while Chris immediately got up and took Alex's place. Before he took position, Shawn saw his face was replaced by one of unadulterated fury.

"I'm gonna kill every last one of you sons of bitches!" Chris yelled before he climbed into position and began mowing down any armed terrorist he could see.

Shawn could already tell that Alex was already dead, but that didn't keep Logan from trying to see if he could find a pulse. After a few seconds silence, Logan looked back at Shawn and shook his head.

"Make that two KIAs Gregor!" Shawn said and Gregor immediately got to work on the radio.

As Gregor was letting command know Skeleton Squad's current situation, Chris had seen something that had made his eyes widen to the size of saucer plates in horror.

"RPG! HEADING STRAIGHT TOWARDS US!" Chris screamed at the top of his lungs.

"SHIT! EVADE! EVADE!" Shawn screamed at John but it was too late.

Before the rocket had made contact with the ICV everything went white.

And Prologue is done.

I know I didn't include and RWBY stuff in this chapter, but like it says, it's a prologue.

I hope you enjoyed the beginning of my brand new fanfic, review and criticize on how I did (be nice with criticism please D:)

Pairings: Nick Cooper/Ruby Rose, Chris Landon/Yang Xiao Long, Thomas Gregor/Weiss Schnee, Logan Jones/Blake Belladonna, Shawn Damian/Velvet Scarlatina

Fixed a couple of typos and errors!