Chapter 20: Train Ride (Vol. 1 Prologue)

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Vale

12:21 PM

2 Years To The Fall

Red Hood Pov

A year and a half after what happened in Atlas... One year and nothing to show for it... I've hunted for Cinder and Callows nonstop. That is until today. I heard from a certain wanna-be gangster that there were White Fang in the area that wanted to hit Atlas and the SDC where it hurt. And guess who gave them that information... A certain fiery bitch would be the correct answer. If I could get my hands on them, I could get to Cinder and her groupies.

I had been staking out the tracks for days by now. These tracks were only used when Vale wanted to get something somewhere quietly. Most of the time, it's payroll for the Huntsmen of Vale. Today is a military shipment of Dust and Knights in preparation for the Vytal festival. It wasn't starting for another eight months but it is better to prepare early. Supposedly there was also a prototype mech on board as well, but if the Black Mask incident is anything to go by, Atlas is still very much a pushover.

The forest I was in was beautiful. The leafs a deep red that covered the treetops and ground. I had been all over the place, especially in the last year and a half. In all the places I've been, this might have been the most beautiful.

With how red the forest was, I couldn't help but think of Ruby. Red was always her favorite color. Hard to believe that she's turning 15 this year. I wonder if she looks like mom now... What about Yang? Does she... No, I don't want to think about that man. Not right now...

I looked through the scope of my rifle. Not a thing was moving down there. I had wrestled with the idea that Torchwick had given me some faulty information, but quickly dismissed the idea. Roman wasn't the one to go get it, Neo was. If anything, because it came from her, I believe it. In the two months that they had been working with me, the information was always good. Roman and I came to a agreement before we even started this arrangement.

No killing civilians. Clean cut and simple to understand. If he wanted to go toe-to-toe with a rival gangster or a Huntsman even, that's his business. But if he harms a civilian any more than necessary to gain compliance during his activities, he's catching a bullet. Do I think he would just kill for the hell of it? No, not at all. I've learned a good deal about Torchwick and Neo both. Yes, they both enjoy what they do, but its also done for survival. Got to put bread on the table somehow.

Junior vouched for the two so that's good enough for me. Since I've been back in Vale, Junior has been my go-to when I need information. If he says Torchwick and Neo are reliable, I take his word for it. But right now, I needed to get back on track.... Pun intended.

What happened in Atlas made world wide news. Everyone knew what happened, how it happened and who was involved. I was the centerpiece of most of the news stories revolving around the Black Mask incident. Most saw me as a vigilante but some, mostly Huntsmen, saw me as just another killer. Both were right....

The Schnee family was also in the spotlight since the attack started with them. Jacques was using Weiss as a sympathy piece. Seeing that pissed me off but it was a bit late for concern. I had left her with Winter. I often wondered what it would have been like to have stayed. After leaving Atlas behind, the dreams started back again, as if to haunt me. If it wasn't the dreams of Weiss, it was the nightmares of Roy....

I was knocked out of my thoughts by the low rumble of the train. The shipment was indeed large. It almost looked like the train went on forever. I continued to observe for any movement and within seconds, I caught sight of what I was after.

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