Judges and Huntsmen
Chap 7
"GET DOWN!" I shouted and pushed Pyrrha and Crystal down to the floor. Just in time for the smaw rocket to pass over us and hit the bullhead. Killing the pilot inside and destroying our ride entirely. Turning to where the missile came from, my eyes widen in horror when I saw the three-original gang of Peach Tress working together. And they were fully armed. As if preparing for a full-frontal assault on us. I also think I saw Neo and Roman Torchwick there as well.
"GET TO COVER!" Dredd shouted. We all quickly hurried to whatever could provide us immediate cover. Luckily, good cover came in the form of heavy steel gates. Mainly used to prevent cars and other vehicles from crashing into the bullheads. Or just getting onto the airstrip in the first place. But right now, they are providing great cover against the incoming fire from the gangs.
"WHATS HAPPENING?" Weiss shouted. She along with Ren, Ruby, Anderson and Dredd were on the right side of the gate. Crystal and the rest were with me on the left side.
"WE'RE GETTING ATTACK BY SOME GANGS! THAT'S WHAT'S HAPPENING!" Crystal answered over the loud gunfire. We each had our weapons out as well. Raising my arm, I activated the comms to be able to inform Dredd and Anderson on what I saw.
"I think I saw notorious criminal Roman Torchwick and Neopolitan out there as well. They must have been hired by them or working with them." I told them.
'Doesn't matter who they are or what reason they are here. We can decide their fate after we get out of this fight alive.' Dredd said through the comms.
"Wait! You saw Neo out there?" Yang asked. I simply nodded confused before remembering that she had a rivalry with her.
"She is mine. I have a score to settle with her." She said with her eyes now a fierce red and activating her gauntlets.
"Are you crazy!? We are under heavy fire now. Its suicide to rush recklessly in there." Crystal said shocked at what Yang was implying. She then moved from cover to fire a few shots at the gang members.
"We can't just let them escape!" Yang countered.
"Seems like escaping is on the last part on their mind." Crystal said as she got back into cover just in time to avoid more gunfire that came at her.
"Then what should we do? We can't just wait here. They will just keep firing at us until they kill us." Pyrrha exclaimed nervous at all the gunfire that is happening.
"We just need the opportune moment to turn the tide." Crystal answered.
"Like now." I said getting their attention. While they were arguing, I had attached the gas grenade clip to my Lawgiver. Steeling myself, I got out of cover and fired the entire clip of gas grenades at the gangs. Neo and Roman easily avoided the gas while the rest started choking and gasping for clean air.
"NOW!" Dredd yelled out once the firing stopped. We all immediately got out and opened fire on the gang members. Knowing we needed to press our advantage, we moved forward and continued firing at them. Only to cease firing a second later as most of the students foolishly charged forward to attack them.
"WAIT!" Anderson yelled out trying to get them to stop them from going in foolishly. Only for it to fall on deaf ears as they met up with some gang members and began attacking them.
"SHIT! COVER THEM!" Crystal yelled out. We immediately started taking out any of the gang members that posed the highest threat to the students. That included the ones that started recovering from the gas. Especially the one that shot the rocket at us. Luckily, we had some help in the form of Coco and Velvet laying down suppressing fire. Coco had her chain gun out while Velvet used her camera to make a copy of it to help out.
"KEEP IT UP! WE ALMOST HAVE THEM!" Anderson shouted as the gang members were nearly wiped out and only a handful were left. But that changed when one of the gang members managed to grab the smaw and fire another rocket at us.
"WATCH OUT!" I yelled and pushed Crystal to cover. Just in time for the rocket to pass us harmlessly. Unfortunately, it was not meant for us. The member aimed it at Coco and Velvet who barely manage to avoid the rocket. But not the blast that followed which sent them flying to the ground next to us. Velvet was knocked out while Coco barley managed to stop herself from losing consciousness as well. Seeing them down, me and Crystal immediately grabbed them and pulled them into cover. Once safe, I gave them a quick look over to see if they were alright.
"How are they?" Crystal asked while returning fire on the gangs who managed to regain their footing and began to fire on us once again.
"They are both fine. Coco is just dazed but will come out of it in a moment. Velvet was knocked out but is fine all the same. She should wake up in a minute." I answered.
"THEY'LL BE BETTER ONCE THIS FIGHT IS OVER. DON'T STOP FIRING!" Dredd shouted from his cover.
We nodded and began to fire back at the gangs. It was harder this time as we had to avoid hitting the students as they were all over the place. They did a good job at taking out some of the members but always left their flanks exposed. Had we not been here, they would have likely been shot in the back many times now. Continuing to press on, we realized that the gang was almost done for and we had the complete advantage right now. Just a bit more and the fight would be over.
"KEEP IT UP! THEY ARE ALMOST DONE!" I shouted. Only to regret my words as two trucks came from nowhere and about thirty members came from each truck. "Fuck me."
"THEY GOT REINFORCMENTS! KIDS GET BACK HERE!" Anderson shouted. They seemed to understand that it was too risky to continue fighting up close, they tried to fall back. Tried being the key word in that sentence. As they moved back to us, they were intercepted by Roman and Neo who engaged them.
"SHIT. COVER THEM!" I shouted and began to fire at Roman and Neo. Only for them to easily avoid our shots and continue fighting against the students. The gang members shifted their attention from the students to us. Pinning us and making us unable to provide support or cover fire for them.
"They are not going to last long like this." Crystal said getting back into cover after taking out a few gang members.
"I know. But I am not too sure what we can do to help. We are pinned down now." I told her while firing some shots of my own. That's when I had an idea.
"Wait. I have an idea." I said before turning on my comms. "Dredd."
'What!' He answered.
"Have Anderson and yourself change your weapon ammo to gas rounds. Fire them at the members in the back closest to the vehicles. Crystal and I will use High-Ex rounds to blow them up. Once everyone is disoriented from the explosion and choking on the gas again, I will head to the roof of the building next to me and fire incendiary rounds on the remaining gang members." I told him. There was no answer for a moment. I was worried he did not like the plan. That is, until he looked at us from his cover ready.
"Are you sure this is going to work Jaune?" Crystal asked concerned. Yet she still changed her ammo to High-Ex.
"Not entirely Crystal. But if we don't do something now, the students will get killed as there is too many hostiles right now." I told her. She still looked unconvinced but nodded anyway. Breathing in, I readied myself for what would be an extremely delicate plan that if it goes wrong, the students would be in trouble.
"NOW!" I shouted. Dredd and Anderson immediately got out of cover and fired four shots each of gas rounds. A moment later, the hostiles were choking again. Giving us what we need and freeing up the students to focus more on Roman and Neo. I was about to tell Crystal to fire our High-Ex rounds when suddenly, the vehicles were exploded but not by our doing. The explosion had killed about twelve gang members. Confused, I began to look around at what could have caused it. It was only when I looked behind us that I found the answer. And it scared me.
"IT'S THE ANGEL GANG! TAKE COVER!" I yelled out and pushed Crystal and dragged Coco and Velvet deeper into cover. From the corner of my eye, I saw Dredd do the same with Anderson who was equally confused.
"Who are they Jaune?" Crystal asked.
"That's the Angel Gang. They are one of the most ruthless clans to ever come out of sector five. While the Ma-Ma clan was known violence is their trademark, the Angel Gang is known for their over the top and needlessly violent crimes. No matter how small a crime is or how unnecessary violence or force is, they always make sure to put as much violence and bloodshed into it as possible." I answered her.
"Then why the fuck are they doing here!?" She asked.
"I say shoot first and we can ask questions later." I told her. But then immediately pulled her away from her spot as a few rounds hit where she just was. "Damn that was close."
"W-what's happening?" Coco asked suddenly.
"We got another gang attacking us from the rear. And they are even more ruthless than the ones we were just facing." Crystal answered.
"W-will we m-make it out of here Jaune?" Velvet asked startling me. Looks like she woke up in time to hear Crystal answer Coco. Sighing. I knew I had to answer. But I saw something that caught my attention.
"DREDD! WATCH OUT! MEAN ANGEL!" I yelled out warning him. And just in time for him and Anderson to move out of the way as Mean Angel headbutted where they were a moment ago.
"WHAT THE HELL IS THAT!" Coco asked shocked at the creature she was seeing.
"That is Mean Angel. He is one of the children of the Angel family. He is a cyborg with a robot arm for his left and a stump of his remaining right arm. He was a nice kid before being forced to become a cyborg. We did free him before, but I guess the Angel gang got him and made him go mad again." I answered.
"What should we do then?" Crystal asked.
"Dredd is keeping that guy busy. Crystal. You, Coco and Velvet keep firing on the other gangs and support the other students. Me and Anderson will keep the Angel gang occupied. But be careful not to get caught in the crossfire.
They nodded in understanding and got out their weapons and did what I said. Coco, Velvet and Anderson started firing on the first three gangs which give some breathing room to the other students. I began firing on the Angel Gang. Making sure they are pinned down and can't make a move. Yet even then, this whole fight was a stalemate. It stayed like this for the next few minutes. And even though we are doing our best to keep ourselves alive along with the students, we knew that it was only a matter of time before we are overrun or one of us dies. Unfortunately, that moment came sooner than expected in the form of Roman managing to trip up Yang and Blake after they dodge to avoid some incoming fire from the Angel gang. With them on the floor dazed, Roman walked over them and pointed his cane at them.
"So long you two." He said smugly.
"NO!" Ruby shouted and tried to help but was forced away when more gunfire came her way.
"Goodbye." Roman taunted one last time. Yang and Blake both tensed up and braced themselves for their inevitable fate. Luckily, that fate never came. As from nowhere, a huge war hammer came and smashed Roman in the face and sent him flying into a nearby mailbox, completely dazed and confused. The sudden interruption and surprise caused everyone to stop fighting for a moment to see what just happened. Looking to see who did that and save their lives, I was met with a familiar face.
"Wulf Sternhammer!" I said completely surprised to see that he was here.
"And he's not alone Judge." Another voice said from behind me. Turning to see who said that, I was surprised to see another familiar yet friendly face.
"Johnny Alpha!" I said completely baffled at this point. "How and why are you both here?"
"Let's answer those questions another time as you still have hostiles on both sides." He said before bringing me down back into cover while firing a few shots at the Angel gang.
Nodding, we began to fire back at both gangs while Wulf started battling against Roman. Neo had tried to help Roman but was stopped by Weiss and Nora. By this time, Dredd had managed to subdue Mean Angel for the time being by breaking the dial on his head again. Stopping his lust for headbutting anything that moves. With him no longer a threat, we were able to focus completely on the other hostiles. Looking back over at Wulf, I saw that he had complete control over his fight with Roman. But was struggling not to get hit by the Angel gang that focused fire on them. Knowing we had to take them out as they were the bigger threat, I quickly looked around for an answer and saw the solution. It was in the form of their ammo cache that they brought along with them. I quickly changed ammo back to High-Ex and fire a round at it. It exploded and caused rounds to fly everywhere. Which also caused the other ammo cache they had to explode as well. With their ammo gone, Mean Angel down and Johnny with us, the Angel gang decided to leave. Normally we would have chased them down but considering we still had other gang member shooting at us, we had to let them go.
Turning to see how the others were doing, I saw that nearly the other gang members were nearly wiped out. But there was still a lot left. And they had better cover than us. We could use some of our different ammo to deal with but we were already running low on ammo and can't risk wasting some. Knowing there was one way we could eliminate the rest of them with the least amount of ammo consumed, I had resorted to continuing the plan I had before the Angel Gang showed up. Rushing to the building, I kicked the door in and sprinted towards the roof. Soon as I reached the roof, I quickly ran to the edge and changed my ammo to incendiary rounds and fired the remainder of my clip at the gang. They did not see me fire at them which made them not see the wall of fire the came onto them which burned and killed them slowly. With Angel gang gone and the other gangs now dead, we only had one last hostile to deal with. Looking for them, I saw that Wulf had seriously injured Roman who had a few bullet holes in him courtesy of Johnny and Crystal. Neo wasn't fairing much better as she was constantly ganged up on by nearly all the students while Dredd and Anderson cut off any attempt she made to get away. After a moment, I saw that both Neo and Roman were forced together. Looking closely, I saw that Roman had a smug grin. It seems like he had a plan to escape as Neo seemed to smile as well. Not wanting to let them get away, I quickly reloaded my Lawgiver and switched back to High-Ex ammo one last time. Taking aim, I fired the round right behind them at their feet. The explosion caught them off guard, and since their aura was practically gone from all the damage they already took, it also did serious damage to them. I even think Roman's leg got torn off from the explosion as well. Taking quick look over the area, I saw there was no other gang members alive. Nodding, I went back down into the street to meet up with the others. But as I went back down, I contacted the Hall of Justice to send me, Dredd, Anderson and Crystal all the information we had on Roman and Neo.
"How is everyone?" I asked once I reached the others.
"We're fine. Just a few bumps and bruises from diving into cover. The students are in shock for the moment and need a moment to calm down. They did get a few cuts from bullets that hit them but their aura healed them. As for our two helpers, Johnny is fine. Wulf did get a few bruises and cuts from his fight but is patched up already." Crystal answered.
"Thats good." I said with a smile.
"What should we do with them?" Johnny asked. At that moment, all the data I had requested from the Hall of Justice had just arrived.
"Deliver judgment onto them." Dredd said stepping up to Roman and Neo who were struggling not to collapse right on the spot. Nodding, I walked up and stood next to Dredd. We both had our Lawgivers ready and pointed at Roman and Neo.
"Wait! You aren't going to kill them, are you?" Ruby asked scared.
"Why not? Their crimes include theft, murder, conspiracy, terrorism and the attempted murder of Judges. The sentence is death." Dredd stated.
"But killing them is so wrong. They don't deserve death. Maybe jail time." Ruby said in a panic trying to not make us kill them. She then turned to Weiss. "Weiss. Help me convince them to not kill Roman and Neo."
"Uh. Um." Weiss started trying to come up with something but was struggling to. But after a second, her face changed as it seemed like she came up with something. "You four are not in your sector. You're in vale. Which means you have no legal jurisdiction to decide their fate here."
"Thats where you are wrong kid." Johnny said stepping. "They do have jurisdiction to dispense justice here. As long as the law exists, they have the right to dispense justice wherever they are." This caused them to stutter and try and figure out a new way to stop us. Meanwhile, we turned back to Roman and Neo to see they both had a look of fear on their faces.
"Wait." Crystal said getting our attention. "Shouldn't we have Anderson use her ability to learn all she can from them."
"Good plan." Dredd said before motioning to Anderson. She nodded and went up to Roman and Neo and began to do her thing.
"Got it." She said after a few moments. "Their crimes are far more extensive than the reports actually say. Each more brutal and violent than the last. As to why they were working with the gangs, well it seems they were offered a thirty percent cut of the dust they stole and a twenty-five percent cut from all future drug income that involve dust. They also don't seem to be a part of any groups. Seems they prefer to work alone and strictly for themselves."
"Interesting." Dredd said before turning to Roman and Neo again. "How do you both plead?"
"Please. Can't we work this out. We could-" Roman started only to be cut off when Dredd shot him in the head while I shot Neo in the head at the same time.
"Defense noted." Dredd said holstering his weapon.
"HOLY SHIT! YOU TWO KILLED THEM!" Yang shouted in disbelief and shock at what we just did. The other students seemed like they were about to throw up.
"Their sentence was death." Anderson stated calmly.
"You could have just detained them. YOU DID NOT NEED TO KILL THEM!" Weiss shouted.
"Their punishment must fit the crime. And the crimes they committed made their punishment death." Crystal countered. They still did not seem convinced and were about to argue some more but couldn't as the sounds of a bullhead drew our attention. Looking to where it came from, we saw a bullhead land in front of us. Its doors soon opened to reveal the pilot that was supposed to take us back to our sector.
"Judges. I came as soon as I heard trouble." He said walking up to us.
"A little late." Crystal responded with nodding to all the dead gang members. I nudged her in the side as a warning to not say that again.
"Well then. Now that you are finished, we have to go." The pilot said while giving a light glare at Crystal.
"What's the rush? We still have to call in Meat Wagon to clean up the perps." Dredd asked.
"No time. News outlets have been alerted to this place by all the noise and sounds of gunfire and explosion. They will be here any moment. We have to go." He told us. We nodded and began to board the bullhead. Turning around, we asked Johnny and Wulf if they wanted a lift back to our sector to which they agreed to. They stepped in and took their seat. Stepping in and takiny my seat next to Crystal, I noticed that Dredd had somehow already gotten mean Angel on the bullhead. Luckily, he was still unconscious. Once we were all strapped in, the doors began to close. That when I heard something that caused me to stiffen.
"I am ninety percent sure that is our Jaune Arc." I heard Coco say to the others. Quickly looking to them while the doors were still closing, I saw that they all had shocked faced with velvet agreeing to what Coco said.
Sighing, I leaned back into the chair in an attempt to relax and put my mind at ease. I could not help but feel something bigger is going to happen. And very soon at that. Not to mention, there is the fact that the Angel gang showed up and attacked us. Which begs the question, how did they find us if they were looking for us and how did they get into Vale. Now they are on the loose and we have to track them down. Which wouldn't be difficult if they were in any of the sectors, but considering they attacked us in vale, it made it much more difficult. We also still have to meet with the Chief Justice and discuss what the Tech-Judges found on the tablets we found. And to top it off, I think the students know I am the Jaune they are looking for. Which will just lead to more complications in the future. I was stopped from thinking further when I felt Crystal lean on my shoulder. Looking over to her, I saw that she had fallen asleep. Deciding to take a page form her book, I shifted myself to be comfortable to take a nap. Though as I felt sleep over come me, I felt Crystal snuggle into me some more. Which for some reason, brought a smile to my face. Closing my eyes, I fell into the world of sleep.
I was jostled from my nap when I felt the bullhead land in our sector. The doors opened up and we all exited the bullhead. Once outside, we saw some Med and Tech-Judges waiting for us. They went in the bullhead and took Mean Angel and hauled him away. Dredd probably called this in while I was asleep. Looking around, I saw our Lawmaster waiting for us. Walking towards them, I got on and started it up. Turning to my right, I saw that Dredd, Anderson and Crystal have done the same.
"Well, Judges. We'll see you later. We got some business to attend to." Johnny said coming up next to us.
"Alright. Watch yourselves out there. And thanks for the help back there." I told him. He nodded before patting Wulf on the shoulder and leaving the place. Probably to go and see some other bounties.
"Alright. Let's go. We still have to talk with the Chief Justice." Dredd said getting our attention.
We nodded and began to make our way to the Hall of Justice. It took about half an hour to get there as we were much further than we would be if we were at the other airstrip. As we made our way through the streets of sector thirteen, I could not help but compare the streets here to the ones in Vale. Here you would hear gunfire and explosion nearly twenty-four/seven. While in Vale, you would not hear any gunfire or explosion. Maybe aside from some robberies led by Roman and Neo. But now that they are dead, the citizens can rest a bit easier. I honestly miss the quiet nights of Vale where I would sneak out from Beacon and just wonder around. Not having to worry about getting shot by some random gang member. But as much as I like those nights, I knew I could never get used to them as I would feel out of place since I am so used to gun filled nights and reports of gunfire in the different parts of the sector. I was brought out of my memories when I Crystal said we were here. Shaking my head, I noticed we arrived at the Hall of Justice. Turning the wheel, we made our way to the parking area and parked our Lawmasters. Turning them off, we made our way inside the Hall of Justice where the Chief Justice was waiting for us.
"Good evening Judges. I heard that was a confrontation in Vale. Is everyone alright?" She asked.
"Just a few scrapes. Nothing major." I answered.
"That's good to hear. I also like to inform you all that the Tech-Judges cracked the tablets and managed to get a lot of information out of them. And none of it was good. But we shall discuss it tomorrow as its pretty late and all of you need your rest." She told us.
"We can do it now." Dredd argued.
"Dredd. You all just spent a day tracking down gang members and taking out their bases. Only to then get ambushed when you all tried to get back to the bullhead. And now it is one in the morning. Go to sleep. You need it. Don't make me order you to do so." Rebecca threatened. Dredd merely grunted in annoyance before turning and heading to his office. Anderson sighed before bidding us goodnight and following Dredd to make sure he does not skip out on resting. He has done so many times before.
"That man sure is stubborn." Rebecca sighed before turning back to us. "Get some rest both of you. You will both need it for what we have learned from the tablets." She told us before saying goodnight and leaving.
Sighing, I turned to Crystal and nodded. She nodded as well and we made our way back to our office. Though as we made our way there, I had to help Crystal as she was almost dead on her feet and looked like she could fall over and just fall asleep easily on the floor. Once there, we entered and changed into our sleepwear. With that out of the way and everything secured, I got into my bed to fall asleep. Only to feel Crystal slip into my bed again and fall asleep before I could say anything. Sighing, I decided to chalk it up to her worried that she might have another nightmare. Moving carefully so I would not wake her, I wrapped my arms around her and pulled her close. Letting out a yawn, I let sleep take me again, but as my vision closed, I saw Crystal move into me more with a smile just as I let sleep whisk me away.
*Note
1. I will be adding some more elements and characters from the comics of Dredd.
2. Some things will be changed/ modified to better fit the story.
Ex. The Angel Gang in the comics came from Texas. Since there is no Texas in Remnant, they instead come from sector five.
Wulf SternHammer died in the comics. Here he is alive and well. Johnny Alpha is also not as ruthless in his judgment as Wulf is alive here.
3. Eventually there will be a chapter to discussing on the views of the students and their feelings towards Jaune.