Chapter 3
Hunting a Ghost
A/N: Quick Content Warning: Quite graphically violent stuff near the end of the chapter, I uhhh... went hard I guess.
"All I'm saying is that you two have known each other for so long, and are so close! Why would you not be together?" Penny declared, planting a fist in her hand with a wide grin.
Jaune let out a long suffering sigh as he pushed his hands into his hoodie pockets. "Look, just because we're so close and have been together for so long doesn't mean we should be… together. Life isn't so simple and we… don't want to push stuff we aren't ready for." He replied with a low voice so the crowds wouldn't hear him. Sure, he knew that the noise of the mall would drown him out anyway, but he still didn't want to be so… open with this topic.
Penny hummed. "Are you sure? I think she is quite ready… doesn't she sneak into your room at night?"
His face flushed red. "L-look! That doesn't matter! Just… we aren't ready, okay?"
"Hmmm. Alright." She didn't sound convinced at all, but he knew he wasn't doing a good job of explaining it. He wasn't sure how to explain what they were. They were close, for sure, but… going beyond what they were now?
No, he definitely wasn't ready. And she'd said she wasn't either.
"A-anyway… we shouldn't be discussing this right now." Jaune argued.
"But what else would we discuss? He has yet to leave the store." Penny quirked her head to the side as she asked her question, making him sigh yet again.
There they were, in Vale Central Mall, following a guy. He was a stick thin fellow from Vacuo, judging by the tan and tattoos and refusal to button his shirt. They were following him for one simple reason: he was a member of a gang. One gang in particular.
The Desert Warriors, a gang of ne'er-do-wells recently returned from Vacuo, headed by a powerhouse (by gang standards) of a fighter named Thana Syntoma. They hadn't been in Vale for almost a decade, but they were back and kidnapping people once more. Kids, this time.
For the past week they'd been investigating together, trying to find any of the gang members so they could follow them to the gang's hideout. Penny was using the time as a break from her hacking, and also as a chance to needle Jaune about this and that. He put up with it, though he wished she'd choose anything else as a topic.
"Oh! Here." Penny eventually said, pulling out something from her pocket and handing it to him. He let out a sigh and rolled it around in his palm. It was a small half sphere with a sticky flat side and a translucent black round side. He frowned.
"Where was this?" He asked.
"Inside one of the Bullheads." She replied. "Someone was watching us, someone who was on their way to Mistral while we were… in flight." Penny was still smiling pleasantly as she spoke, as if nothing was amiss. It reminded him to focus, and so he too plastered on a smile, using years of experience to make it believable.
"I see. So, was it our most recent friend?"
Penny nodded. "I think so. I pretended to break it accidentally and haven't touched the others yet."
"There's others? How many?"
"I think all the Bullheads were marked."
Jaune swallowed nervously, his mind churning as it started coming up with ideas. Should we remove them all? She'd know, but it'd be for our privacy and we can blame it on not knowing they were hers. Or do we use them to try and trick her? Maybe we could try and flip it back on her, use them to hack her gear and see what she's doing? In the end, all he could do was sigh. "Tell our friend, see what he thinks we should do about it."
"Copy that! Oh! He's on the move!" Penny pointed out the guy exiting a clothing shop with a bag full. It looked like random clothing from here, but it was hard to tell what it was as the shop wasn't a specialty store. After letting him get ahead they followed.
They slipped through the crowds with experienced ease, until he entered another store, causing them to have to hide across the way. Penny went inside a nearby StarDoes to purchase a drink while he waited outside. It took several minutes for him to come back out, enough for Penny to get and finish a chocolate milkshake, and when he did they both froze.
He had a kid with him now.
A young girl, maybe eight or so. Fair skinned, orange hair, and a pair of round ears on her head, Jaune couldn't quite tell the type from this distance. She looked confused. "Check the store for her parents." Jaune said, immediately moving to follow the man. Penny nodded and went to see where and how he got this girl.
So he slipped through the crowds once more, hoping to keep close and follow the man back to his hideout. Then he could call Penny and raid the place, taking down an entire gang in one foul swoop. It'd be simple and-
"Oof!"
"Eep!"
As he turned a corner to follow the gangster, he crashed right into a girl exiting a store, sending them crashing to the ground. Jaune grimaced and hopped to his feet quickly before offering her a hand. She was pretty short and was wearing a lot of black and red, especially with that big red hood of hers.
Wait… shit. He froze as he helped her up, realising that he'd crashed into the very girl that, not that long ago, fought Penny and stopped her from robbing a Dust store. Little Red, the Huntress who got in their way.
"Ow! Sorry!" She apologized immediately after being brought to her feet, knocking him out of his frozen state. "You okay?"
"Huh? Uh yeah." Jaune replied. "Sorry I was kinda… busy." He turned and glanced around trying to find the man again.
"Busy with?" Red asked.
Damn, how to get rid of her? He pondered, biting his lower lip. But then it struck him. She's a Huntress. Strong too, considering she beat back Penny. She'd be morally obligated to help free kids and it would give me someone to foist the publicity onto. He turned back to her with a grave expression. "I was following a guy who I think kidnapped a kid."
Red gasped and furrowed her brow while searching the crowd. "Shouldn't we tell the police?"
Jaune shook his head. He couldn't let them get involved before he was done. "I don't have any evidence, but I think he's part of a gang that's been kidnapping a lot. I want to follow him to his base." He then turned and started speed walking away, intent on finding the gangster before he escaped.
After a moment of umming and ahhing, she followed. "They'll understand later. I hope." She nervously muttered. "Um, so I'm Ruby. Ruby Rose."
Holding in a sigh, he nodded. "Jaune." Of course he didn't elaborate further. Let her think I don't have a last name. Easier for everyone. They hurried through the crowds as he desperately searched.
Eventually they left the mall and Jaune spotted the rogue putting the kid into a van. The girl seemed to be doing what he said, but from this distance it almost looked like she didn't know why. Some kind of confusion Semblance maybe? That'll be annoying.
But while he thought that, his mind raced to figure out how to follow the van. We could steal a car. I don't have a tracker but I could memorise the plate number. Running after it won't work. Think Jaune!
"That's him?" Red, or rather Ruby, asked. At Jaune's nod she glanced around and then nodded to herself. "Hold on."
"What do you-?" Before he could finish, she grabbed his arm and the world twisted. It was the strangest thing he'd lived through, as if he had been folded in on himself but also spread into thousands of tiny imitations. He was himself but he was a mass of yellowish white petals but he was a box surrounded by energy but he was a head in a swirling mass of roses.
And then as suddenly as it came, it ended, with him stumbling onto a flat rooftop gasping for air but not really needing any.
"What!? The heck!? Was that!" He asked, whirling around to look at their surroundings. They were on a rooftop overlooking a set of road lights, where the van he'd just been pondering how to follow was waiting for the light to turn green. Glancing back down the road he could see the mall complex in the distance. "Huh?"
"Sorry." Ruby said, taking deep breaths. "It's my Semblance. Though taking other people with me is hard. Um… sorry for just… doing it."
Jaune frowned but shook his head. It might have been mildly horrifying to experience without preparing for it, but it meant they could keep up. He didn't fully understand her Semblance but if it did the job… "You up for using it more?"
"Huh? Oh! Yeah. I can keep going." Ruby declared with determined eyes.
"Good, cause the lights are about to turn green." He said, holding out his arm for her. She glanced down and nodded, before grabbing his arm and waiting. The moment the van pulled out and continued down the road…
They transformed once again.
It had been later in the afternoon when they gave chase, but now the sun was moving to set, bathing the world in gold. The van led them to what looked like a diner or tavern with a few storage buildings out back and even a mechanics area. There were quite a few cars and motorbikes parked up in its parking spaces, including the van.
"Doesn't look like any guards are out front. Might be some around the back though." Jaune muttered, staring from his place on top of a nearby building. Ruby had done well to get this far, though she seemed pretty low on Aura now from how much she was using her Semblance. And hey, she hadn't made him lose his lunch so that was a win in his books. "The kids are probably in one of the storage buildings at the back, but they might be in the main building with the gang."
"What should we do?" Ruby asked, defaulting to him.
"Hm. You used a lot of Aura so I think you should investigate the other buildings. I'll take the main one." Of course, it didn't matter her status. He would always choose the main building himself. A glance at his scroll showed a message from Penny. The missing girl's parents had been inside a changing room confused and disoriented but fine otherwise. He flicked her the address so she could make her way over.
But as he did he frowned and looked down. There was an eighteen-wheeler truck pulling into the diner, with a large container. When it came to a stop the driver and a passenger got out but didn't unload anything.
"... They might be shipping the kids off today." Jaune muttered.
Ruby swallowed. "Then we have to save them before then."
"Agreed." He nodded and stood up, preparing to make his way to the street.
"Will you be okay? There might be a lot in the front. I'm a Huntress in training so I'll be fine but…" Ruby asked. He found that concern kind of adorable. It'd been a long, long time since he'd been shown that kind of treatment. It made him grin.
"I might not be a Huntsman, but I'm strong enough. Don't worry, just focus on saving the kids. You can call the cops when I go in too, if you want." They wouldn't get there in time to change anything. He'd be able to resolve all he cared about.
After a few moments, Ruby nodded. "Okay. Be careful."
"You too."
With that, they parted. Ruby was going to stealth her way into the back and try and get the kids out of dodge while he went in the front to do what he really wanted. Sure, the kids were important, but he knew what he really cared about.
Today's the day.
He made his way down to the street and carefully checked to make sure he had easy access to his weapon. While the new shortsword mode helped, it wasn't enough to conceal the weapon in his civilian gear. Plus it was the sword owned by The Dragoon, he had to be careful with it. So instead he had a long dagger strapped to his back underneath his hoodie. It was made to be tough, hard to detect, and had a hand cannon mode too.
Once he was assured that it'd be easy to draw, he pushed open the doors and entered a pretty dingy dive bar. It was full of gangsters, all armed with machetes or pistols and wearing a weird mix of punk rock and desert attire. Many stopped to stare at him, especially the barkeep, but he ignored them and walked towards a large table where three people were playing poker.
Two of them didn't matter. The one in the middle was the only person here who did. She had tanned skin, messy dark red hair, green eyes, and was muscular. Her outfit was the most 'normal' of the group, as she wore a simple set of a red t-shirt, black combat pants, and black boots. At her side rested a large greatsword with a chunky hilt and crossguard.
Her eyes narrowed as he approached, then she motioned for the other two to clear off. He took a seat down opposite her as the bartender came over and refilled her glass. Whiskey was on the menu tonight, it seemed. After a moment of hesitation, the bartender gave Jaune a glass as well.
"So, we got a boy come to see me. How can I help?" She asked, grinning like a shark.
"Thana Syntoma. I'm surprised you came back to Vale." Jaune began, taking the glass of whiskey and sipping at it. It was pretty bad, especially after tasting Roman's refined collection. "You've rebranded a lot over the years, haven't you?"
Her eyes narrowed slightly. "Sure have. What of it?"
"Well… I'm just wondering if you're still in the same business as you were the last time you were in Vale." He answered, not at all feeling the warmth of the alcohol.
At that, she seemed intrigued. "Oh ho? Didn't think Vale remembered little old me. Sadly, while I have some stock, they're all spoken for. But I'd be happy to pick you up some, for a price." Thana said, leaning forward in her chair.
Jaune chuckled and took another sip of terrible, terrible whiskey. "So, still kidnapping and selling with no thought to others eh?"
"Sentimentality just gets in the way." She replied.
"I guess it does. Still…" He looked down into the murky liquid and sighed. "Have you never thought about those harmed by your actions?"
"Pft." She laughed. Laughed. "My actions don't hurt people. Sure, I sell people to people who might hurt or kill them, but that isn't my problem. I'm a provider, that's all."
Nodding along, Jaune let slip some laughter of his own, then he stared her right in the eyes. "For a moment, when I was coming in here, I was worried. I thought that maybe, just maybe, there would be an inkling of compassion. Some semblance of empathy for others. I was afraid I'd look into those eyes and see myself. But I'm happy to say I don't. I don't see anything at all.
"And that makes this so much easier to do."
With a swift motion he threw the glass into her face and then drew his blade, transforming it into hand cannon form and fired into the bartender who still stood nearby. The bullet tore through his unprotected chest and flung him into and over the bar. As his armed hand turned to fire on the next gang mate, his other hand grabbed the edge of the table and flipped it, forcing something in between him and Thana.
Have to even the numbers a little before she starts fighting. Jaune thought, opening fire on the gangsters. One of them suffered a shot to the head, while another watched his knee collapse. The rest managed to get their Aura up, but while that saved their lives it didn't save them from the force of each bullet knocking them backwards into tables or chairs or walls.
One of them managed to close on him, so he swapped it to dagger form and slashed up to parry aside the coming machete strike. Then he slid the blade down the length and cut at the man's fingers. "Ah!? Fuck!" The bastard squealed as he dropped his machete and clutched his aching hand. Aura might weaken damage to save a life or a limb, but it didn't stop the pain.
These people weren't prepared for a real fight to the death, that much was clear to him. While the man held his own hand, Jaune stabbed the pommel into his throat and kicked his chest to send him back, then turned to meet the next opponent.
As he used his arm to block their attack and stab their chest with his dagger, the table he'd tipped was cut in half by a heavy greatsword. Thana glared at him with hatred, but his fury at her was a perfect counter. Pushing the thug away he turned to face Thana. I've taken down a fair few, but there's still enough to ruin things.
He had to be careful. Thana swung at him, but he dodged around the blade and quickly stepped back. His dagger wasn't parrying that thing, no matter how strong he was. At best he could redirect it a little, but it was better to focus on dodging than blocking.
Thana came at him again, forcing him to backpedal. His foot hit the leg of a chair, which he then hooked and launched in front of him with a kick. The chair crashed into Thana and exploded into splinters, forcing her to raise her guard and close her eyes for just a moment. A moment he used to swap to his gun and fire a bullet square at her head.
The force knocked her head back and caused her to stumble, but her Aura meant the blow did little else. That was fine, however, as he used the chance to put another bullet to her chest and then jump up onto the table that the chair had been sat next to.
While Thana was reeling, the thugs came to fill in her place. Using his new found height advantage, Jaune jumped and dodged around the blades while firing into the trio that came for him. These three seemed more experienced, as not only did they keep their Aura's up and react well to hits, but they were far better at anticipating his aim and dodging his attacks.
He realized two of them had been at the table with Thana when he came in. That didn't help him though, so he threw the thought away. He needed to focus.
With a deep breath he jumped back, landing on the edge of the table and tipping it over with his weight, forcing the other end to smack a thug in the chin. As it flipped and he entered the air, he kicked out, launching the table into that same thug, throwing him and a cloud of splintered wood into one of the nearby booths, where he lay groaning and barely moving.
Landing on the ground, Jaune prepared to face the next two, who came at him with fury in their eyes. Their machetes swung at slightly different speeds, intent on hitting him while he blocked the other. But he knew how to deal with that. Coating his left arm in a thick barrier of Aura, he reached out and grabbed one of the oncoming blades while his dagger parried the other.
His Aura flared as his hand slid slightly across the sharp edge, but his grip tightened and then pulled the weapon from the thugs hand. Dagger transformed into a gun and fired into the man's chest while Jaune flipped the machete around so he could use it, twisting to slash at the thug he had parried.
While one thug fell back, hurting and without a weapon, the other blocked Jaune's attack and tried to counter. He was fast, forcing Jaune to back up. Blades flashed in the dimly lit bar, sparks flying as they hit and parried and blocked. The thug growled. "Just hurry up and-!"
"Die already!" Thana shouted and then everything went white, the world ringing loudly, consuming everything else.
Slowly colour returned, and Jaune found he was lying on pavement staring up at the sky. The ringing lingered as he carefully got up and looked around. The bar was in front of him with a massive hole in it, as if it had been hit by a cannon. No, as if a cannon had been fired from inside. Leading from the hole to Jaune was a streak of black and red.
Ash and blood. He couldn't see the thug he'd been fighting at all. His stomach twisted and burned, but he swallowed and pushed it down. Focus. Focus. Focus! Get up!
Everything hurt as he stood. Inside and outside, literal and metaphorical. Every single one of his senses reported pain, and that ringing in his ears made it hard to think, to plan. His feet were unsteady, his legs wobbling slightly, and his hands jittery as they clutched his weapon now shifted into dagger form.
And she walked out, a cannon in her arms, unperturbed by the fact she fired and killed one of her own men, turning him into that bloody smear across the concrete.
"Gods I hate goodie two shoes like you." She spat on the ground as she loaded another ball into her cannon. "Little vigilantes who get in my way so they can act like the hero. But today I'll put you in the ground, just like the rest."
Her voice was muffled from the ringing, but it made Jaune laugh. He spat blood on the ground and grinned. "I think that's… the first time someone… has called me a goodie two shoes… or a vigilante!" It was a bit tough to speak, his breath coming too quickly to talk without breaking to gasp in more air. "Don't worry… I'm not some good guy… I'm just a monster taking revenge!"
Jaune ducked to the side and started running on wobbly legs. Thana clicked her tongue and fired again, tearing apart the street and throwing chunks of concrete everywhere. One such chunk hit Jaune's back, forcing him to move into a roll to bounce back and keep running, lest he fall prone and vulnerable. She fired another ball the moment it was loaded, but Jaune escaped the shrapnel zone this time.
She fired a third time, clipping Jaune as he raced forward. He fell into another roll and sprang up, leaping into the air and bringing his knife down onto her shoulder. Aura flared, stopping him from penetrating her skin. His body landed right on her, causing her to stumble before her arm came up and smacked him aside.
He tumbled and hit the ground, his body screaming as he struggled to stand. "I don't care what you are." Thana said through gritted teeth, loading one more cannonball. "You get in my way, and you end up dead. That's just how-"
She finished with a yelp as, with a flurry of red petals, a girl appeared behind Thana and swung her scythe. The large tool hooked Thana's legs and pulled, upending the gangster and throwing her into the air. Petals flew as Ruby hopped into the air and swung her weapon downwards, the back half hitting Thana in the stomach like a mace.
The thuggish woman was propelled into the ground, her weapon flying out of her grasp and Aura flaring weakly. She groaned and tried to stand, only for Ruby to deliver another downward smash, forcing all of the air out of Thana's lungs. The woman coughed and then fell back, eyes rolling back in her head. She was out cold.
Jaune groaned and managed to get into a sitting position, still breathing heavily. "... Thanks…"
"No problem." Ruby replied, putting away her weapon and looking around. "Wow you did a number on those guys in there huh?"
"I guess…" Jaune rubbed the back of his neck as the ringing finally started to subside. "How'd you go?"
"Oh! I knocked out a buncha guys and found where they had the kids but I couldn't find the keys. I was going to break the lock when I heard the explosion. So I came running." Ruby sheepishly explained as she walked over, offering him a helping hand up.
"Right. Thanks. Let's get them out." He took her hand and got to his feet. They passed by the unconscious Thana, where Jaune took her sword, and started to make their way to the back. As they found their way to a shipping container, Jaune belatedly remembered he hadn't taken out every thug in the bar, but it didn't seem like they were still coming…
Sirens in the distance made his mind up for him. If any got away, he could hunt them down later on. He shook his head clear and walked up to the shipping container. Sounds from within went quiet the moment they heard his shoes hitting the concrete, which made him frown. It was locked up with some chains and a few padlocks.
After a quick attempt to pick one of the locks, where his hands were still too shaky from the battle, Jaune gave up and nodded to Ruby, who pulled out her axe and went to town. The blade cut through the chains and the locks after a few swings, then the two pulled open the container.
Inside were around a dozen children, almost all dressed in rags and bearing bruises. One young girl was standing in front of the others, shaking as she held out her arms to protect the other kids. The red panda ears on top of her head twitched in fear. It was the girl Jaune had followed, the one kidnapped that very day.
Jaune pushed the door as open as it would allow and stepped to the side. "Come on out. It's safe." He said while Ruby smiled brightly at them and held out her hands, beckoning for them to join her. There was no movement for a few moments before the girl at the front, her face determined, slowly made her way outside.
"Ah!" She gasped as she saw some of the men and women Ruby had taken down, but once she realised they were just unconscious she calmed down a little. The other kids slowly came out after her.
"You kids are all safe now! I'm Ruby, and I'm training to be a Huntress! That's Jaune, he's a friend. Together we kicked this gangs' butt!" The short red-black haired girl declared, acting for all the world as a hero. She puffed out her chest and confidently told the kids of how they beat the gang with their cool weapons. "-and then Jaune hit them with his sword and threw a chair in their face!"
Since when did he have a sword though? Oh, he did have that machete he stole. Or he did, did he drop it when he was thrown from the bar? Probably. His head was a bit of a mess still, even with the ringing mostly faded. Still, she was making up stuff, as she hadn't seen his fight inside. It was all pretty bloodless from how she explained it.
Probably best for the kids.
He leaned over and whispered in Ruby's ear. "Don't let them see inside the bar." Then he turned and walked away, pulling out his scroll and sending a message to Penny, asking her to get in touch with their contact in the police to organise Thana being taken to a discrete location. His message was all in code, of course. He'd get to finish her soon enough, without Ruby or children nearby at all.
As he waited for a response, a hand pulled on his hoodie. He looked down to see the red panda girl there. "T-thank you!" She said, before turning and running back to the other kids, who were all surrounding Ruby and barraging her with questions. It seems like she'd inspired some life and light back into them.
She was much better suited to this, and he didn't really want to be involved with the police, so when nobody was looking, he stealthily started to leave.
He had a final meeting with Thana to arrange, after all…
"And then we went wack, boom, kapow! The evil gang leader went flying and we went kersmack and threw her into the ground like kuthunk!" Ruby exclaimed, gesticulating her hands to show off the manoeuvres they definitely totally used to beat up that lady. Definitely. She might have been twisting the truth but they were kids, they didn't need the actual details, they needed something fun!
Maybe she shouldn't have chosen to describe fighting at all then, but she had to try something and it was the first thing to come to mind!
"What happened next?" The red panda girl, who Ruby learned was named Shi, asked with wide eyes, her orange hair bouncing slightly with her enthusiasm.
"Well with her down, we just had to face off against the last of the gang! They had numbers, but we were faster! We went swish and swash and they couldn't stop us!" Ruby continued.
"How did you find us?" A boy asked. He was around nine or so, though his fair skin was gaunt and bruised enough that it was tough to say for sure. His midnight blue hair was striking for the small white star shapes that dotted it, and his golden eyes were oddly shaped, the irises looking like stars.
"Well we followed them as they were taking Shi! I wanted to free her right away, but Jaune wanted to follow them back to rescue everyone. It's a good thing we did, huh?" Ruby explained.
The kids all muttered their agreement, though Shi frowned. Ruby smiled and pet her head. "I'm sorry you had to go through this, but you were really strong and cool! When we opened that door and you were standing there, protecting the others? It made me feel inspired!"
"Inspired?" Shi tilted her head, confused.
Ruby nodded. "Yeah! You were just like the heroes in fairy tales, you know? A brave young girl standing up to protect others! You'd make a really cool Huntress one day, if you wanted to be one."
Shi looked down at her hands, eyes filled with a sense of wonder and amazement, as if just now realising the potential she could achieve.
It was about then that a black car pulled up, one that Ruby quickly realised was one of those 'in hiding' police cars. Two figures stepped out of it; a middle aged woman with short slicked back reddish hair with a few grey streaks, dark reddish eyes and tanned skin; as well as a young man with fluffy midnight blue hair that fell past his ears and stuck out in every direction, dark blue eyes and fair skin.
Both of them wore a light blue long sleeved button up shirt under a dark blue vest that seemed padded with something, in addition to a pair of black slacks that the shirts were tucked into. The woman wore brown combat boots, a trench coat, and a pair of black gloves with colourful embroidery that was difficult for Ruby to make out. The man wore black combat boots that seemed intricately made, as well as a silver wrist watch.
Ruby recognised the young man and immediately froze, plastering a smile on her face as he approached. "Oh, hey Ven! Long time no see, ha ha ha…" She awkwardly laughed.
Ven Yue-Long, childhood friend of the family, sighed as he walked up to her. "Does Yang know you're out here causing trouble?"
"Hey I was helping people!" She replied, pouring and folding her arms. After a beat of silence she answered his question. "No…"
"Didn't think so." He let out another sigh as the woman came up behind him, grinning from ear to ear.
"Well well, Ven's got a friend?" She asked with a slightly husky tone. Her voice had a little bit of an accent, similar to the cowboys of Vacuo, Ruby thought.
"Right. This is my friend's little sister, Ruby. Ruby, this is my partner and mentor, Detective Jam. She's been showing me the ropes." Ven introduced.
"Jam like… strawberry jam?" Ruby asked, tilting her head.
"Yup!" The woman replied, pulling out a long wooden pipe. Her gloves glowed slightly as she clicked her fingers, creating a tiny flame she used to light the end. "Ven, show me how well you've been taking my lessons."
"Got it." Ven said, pulling out a pen and a notebook while Detective Jam took a step back. "Alright. Ruby Rose, we were called to the scene by someone reporting gunfire. What can you tell us about what happened here?"
"Well…" Ruby waffled on how much to say before she started spilling all the beans. Detective Jam distracted the kids away from them so she let loose with everything. Meeting Jaune, following Shi and the kidnapper, splitting up to deal with the gang, knocking out Thana, and freeing the kids. Everything. Ven wrote it all down and only asked a few questions to get more details.
"Alright. Did this Jaune guy give a last name?" Ven asked.
"Hm? Uhh… no, but he should be.. right around… hm?" Ruby started looking around but Jaune had vanished at some point. "Huh!? Where'd he go!?"
Ven narrowed his eyes as he looked around. "Okay. I believe you, don't worry. Just raises some questions about this guy. If you ever meet him again, would you mind telling me?"
"Huh? Uh, sure. I can do that." Ruby shrugged.
"Thanks. I doubt it's anything serious. At the very least, I'm sure the families of these kids will want to thank him. And you." He grinned. "You certainly made an impression on them. It'll have to go on the news I think."
Ruby paled and gulped. "D-do you think it could not go on the news?"
His grin only grew. "You aren't getting out of this one." He said, pointing to the side. Already other police cars had arrived alongside some vans and ambulances to handle the gang members and take the kids home, but there were also news reporters already talking to their cameras.
"Darn it…" Ruby could already imagine the earful she'd get from her mom, and Yang, and Jeanne, and Weiss…
Thana came too in a dingy warehouse, tied up by chains and ropes to a metal chair. She was alone, with a few low level lights pointed directly down upon her. Oh, and she had a gag in her mouth too. Lovely. When I get outta here, imma kill the bastards who did this.
Footsteps suddenly echoed from behind her, coming closer at a steady pace. She wriggled but it was too tight. Reflexively she tested her Aura but it was still low, though not broken. The figure walked around in front of her… it was the damned boy from earlier, holding a chair.
He put it down and sat there, staring at her face. "You know… I've killed a lot of the people responsible by now. The list is getting pretty short. I didn't think I'd get to cross you off for a long time… but I am glad I get to do it today." He said, pulling out a pair of items. A vial of brackish liquid and his gun. "Part of me wants you to suffer before I finish you, but part of me just wants to end you now. Which do you think I should listen to?"
He held up each item on either side and waited, as if waiting for her to choose. Bastard. She glared at him with all her hatred. He laughed at it. Laughed.
"You really have no regrets about it all, don't you? Man… people like you make this so much easier. I hate killing people with families, loved ones, who did it out of selfish but understandable reasons. They hurt to take down. But you? You'll make me feel better having expunged a blight from the world." He stood, his eyes cold and filled to the brim with hatred but… Thana felt like he was disconnected. She didn't know why, but looking into those chilly blue eyes made her feel pity amongst her rage.
She pitied him, because she thought he was pathetic.
He slowly put away his gun and held up the vial. "This… this is for all the people you've hurt, directly and indirectly. For every person you kidnapped, enslaved, and sold. For all the beatings. For all the death." He then popped the cap off, grabbed the gag, tore it out and in that moment when her mouth was open, poured the vial down her throat.
It burned, or was it searing? The liquid flowed into her throat and everything felt like it was on fire. Like it was melting. She gurgled and tried to vomit it out but all she managed to do was writhe her tongue around as she lost feeling, leaving only pain. Searing pain so intense it was all her mind could think about, all she could focus on.
It was everything, and everything was burning, scorching, melting, searing, boiling. Her mouth was boiling away, it was being roasted over a fire, it was being cooked in an oven, melted in a pan, thrown into a bonfire and burned all the way through.
Her throat seized as it struggled to hold shape, her nostrils flaring as she tried to breathe. Her mouth hang open, desperate to spit out any of the foul liquid. The pain was slowing but the damage remained, she couldn't talk, she couldn't move, her brain was stalling as it tried to understand what was happening.
That bastard had turned away, walked off to a table where he waited for her suffering to end. She wanted to curse him, swear at him, insult him. But she couldn't. It was all too much for her mouth and throat.
As she was irreparably maimed by the acid, Jaune clutched his stomach and took deep breaths, suddenly realising how violently his chest burned and roiled. Bile surged up his throat and threatened to spill from his mouth as he struggled to get a handle on himself.
He thought this was the right thing to do. The right punishment. To inflict pain and suffering on someone so terrible. So then why did it feel like he was the one drinking acid? Why was he feeling his body rage against itself?
She was the one with acid in her mouth, why was he almost vomiting?
Glancing back at her, bile leapt into his mouth. Her neck was deforming, her mouth hanging open as flesh and bone melted and fused. Thana's eyes streamed tears as she struggled to breathe, to live. Aura flickered as it tried desperately to slow and stop the damage.
But what he caused couldn't be healed. It couldn't be changed. He'd done this.
Why did it make him feel so sick?
His breathing was ragged as he watched the damage slowly increase. He winced as he saw her teeth come loose from melted gums. His stomach twisted as her throat shrank in on itself, looking warped and burned. Even as the acid lost steam and burnt out, the damage only got worse. Her tongue had fused with her bottom jaw, which now had most of its teeth fall out, some coming to rest on the floor while others sunk into the almost liquid flesh of her mouth.
Thana slumped forward, barely breathing. He got what he wanted. She was maimed and burned and warped. Her life would forever be a twisted, painful thing. Stuck in a hospital with tubes in her skin just to keep her alive. She'd never speak, never eat or drink, never breathe properly. Every second of her existence would be agony, just as he wanted.
Jaune, pale and shaking, with bile in his mouth, drew his pistol and ended her suffering with a single bullet.
He collapsed into the spare chair and looked down at his hands in horror. "What… what am I becoming?" He asked the air, knowing nobody was nearby. Justifications threw themselves around his mind, but none of them would make him feel better. None of them could make him feel like this pit in his stomach wasn't there. None of it could make him actually accept that what he just did was justified.
There was no reason to torture her like that. Just his rage and anger and hatred and years of pain making him lash out, wanting to see her suffer. Justice? Retribution? No. Pain was all he had wanted.
He felt sick, wrong, disgusted. This… this was a mistake. Doing this wasn't what he should have done. A younger Jaune would have been horrified by the idea. He should have been horrified by the idea. Instead… instead he did it. Why? What was wrong with him?
Justice, revenge, retaliation. He was supposed to be giving them consequences for what they've done, not torturing them. He… he shouldn't have done this.
Standing he made his way to the small bathroom just off of an old office. The warehouse used to be used often, but now it was empty and abandoned. Still, it had running water, and he made liberal use of it after venting the days meals into the toilet. It took him a bit, but he managed to make himself look presentable, even while he felt terrible.
Then he set about cleaning the warehouse, ensuring nothing that would incriminate him remained. Thana remained there in her seat though. Their… friend on the force, Captain Garfield, would handle it for him. They paid him enough for it, though Jaune would throw in some extra intel about some gang operations. Maybe a drug ring or two.
Something to ease his conscience.
In the meantime, Jaune needed a drink…
"Thank you, Cyril. Last night, two Beacon students battled a large gang operation. The Desert Warriors, an old and strong gang led by the vicious Thana Syntoma, were engaging in a string of kidnapping cases. Over a dozen children have been confirmed to be victims of this gang, with the police investigating to find any who were sold off. We'll keep you informed as that develops."
"So these students saved the kids then? That's great. Lisa, do we have any word on the gang members?"
"We do actually. Most were alive though many were injured. The police statement said that, due to many of them being poor fighters, they weren't able to control their Aura very well. According to them, this resulted in several injuries and some deaths."
"Those students must be reeling after facing that."
"I imagine so, Cyril. We were able to approach one of them for comment, a young girl named Ruby Rose."
"Well I uhh just saw a girl in need of saving and followed! Hehe… uhh… does this have to go on TV or…?"
"She's a bright and kind girl, from our brief interview. Ms Rose seemed extra happy at having saved so many kids."
"Sounds like a promising student! I hope we'll have a lot more crime busting from them to report."
"Indeed."
"And what of the gang leader, Syntoma?"
"She was defeated and taken into police custody, however, we just received word that, due to her injuries, she passed away in custody early this morning. Some are speculating that she committed suicide to avoid going to prison, but until the police release more information I can't say for sure."
"It's a shame she won't be taken to court and judged for her crimes, but I think I speak for us all when I say that I'm thankful the streets are a little bit safer now. Especially for the kids."
"I have to agree, Cyril."
"Well that's all there is for now. Heroes in the making over at Beacon Academy. We'll keep you updated as the situation progresses."
A/N: A return to The Bound Cambion, and it's with some dark stuff. Kidnapping, torture, and murder. What a fun time. This Jaune has been immersed in so much violence for so long that he became desensitized, only to find out that he still has a line. A line he, likely, should not have crossed...