Relic of the Future: Chapter 7

Jaune eyed the men about the room. "You don't want to do this. Please reconsider."

King's response was a click of his fingers.

The first man had only touched his gun when Jaune's fist impacted his face, twisting at the last to drive him back and through the double doors. He used the impact to reverse his momentum, grab the other by the arm when he reached for his own, and then twist the goon in front of him, turning them both to block any shots from behind. The body in his hand shook as they fired anyway, dying in a hail of blood. Emerald cried out in fear, having only just caught on to the sudden transition from words to violence. He backed into her, herding her away with his body until she was behind a pedestal atop which a statue stood. It was thick enough to withstand a few shots and he was their real target. "Stay there," he hissed, earning a frightened nod from the girl.

He took in the room instantly, trained by Pyrrha to do so. Six men, two down, four remaining – armed with handguns, Mr Xiong behind his desk suddenly less sure of himself, Junior behind him wide-eyed. His sheathe came up, deploying into his shield as he blocked several more shots, moving back to the centre of the room so Emerald would be out of the line of fire. The shield didn't cover his entire body but didn't have to. What shots went low bounced off his aura, impacting against him and hurting but not piercing flesh.

"Huntsman!" one of the goons cried in horror. The sudden realisation of what they were up against brought an immediate halt to the fight. Jaune wasn't sure if he didn't look the part or if it was something else, but Qrow had called him a bandit, too. Either way, strong-arming someone they thought was a petty criminal and doing the same to a huntsman who had aura, and might even have a Semblance, were very different things.

They weren't quite so confident now and Jaune flashed an easy smile. This really wasn't fair. He might as well have been a Beowolf in a kindergarten.

"Keep shooting!" King roared. "Huntsman or not, they all die in the end!"

He wasn't wrong and Jaune knew it. He'd seen enough people die to harbour such foolish notions and he was no longer the young man he was. Even so, it would take a damn sight more than four untrained mobsters to take him down. Yang would never let him live it down if it did. Dropping his shield, he charged forward and covered the distance between him and the shooters in only a few seconds. They spread out instinctively, making it harder for him to engage them all, but he put himself in the middle and forced them to risk the cross-fire.

"When surrounded, attack one of the flanks and break through, then you won't be surrounded," Pyrrha had always said. He did so, lunging at the first man on the left, who screamed and fired three quick blasts into his chest. They pinged off harmlessly but Crocea Mora didn't. The blade cut through the man's suit, through the bulletproof vest he wore underneath, and also through his body. Twisting, he again turned and used the dying man as a shield, kicking him off at the same time.

Even before he hit the ground he was on the next man, sweeping once to sever the arm between the elbow and wrist and again to cut his throat. There wasn't time or opportunity for mercy, not when even an injured man might call for aid. I can't afford to let Ozpin find me, not yet. People were killed in deals gone bad all over the criminal underworld. As long as his name wasn't attached to it, he was fine.

The third died a fraction of a second later but feet outside the broken door told him more had heard or been summoned by King. Jaune shot a glare to the man and a more worried glance towards Emerald, huddled by it. With a scowl he dispatched the last goon but rushed to the door, letting King live for now. He reached it before they arrived and killed the first through the remaining door, splintering wood and bone in a single swing. Fighting in the corridor would let them gun him down with weight of numbers, so he dragged the dying body back in and forced them to round the corner. The first to do so died. The second shared the same fate. The third, wiser than his fellows, hesitated.

[...]

Emerald stared at the smiling man's hand.

She then stared at the bodies on the floor. Death wasn't new to her, though this was a lot more sudden than she was used to. People killed each other all the time and some had tried to kill her, too. But she'd never seen someone do it so quickly and so easily, and with just a sword and shield.

—Relic of the Future: Chapter 7