Catherine grabbed a hat and put it on. "Forget that! We can stop this right here right now we just have to take Cox. Get Zephyr and David Kel in there. Me and Daniel will try to stall them long enough so you can."
Stephanie, Michael nodded and put back on the hats. Catherine closed her eyes and connected her consciousness to one of the droids Alf was currently controlling.
The droid opened its eyes just in time to have its head ripped off by a railgun weapon. Catherine grimaced as the pain flooded her. That was stupid she had the machine stand up as she was taking control of it.
She threw her awareness into another droid this time making sure to leave it in cover as she came into it.
The droid looked around. "Alf where's Cox?" It's metallic voice tanged.
Alf highlighted Cox in a gold outline in the droids view. He was already to the back wall and his men had formed a barrier around him. In seconds he be outside the building. "Alf we have to stop him!"
"I've been shooting at him but he has some type of personal shield system and has survived three direct hits already."
"Then guns are of no use. Throw me!" Said a metallic voice beside the droid she was controlling.
The droid Daniel was controlling turned its back to her's and crouched. "Hurry! He's getting away."
She reached her droid out grabbed him and launched him through the air.
Daniels droid almost instantly drew the attention of all the men in black as it flew through the air but a flying target was hard to hit and it only lost its left arm and took a few hits the midsection before it landed fully operational.
The droid landed right behind Cox and used its momentum to swing its right arm in a pow driving punch that smashed Cox in the back of the neck.
A yellow shield shimmered around Cox as the metal fist made contact protecting him from what would've been a killing blow it however could not fully stop the inertia behind the hit.
Cox hit the ornamental wooden floor so hard he literally bounced head over heels. But still his shield protected him and he was able to shake it off and try to stand up.
Daniel realizing this through the remains of the droid he was controlling on top of him pinning him to the ground.
The men around him instantly smashed the droids head in and started to pull it off Cox.
Daniel had stalled Cox for a few moments but Zephyr and David Kel were just starting to come through the dimensional door one of Alf's droids had deployed.
"Throw me again!" Another droid beside Catherine's shouted.
Catherine didn't hesitate this time and instantly grabbed the new droid Daniel was controlling and tossed him into the air towards Cox.
This time however the men in Black were ready and the hum of a heavy frequency-based weapon filled the room.
Daniels airborne droid exploded into shrapnel and Daniel let out a scream.
Catherine opened her eyes to see Daniel collapsed on the floor. Alarm filled her "Are you okay?"
"I'm fine." He breathed. "All the pain.. Emitters on it went off at once that's all."
Catherine nodded and closed her eyes refocusing on the droid she was controlling.
Cox was already back on his feet and running through the hole in the wall.
He turned sharply to the left and disappeared from view.
Catherine ripped off her hat. "He's out of the building and he ran to the left!"
Stephanie faintly nodded. "We'll get him."
**
David Kel and Zephyr were through the dimensional door into the roiling battle that was now the courtroom. They brought up their shields and link them together as they begin charging down towards the podium.
"Alf protect our flank." David Kel shouted as they ran.
They slammed right into a role of men and the men went flying but neither Zephyr nor David Kel slowed as they ran straight for the back wall.
They hit the back wall with such force and power that the solid metal that formed it ripped apart like a cheap tin can.
David Kel and Zephyr came out right in front of Cox.
He stared at them in shock. Zephyr seized the opportunity and broke the shield link as she leapt at him and swung out with the shield.
The stunned Cox didn't have time to move and the shield smashed into his side and he went flying into a wall.
But to both David Kel's and Zephyr surprise the shield around Cox held. He sprung to his feet as his men poured out of the building and started to shoot at them forcing them to crouched down and relink their shields to protect themselves.
Without opening her eyes Stephanie shouted. "Steven what's up with his shield?"
"I don't know! My hands are full trying to deal with that weird object they stabbed into the podium!"
"I'll try to figure out! Alf send everything you have recorded on that shield to my counsel." Catherine stated. Instantly multiple screens appeared in front of her.
David Kel and Zephyr shields started to dim and they were forced into retreating behind a building.
"They have too many heavy weapons, are shields will not hold against the onslaught and they are expertly covering Cox's retreat." The
**
The man's retreating to protect Cox had allowed Alf to push the droids forward. Daniel seen an opening and he smiled as he took control of one of the droids off to the side of the podium.
The droid jumped out from behind its cover and dashed the few steps to the man that had the frequency-based weapon. In one swift movement Daniel's droid yanked the weapon from the man's hands then ripped it in half.
The man's eyes grew wide and he stared at the droid in horror as the droid grabbed the gun's core in its metal hand.
WaaaLooom! The core cried in an ear deafening wail that ended in a drumming echo.
Everything went white and Daniel quickly ripped his hat off.
**
David Kel peaked his head around the corner and watched in amazement as all the men in Black were sucked back into the courtroom then milliseconds later shot back out flying in all directions to slide to the ground unconscious.
"What just happened?!" Zephyr breathed.
"I believe Lord Maddog just lived up to his name." Alf answered his voice full of amusement.
"What?"
"No time to think about it right now! Cox is still getting away." David Kel shouted at her.
She didn't have to be told twice and both of them darted around the corner and dashed off after Cox jumping over the fallen and scattered men as they went.
They caught up to Cox and David Kel grabbed him by the back of the head and slammed him down face forward into the ground.
The man however simply bounced off the ground flipped head over heels and jump to his feet. The golden shimmer of his shield shining bright.
The crowd that had gathered in front of the courtroom was so large now that had spilled over to the side of the building and Cox seeing them ran into the mist as more of his men came into view.
"This is ridiculous." Michael complained.
Zephyr jumped flinging herself forward like a rocket and came down on the men in black. She batted a man with her left arm as she smashed another with the shield in her right hand. "Catherine please tell me you have something on that shield."
"I do but you're not going to like it. It's powered wirelessly and I believe it's directly tide into the grid. So either you have to hit him hard enough to break the shield in one go or take down the entire colony grid."
David Kel dashed into the crowd that were now pointing and gaping at him as he followed Cox. "What's that give us for options?"
"The Handy beam at 100% power aimed either at him or at one of the colonies main conduit."
"But if I take out the conduit on this colony it will leave a lot of people without power and possibly end with a lot of deaths!"
"Yes and if you hit Cox with it, with enough power to break through his shielding it will kill him."
Zephyr finished disabling the men in black and followed after David Kel. "So it's either us him or the people?"
"More or less."
Cox broke through the other side of the crowd and grabbed a girl that was no more than eight years old ripping her off her feet and away from her mother. "If you keep following me I will kill this girl!" He shouted back.
"Well then I choose him." David Kel answered as he reached back and grab Zephyr by the caller and threw her.
Zephyr flew inches over the heads of the crowd and landed on the other side of him a few feet in front of Cox. She rolled and came up in an uppercut that smashed into Cox's chin before he could possibly react.
He dropped the girl as he went flying into the air.
David Kel jerked the Handy beam off his back, aimed and pulled the trigger all in one swift motion.
A beam as bright as a star shot out and smashed into the flying target that was Cox.
The beam lasted for less than half a second but it broke through the shield surrounding him and left the 12 inch in diameter hole in the middle of his chest.
Haylik J Cox dropped to the ground dead.
The crowd became deathly still.
Zephyr gently picked up the little girl and handed her back to her mother. The mother smiled but couldn't bring herself to say anything.
David Kel walked towards Zephyr and the crowd parted without making so much as a noise.
Zephyr nodded at the crowd and her and David Kel picked up Cox's body walked around the corner of a nearby building and disappeared from view.
**
Fifteen minutes later Steven once again hit the button and his screens started to turn green signaling his hack was working.
"You sure it's safe to be doing this shouldn't we be moving the mobile station or something?" Daniel asked
"I am moving the mobile station. However I am rather sure it is not necessary seeing as your stunt completely obliterated the podium and all of its components making it rather impossible for anyone to use it to trace of us."
"O."
**
All the major news outlets in the sector Flickr black then showed David Kel standing were the podium in the courtroom used to be. This time however he was in the flesh not a hologram.
The cameras zoomed out and he said, "I'm sorry for the interruption but as you can see." He waved at the disaster around him. "We were attacked. I do believe however that you all as the jury have received sufficient information to make a decision. As such the court will adjourn for the stated amount of time during which you the jury will be able to signify your conclusion using the contact information on the screen now."
A man wearing a police uniform made his way through all three security doors into the courtroom. "Wait. Before you leave we would like to have statement on the man you just gunned down in front of thousands."
Michael opened his eyes and looked at Alf and the giant lion nodded. "It is a fair request so I let him in."
Michael closed his eyes and David Kel took a deep breath "His name was Haylik J Cox the real man in control of your government. He held Almon's and Winkler's lease and was responsible for a list of crimes as long as this court room is wide. His younger half-brother is providing us with a lot of the details which are already being forwarding to your records. We hope this and other information we are adding to your database will enable you to solve a lot more crimes and take down what remains of the criminal organizations in your sector. If you so choose to do that is."
The officer looked at the ground for a few seconds then he stood up straight and met David Kel's eyes. "Thank you we will look into it."
The man turned and walked out of the courtroom.
"Court adjourned." David Kel announce formally.
**
"That's it times up. Toair's automated systems just shut down the voting what's the final count?" Daniel asked.
Catherine looked up from her screen. "For president Winkler Approximately 46 billion votes guilty and 16 billion votes not guilty."
Daniel whistled. "I didn't even realize there is that many people in this sector."
"Actually Daniel there is around 83 billion people in this sector." Catherine told him.
"What's the vote count for the vice president?" Michael asked.
Catherine looked back down at the screen and shook her head disapprovingly. "Only about 1 million guilty and less than 100,000 not guilty."
"I guess most people either forgot about him or thought it wasn't necessary to vote after he more or less admitted he was guilty." Steven said.
"All right Steven are you ready to hack the networks again?" Stephanie asked.
"No need there's hundreds of reporters with cameras already in the courtroom and I have a few drones in there with hollow projectors."
Michael nodded and put on a hat
**
A lifelike hologram of David Kel appeared standing were the podium used to be.
Thousands of lights and flashes started and David Kel had to raise his voice above their noise. "I am certain all of you have already seen the results of the jury verdict. As such this court must find and has found both vice president Almon and president Winkler guilty of the charges against them."
David Kel looked down at the mass of reporters taking pictures and recording his statement. He swallowed. "To be honest I don't enjoy having to proclaim their sentence. If I could I would just send them to a prison planet where they can live out the rest the lives and not hurt anyone but the blood on their hands cries out for greater punishment. As such I sentence them to public execution effective immediately.
A hologram of both guilty parties holding cells appeared side-by-side. Almon sat in his cell staring down at his hands with tears in his eyes. President Winkler on the other hand was angrily walking back and forth clenching and unclenching his fist.
Alf's voice spoke over one of the drones speakers "A vaporized substance like morphine is being pumped in to their cells now. It will slowly deaden their feelings then stop the bodily functions and they will lay down and fall asleep to never wake again."
The mist was completely invisible its effect however was apparent. Both of the prisoners movements became slower and eventually Almon sat back and president Winkler sat against one of his cells walls and leaned his head forward.
A few minutes later neither were moving anymore.
David Kel nodded to the reporters than him and the two other holograms disappeared.
**
Michael took off his hat. "Alf you didn't really kill them did you?"
"No sir they're just asleep like you asked."
"Good then drop them and all the prisoners we have onto the prison planets wherever you see fit. Though I think Almon has repented some so give him a decent place to live."
"Are you sure sir? In lionhearted law they deserve death."
"I know but I already have one man's blood on my hands today. I don't wish to add to it."
"Agreed." Stephanie stated firmly.
"Understood."