09-25-2015, 10:46 AM
“They never learn,” the Judge growled, his voice rough like two slates of concrete grinding together.
The streets of the upper tiers had seemingly been overrun with crime, though not through the fault of the security forces on the lower tiers. Instead, swaths of new and inexperienced Primes had begun to flood the Gate. The troopers couldn’t keep up with the influx, despite their training and equipment.
In his career, the Judge had always been reluctant to put law enforcement in place that might endanger the innocent people of the sector. He had always been reluctant to use them.
Their fanatical devotion and overwhelming predilection towards violence made them a clear and present risk in the Judge’s eyes. However, with each new breach, with every fallen trooper, every innocent that died at the hands of some madman from another world, it became more and more clear that more drastic measured needed to be used. With multiple suspects of unknown origin and strength, with at least one having tactical experience, it seemed an appropriate time to test their discretion.
The Judge’s motorcycle filled the streets with the sound of its thunderous engine, whipping past cars and pedestrians as he made his way to the scene of the crime. “Control, this is Judge Dredd. Clear the area of all civilians and move all available troopers to create a perimeter. I want snipers on every point of egress. I don’t want anyone or anything entering or leaving that sector.”
A woman’s voice calmly echoed in his helmet, “Judge, this is Control, good copy, over. Reinforcements are en route.”
As he passed the edge of the sector’s territory, he brought the cycle to a stop. He brought his gauntleted arm up in front of his face and calmly opened a metallic seal above his wrist. Typing in a long serial code, he cleared the multi-tiered securities he had put in place. After a long beep, a choppy digital voice chimed, “Confirm identity.”
“Judge Dredd, badge number Zero, Zero, Zero, One.”
“Identity confirmed,” the machine submitted, “Channel now open.”
The man’s perpetual scowl somehow grew deeper as he paused. “Drop-Pod to sector T One point Oh Seven.”
The population’s panic was suppressed by the static-filtered voices of the Stormtroopers, their blasters brandished to wrangle every pedestrian from the sidewalks, some cleared road traffic while others barred the doors of the many hundred-story towers that would have taken too long to evacuate. Any communication that didn’t carry the EPD encryption was forcibly shut down. The streets were still and quiet but tension pulled the air taught, ready to explode into conflict at any moment.
Far above them, the sky echoed with a distant boom. Eyes looked up, searching the heavens for the source. A hushed terror washed over the citizens and the troopers alike as a tear-shaped pod erupted from the clouds, the descent-thrusters kicking off just after it came into view. Several people fled as the object plummeted down, shrieks and yells now bouncing from the tall structures of Tier 1.
The drop-pod hit the ground and, even with the thrusters, it struck with enough force to shatter the earth below it, creating a crater at least twenty feet across. The five tall, triangular gates that made up each wall of the craft hissed and opened, folding away from the pentagonal core like a lotus petals in the center of the smoldering pit it had created.
From within, four massive creatures rushed out at speeds which belied their bulky, thick-plated exteriors. Each set of power-armor was dark blue with massive, white Omega symbols marking their left shoulders, a glorious golden eagle on the right. Large, red, wax seals were pressed over their armor and weapons, long strips of litany-scribed parchment fluttering in the heat-generated breeze. Skulls, wings and olive wreaths were a motif in their ornately decorated suits, and the uncaring, dead eyes of their helms glowed a baleful crimson.
The Ultra Marines’ commander swept his hand over the scene as his squad took up their positions, and through the vox that was implanted in his throat he screamed, “FOR THE EMPEROR!”
The streets of the upper tiers had seemingly been overrun with crime, though not through the fault of the security forces on the lower tiers. Instead, swaths of new and inexperienced Primes had begun to flood the Gate. The troopers couldn’t keep up with the influx, despite their training and equipment.
In his career, the Judge had always been reluctant to put law enforcement in place that might endanger the innocent people of the sector. He had always been reluctant to use them.
Their fanatical devotion and overwhelming predilection towards violence made them a clear and present risk in the Judge’s eyes. However, with each new breach, with every fallen trooper, every innocent that died at the hands of some madman from another world, it became more and more clear that more drastic measured needed to be used. With multiple suspects of unknown origin and strength, with at least one having tactical experience, it seemed an appropriate time to test their discretion.
The Judge’s motorcycle filled the streets with the sound of its thunderous engine, whipping past cars and pedestrians as he made his way to the scene of the crime. “Control, this is Judge Dredd. Clear the area of all civilians and move all available troopers to create a perimeter. I want snipers on every point of egress. I don’t want anyone or anything entering or leaving that sector.”
A woman’s voice calmly echoed in his helmet, “Judge, this is Control, good copy, over. Reinforcements are en route.”
As he passed the edge of the sector’s territory, he brought the cycle to a stop. He brought his gauntleted arm up in front of his face and calmly opened a metallic seal above his wrist. Typing in a long serial code, he cleared the multi-tiered securities he had put in place. After a long beep, a choppy digital voice chimed, “Confirm identity.”
“Judge Dredd, badge number Zero, Zero, Zero, One.”
“Identity confirmed,” the machine submitted, “Channel now open.”
The man’s perpetual scowl somehow grew deeper as he paused. “Drop-Pod to sector T One point Oh Seven.”
-----
The population’s panic was suppressed by the static-filtered voices of the Stormtroopers, their blasters brandished to wrangle every pedestrian from the sidewalks, some cleared road traffic while others barred the doors of the many hundred-story towers that would have taken too long to evacuate. Any communication that didn’t carry the EPD encryption was forcibly shut down. The streets were still and quiet but tension pulled the air taught, ready to explode into conflict at any moment.
Far above them, the sky echoed with a distant boom. Eyes looked up, searching the heavens for the source. A hushed terror washed over the citizens and the troopers alike as a tear-shaped pod erupted from the clouds, the descent-thrusters kicking off just after it came into view. Several people fled as the object plummeted down, shrieks and yells now bouncing from the tall structures of Tier 1.
The drop-pod hit the ground and, even with the thrusters, it struck with enough force to shatter the earth below it, creating a crater at least twenty feet across. The five tall, triangular gates that made up each wall of the craft hissed and opened, folding away from the pentagonal core like a lotus petals in the center of the smoldering pit it had created.
From within, four massive creatures rushed out at speeds which belied their bulky, thick-plated exteriors. Each set of power-armor was dark blue with massive, white Omega symbols marking their left shoulders, a glorious golden eagle on the right. Large, red, wax seals were pressed over their armor and weapons, long strips of litany-scribed parchment fluttering in the heat-generated breeze. Skulls, wings and olive wreaths were a motif in their ornately decorated suits, and the uncaring, dead eyes of their helms glowed a baleful crimson.
The Ultra Marines’ commander swept his hand over the scene as his squad took up their positions, and through the vox that was implanted in his throat he screamed, “FOR THE EMPEROR!”