Europe Has Fallen

by Gouriet, Andrew

  The priest in command rode over to the bald man and whispered something to him. The bald man shouted out in a strange dialect to the beasts and then unleashed them.

  They sprang into life and raced after the main convoy. Their speed was frightening. Both heads roared together as they pursued their victims.

  The main convoy was going as fast as it could, but their pursuers were gaining ground. Soldiers on foot started to fall back; carrying heavy rifles and backpacks was taking its toll. Major Richmond had a plan: if he sacrificed several wagons to block the pass, there would be more time for the others to get away. However, this would mean some soldiers staying at the barricade for as long as possible.

  Major Richmond had to think quickly. He rode alongside Von Bloch and told him his idea, stressing how it had to be mounted soldiers at the barricade as they would have the best chance of escape afterwards.

  Most of the mounted men were Austrian and Captain Egger volunteered to command them at the pass. This discussion was carried out at speed. They would have to pick three wagons to be sacrificed. Two of the earmarked wagons were semi-loaded with non-essential supplies; the other was full of chickens and a couple of goats.

  Captain Egger rode to the front and stopped the convoy and the order was shouted out in Austrian and English. The soldiers set about moving the wagons into place. The chickens and goats were set free. One of the Austrian soldiers led the horses further down the pass. They would have to run to them to escape once the barrier could no longer hold the horde.

  A minute passed as the last of the convoy trundled out of sight. The Austrians pressed up against the wagons. Captain Egger gave the order to turn them over and use any loose debris to help fill any gaps. It was not the best barrier ever made, but it was something.

  Two of the Austrians Engineers had grenades. They had been instructed to use them wisely as there were not that many to spare.

  The soldiers settled down behind the overturned wagons and each brought their rifle up and looked down the sights. At first, nothing, but slowly a sea of bodies came their way. They were moving with purpose and at a good speed, groaning and snapping as they advanced.

  One soldier started to move away from his position, but a short rasping voice brought him back.

  “Aim for the heads, just like the giant wolves.” said Captain Egger.

  They held fire until Captain Egger gave the order. At three hundred yards he shouted out, “Fire!” The thunderous sound of nineteen soldiers firing at once was powerful. The others, travelling ahead in the convoy, looked at each other and hoped for the best.

  The bullets ripped into the first row. Some hit cleanly into the oncoming horde, sending them smashing to the ground. Bits of flesh were flung out as the bullets blasted their intended victims. The headshot beasts did not get up but the others started to rise again.

  Captain Egger did not waste any time in giving the order for two grenades to be thrown. As the flesh-eaters closed in, the grenades had a devastating effect on their tightly packed ranks.

  He then gave the order to fire at will. This was broken only for grenades to be thrown. It was having a telling effect. The creatures had not attacked them en masse and most had fallen for Captain Hayward’s decoy.

  For a split second the soldiers almost felt guilty about shooting at these poor souls staggering towards them. They looked human to a degree but rotting flesh and oversized teeth distorted their natural human look.

  The horde in front of them stopped.

  Captain Egger told his men to keep firing and to make the most of this stationary target. They had two grenades left. As they were firing and reloading, a powerful roar bellowed out. It was louder than the gunshots.

  Then, bursting forward through the masses, the bears appeared. Even Captain Egger was taken aback by their size and shape. He imagined the people attacking them to be some sort of plague victims, but these giants with their two heads were monsters.

  He was frozen to the spot just like his men. The bears came forward at great speed and were upon the barrier within a blink of an eye. Some soldiers had started shooting at them, but it was difficult to get a head shot – and there were two heads to aim for.

  Captain Egger gave the order to retreat as the animals smashed into the wagons, spinning them around with their sheer size and weight. One bear reared up and came down, smashing a wagon to pieces. It lashed out as a soldier reached forward and stuck his bayonet into the beast’s chest. It recoiled, only to come round and grab the man with one of its mouths. The giant jaws crushed him, sending blood spraying out over his comrades.

  Captain Egger grabbed the two grenades whilst his men fought the bears.

  He had only one plan left.

  With a quick strike of a match he lit both grenades. He then shouted at his men to fall back. He took himself past the shattered wagon and dodged two bear heads as they snapped at him.

  Three more bears moved around him, eyes focusing on their victim, mouths drawn wide open revealing razor-sharp teeth. With seconds to spare, he ran into the side of one of the bears. This made the other two lunge at him: it was all too late.

  Captain Egger looked up before being blown to smithereens. It had a dramatic effect on the three bears around him, taking off legs and heads. The other bears bore some of the brunt of the explosion, but not enough to stop them attacking the retreating soldiers.

  The remaining bears continued to drive forward, snapping at anything in their way. The flesh-eaters started to flow through the broken barricade and join in the pursuit of the soldiers.

  One soldier shot an advancing bear in the head with magnificent accuracy, but unfortunately, as he reloaded, the second head clamped down on his shoulders, biting through flesh and bone in one quick swoop. The bear’s dead head slumped to the side of the animal. It did not hinder it in any way.

  Some of the men were able to escape back to the horses and quickly mounted them. They turned and rode to help their fellow soldiers who were been set upon by bears and flesh-eaters.

  A soldier ducked as a huge claw came at him but then fell victim to a flesh-eater’s bite to his leg, which sent him crashing to the ground. He tried to get back up but another flesh-eater launched itself at him.

  Two soldiers at his side opened fire, killing his attackers. The problem was that ten to fifteen more were now moving in on him. Their eyes were transfixed on their meal. They moved with a desperate hunger that totally controlled them. It did not take long before he was being swarmed over by flesh-eaters biting at his body with long nails and sharp teeth. They looked almost human in appearance, but something had changed them to make them hunger for human flesh.

  The speed with which they ripped open his chest and gorged on his intestines was shocking to those around. Biting him all over, his face, hands, his legs, he was literally being eaten in front of his fellow men.

  The mounted Austrians arrived with the spare horses and gathered those they could. This was a complex operation as one of the bears was taking a man and a horse with each of his two mouths and flinging them into the bushes at the side of the highway.

  A burly Austrian soldier with an adapted breech-loading Lorenzo rifle shot dead the bear with only one functioning head. As it hit the ground a cloud of dust rose up, giving the fleeing Austrians extra time to mount up.

  A couple of men were being torn apart by the creatures. It was like ants defending their nest the way the horde streamed on top of them. The burly soldier did his best to help, shooting one in the head and bayoneting another in the face. He knocked over two with his rifle butt and crushed their skulls in two swift, downward strikes.

  As he turned to hit it, another a bear knocked his rifle out of his hand and sent him flying into the grass. A flesh-eater sprang forward to attack its victim as he lay stranded for a moment. The bear, though, got there first and with a quick swipe of its paw, the flesh-eater was sent off the highway. The other flesh-eaters hung back; the bear had full command. Both its heads bellowed at the
horde and it then moved its giant frame forward.

  The soldier had got to his feet and saw an opportunity to retreat. A mounted soldier took aim and shot from his horse, hitting the giant bear in the neck. He had another horse and was holding it ready for the burly man, who managed to grab a rein and start moving without even saddling up.

  The remaining bears charged after them with anger and pace, but the soldiers kept their speed and galloped away. Whilst the bears were fast over short bursts, their stamina was not for sprinting.

  Ten men had perished in the defence of the highway. Captain Egger’s sacrifice had given the others time to escape and they all hoped their losses were not in vain.

  The main group had reached the wooden bridge over the River Uzh. The highway was now streaming with flesh-eaters making their way along it on the scent of the convoy. The remaining bears were also trekking along towards their next meal.

  The dead soldiers had, by now, been stripped to the bone by the bears and flesh-eaters.

  Captain Hayward had not seen the collapse of the barricade. They still had a massive army of flesh-eaters on their tail. They also had the long-limbed creatures chasing them. They were faster due to the fact they could go on all fours.

  He had taken his party of four to the edge of the dead forest. It was huge and its thick fallen trees, mixed in with dead standing ones created a spiked jungle. Captain Hayward had no other choice than to dismount with his men. They led the horses into the forest, with the flesh-eaters not too far behind. This route would take them longer to get to the bridge, but he had no other choice.

  Von Bloch sat on his horse by the bridge. The defence of the pass had given them time to cross at a steady rate. He rode over to Major Richmond and had a brief discussion. An order went up for dynamite to be placed in the middle of the bridge and under any struts where possible. Time was of the essence.

  The convoy waited on the other side. Heidi looked at John who was helping unload barrels of gunpowder. The Engineers wasted no time in setting up explosives and felt confident they could destroy the bridge.

  It would certainly give them time to escape with the river swollen from the melting snow. This aside, their thoughts were with the soldiers still out there. They had no idea of what had happened on the pass or to Captain Hayward moving through the dead forest. The next crossing was fifteen miles further along the river.

  The icy water licked at the banks and the old wooden bridge creaked a little under the weight of people on it. Corporal Smith lined up twenty British soldiers. They did not fix bayonets to their Martini-Henry rifles; this was going to be covering fire. The other Engineers continued working to destroy the bridge.

  In the distance, horses could be seen galloping towards them at speed. A mounted rider was on the pass to check on the incoming riders. He could see their numbers were reduced.

  The men arrived at the bridge with Corporal Heinz there to greet them. The sorry news broke of Captain Egger sacrificing himself to save them. It was also pointed out there was not much time as the horde was coming.

  The horses were tired and needed to drink and rest. General Von Bloch rode up to the men and saluted their efforts.

  “Take the horses to the other side and give them water.”

  He reflected on the dead Austrians. Captain Egger had been a promising young officer. His courage was what the Austrians had needed. He thought back to the Austro–Prussian war and the men who had perished in that conflict.

  In the distance he could see a roaming dust cloud; they were coming and they were hungry.

  The general was the last man on the other side of the bridge. His thoughts were all about what to do next. Major Richmond joined him. Both horses snorted as they stood side by side. One scratched its hoof into the dusty road.

  Von Bloch looked at the major.

  “Your men are on the other side; it will decrease their chances of survival if we destroy the bridge.”

  “If we don’t blow the bridge, those things will kill us in a blink of an eye.”

  General Von Bloch was glad it was Major Richmond making the decision about cutting his men off. He, too, knew it was their only chance.

  As the rambling flesh-eaters came closer and closer, the giant bears appeared on the foothills to the side of the highway. Five bears had been slain, but that still left five more.

  Amongst them rode a black robed figure. They were too far away to shoot, but it gave the soldiers their first taste of who was leading this assault against them. Four more robed riders appeared next to the figure.

  Chapter 6

  “We must blow the bridge now.” said Major Richmond.

  He then rode onto the bridge, dismounted and spoke to the Engineers setting the charges.

  General Von Bloch rode back to the other side and lined up a row of Austrian soldiers next to the British line.

  The long-limbed creatures were gathering pace and closing in on the bridge, their mouths were open and teeth gleaming in the sunlight. They were making a whinnying, hissing sound as they moved forward. It was an eerie noise that unsettled everyone.

  The speed with which they approached was enough to make Corporal Smith call out to his men to get ready and wait for his command to fire.

  The distance of their approach slipped away and the terrible army of flesh-eaters eventually descending onto the bridge.

  “Wait...”

  “Wait...”

  “FIRE!”

  The volley of bullets was accurate and unforgiving. The long-limbed creatures buckled under the piercing rounds. Heads exploded, limbs were blown off and creatures crashed into each other. Then the Austrians opened fire, and that, too, had a devastating effect, scattering many of the attacking creatures.

  The problem was, the numbers kept coming. Behind them followed the flesh-eaters, hundreds upon hundreds of them.

  Major Richmond did not let too many get onto the bridge before allowing the fuses to be lit. The remaining soldiers were also firing from the banks, stopping the horde from fully crossing.

  They had all moved back a fair distance from the crossing. It only took seconds before the burning fuses leapt into the dynamite, blowing the bridge into millions of pieces and sending debris hurtling into the air. The Austrians and British took cover as shards fell from the skies.

  Once the smoke had settled down, the flesh-eaters were left hissing and groaning on the other side of the river. Some had tried to get across only to be swept away by ferocious water.

  The soldiers started firing on them again. They were easy targets, stationary and trapped. The bullets found their targets with ease. Head shots were not always possible, though, and those that missed resulted in the flesh-eater getting back up on its feet.

  General Von Bloch gave the order to cease fire and save bullets. The five robed riders had now disappeared from the hill and the creatures started to move along the riverbank. This was enough to convince the general they were heading for the other crossing, fifteen miles downriver.

  With that the convoy turned and headed down the highway towards Unghvar. The civilians had already started to move in that direction, towards garrison waiting there to help fight this devilish army.

  Captain Hayward was still leading his four men through the dead forest. It was so silent; every twig or branch snapping made them wary of an attack. They faced a situation where moving at speed would be difficult. They had all heard the loud bang whilst passing through the forest. In the back of the captain’s mind he wondered whether they had destroyed the wooden bridge.

  He made sure they kept to the outskirts of the forest as well as they could. He had a small map showing the forest and the pass. It also detailed the area around the river and the crossing points. If the bridge was gone they would have to cross further down the highway.

  The men were talking quietly amongst themselves when a raucous roar smashed through the dense forest. It was followed by hundreds of cries and snarling. The forest felt alive behind them. The breaking
of branches and twigs became louder.

  Captain Hayward looked at his men. The look was a simple: “We must move faster or perish in this forest.”

  Sergeant Butcher stopped the group.

  “Fire, sir. Why don’t we light the forest? It’s incredibly dry and we haven’t had rain for weeks.”

  They all paused. It had been a freakishly dry period and everything looked combustible.

  “Excellent, let’s see what we can do.” said Captain Hayward.

  None of them knew the distance between themselves and the horde, but it would give them time if the smoke or flames deterred the attackers.

  Some of the soldiers had oil which was normally reserved for the lamps. The captain thought this would be a start and got the men to spread out, twenty metres apart. The dead wood lying around was too large, but there were enough small branches and twigs to gather and light. The oil would speed things up.

  It did not take them long to light several fires, the floor matter, a mixture of twigs and branches and dried long grass quickly catching alight.

  The fire spread along the ground faster than they anticipated. The smoke would be a problem if the wind changed in their direction. Captain Hayward made sure all four of them gathered together and then led their horses towards the highway. The creatures behind could be heard hissing and coughing as the smoke drifted their way.

  Some sounds were stronger than others, some booming, some quiet. All of them filled the forest with life. The fire only added to this, crackling and popping away. It was time they needed and time is what they achieved.

  It took an hour or two before they reached the edge of the forest. They had not gone into the depths and this now paid dividends as they came out into the daylight. The smoke had started to drift, allowing them more cover than anything else.

  They mounted up and started to ride. Captain Hayward had explained the second bridge was further down the highway and he hoped they would meet the others heading towards the city.