Gunz

by William Stacey

  "Fire from the prone position, lying on your belly," Paco told Elizabeth. "You'll be more accurate."

  "I can't see over the grass when I'm lying down."

  "You won't hit anything kneeling. Besides, they'll get closer soon enough."

  He pulled out his packet of cigarettes, tore the filters from a bunch of them, then handed two each to Elizabeth and Leela. "Stick 'em in your ears. Push 'em in deep." He demonstrated, shoving two butts into his ears.

  Elizabeth did as she was told, discovering she could still hear but all the sounds were muted now. She pushed the butts in a bit deeper, remembering how her ears had hurt after she'd killed the hellhounds on the railroad bridge.

  Soon, she could make out individual enemy soldiers. They were the same four-armed, fish-faced warriors that had guarded the dark elf's fortress on Rubicon. Intermingled among them were dozens of the massive armored trolls that stood at least ten feet tall and must have weighed five hundred pounds each. Her chest tightened with fear. On Rubicon, she had seen one of those beasts cut a task force soldier in two with a single swing of a massive ax. Packs of hellhounds ran ahead of the army, some spread out into the fields, but as yet, she didn't think the enemy knew they were hiding in the trees. The closest of the hellhounds was some three hundred meters away.

  "Get ready," Paco said softly.

  She dropped onto her belly, put her rifle to her shoulder, and aimed through its scope. She could just see them over the grass.

  "Steady," said Paco softly. "Let them come closer."

  A shot rang out, startling everyone, followed by several more, echoing through the trees. The enemy army seemed to waver. "Damn it!" swore Paco. "Fire, fire, fire!" he yelled. "Give 'em hell!"

  Gunshots cracked all along the tree line. Elizabeth fired, not knowing if she hit anything or not. In the confusion, she couldn't pick out individuals, so instead she put round after round into the confused huddle of enemy soldiers. In minutes, the stench of cordite was overpowering, and they could clearly hear howls of pain and rage drifting across the field. The rain began to fall more heavily. Her weapon stopped firing, and she canted it to the left, seeing the breech was fully to the rear—the weapon was empty. She hit the magazine release and let the plastic magazine fall then inserted another nearly full one, making sure it was seated properly. She was amazed at how calm she was, as if she were only on the range again. She depressed the bolt-release button, letting the breech slam forward, inserting another round into the firing chamber, then smashed the forward assist with her right palm. She took aim and began firing again.

  The hellhounds disappeared into the tall grass, hopefully dead. The enemy on the highway fell apart, their cohesion shattered under the barrage of gunfire. She heard shouts, perhaps the enemy's commanders trying to force order onto the chaos, but the defenders kept up their fire. Elizabeth's weapon ran out once more, and she ejected another magazine then quickly reloaded and put more aimed fire on the enemy. Then she loaded a fourth. How many is that? Four mags? Five? No, more than that. I used an entire magazine on the bridge. Earlier that morning, ten magazines had seemed an absurdly large amount of ammunition. Now she wished she had ten more.

  Some of the enemy tried to run into the field and form ranks, but the cascade of constant gunfire cut them down. How many have we killed? Dozens? Hundreds?

  One of the hellhounds burst out of the tall grass not twenty feet ahead of her. She channeled, exploding its head with a lightning bolt. It fell, skidding to a halt on its belly, its head a smoldering ruin. Leela stared at her in wonder. "Oh, man, you need to show me how to do that!"

  "Later," Elizabeth yelled back. "You can show me the shields at the same time."

  Several trolls charged through the grass, screaming in rage. The defenders focused fire on them, staggering them under the barrage. Paco put down the last one, a ten-foot-tall brute with large tusks and chain-mail armor covering its tree-trunk-like chest. Paco howled in victory. Clyde joined in, barking furiously. "You're not so tough, you ugly bitches. We hunt grizzly bears here!"

  The enemy attack faltered, quickly turning into a rout as the terrified four-armed warriors bolted back up the highway.

  "Hold fire! Hold fire!" Paco yelled. "Save your ammo for when they come back." He ran down the line, repeating the order. It took almost a minute for him to get the last man to stop shooting, but when he did, an eerie silence drifted through the woods. Even the rain stopped now, and the sun broke through the clouds, shining down upon the defenders. The air stank of gunfire, blood, and smoke.

  The defenders cheered. Elizabeth joined them. Leela hugged her, her face beaming. Not only were they still alive, but they had driven the enemy back.

  For now.

  22

  It took more than an hour for the enemy to return, but shortly after 2:00 p.m., they did. Elizabeth watched them come, more cautiously this time and with far greater cohesion, avoiding the constricted highway and choosing instead to climb over the hills, fanning out across the length of the grassy field at extreme rifle range. Paco ordered everyone to hold fire rather than waste precious ammunition. Elizabeth peered through her binoculars, seeing the flash of sunlight from the weapons of the enemy.

  She had used an entire bandoleer of ammunition and was now down to her last four magazines, which meant she'd need to carefully pick each target and make every remaining bullet count. The other volunteers were even worse off. This was the north, and most people kept hunting rifles in their homes, but hunters didn't expect to engage in firefights, and even sharing what ammunition remained, there wouldn't be enough.

  Corinna, Constable Trotter, was in radio contact with those helping to move the civilians across the bridge. As expected, many people refused to leave their vehicles, but once the shooting had started, even the most die-hard changed their minds. Paco had spread the word that when they could no longer maintain enough fire to hold back the enemy, he'd give the order for the volunteers to pull back to several dozen pickup trucks parked behind the copse of trees. Then they'd race down to the bridge as well as they could.

  The wind shifted, and the stench of death filled Elizabeth's mouth. The blood on her hands sickened her, yet they had saved lives as well—that had to count for something. Surely, God would forgive her. She felt that same rush of euphoria she had while assaulting the dark elf fortress on Rubicon. What's wrong with me?

  The four-armed warriors moved steadily forward under drumbeat, marching as a mass.

  "Hold fire this time!" Paco yelled. "I swear I'll kick the shit out of anyone who shoots before I give the order."

  Fear clawed through her, and her mouth went dry. She focused on her breathing, on maintaining calm, despite the pounding of her heart. "You are a lioness," she whispered. Her aiming arrow through the sight rose and fell upon the center of mass of one of the four-armed spear-carrying warriors, his bulging round eyes seemingly staring right at her. Each time she inhaled, the arrow rose. When she exhaled, it lowered. Does it want to be here, or did the dark elves make it come to our world?

  Does it even matter?

  "Fire!" Paco yelled.

  Time froze, and silence hung over the moment, as if everyone were holding his or her breath. Then the first rifle shot cracked loudly, shattering the calm. A cascade of rifle shots rippled along the tree line, and the enemy ranks faltered as those in front were cut apart. Elizabeth let her targeting arrow fall once more on her target, then holding her breath, she calmly squeezed the trigger. The rifle jerked in her grip, and her target dropped.

  Another life ended.

  She selected another target and took aim again. The front ranks fell apart under aimed rifle fire, but those marching behind quickly plugged the holes, keeping the momentum going. The drums pounded inexorably, urging the advancing warriors forward. Hundreds of enemy warriors spread out before them, scores of ranks deep. She fired nonstop, pausing only to acquire a new target. Soon, she burned through another two magazines. The closer they came, the harder it was to miss. T
he enemy's front rank was now within two hundred meters, close enough to see their fish-like bulbous eyes and needle teeth without the scopes.

  She glanced down the line, assessing the situation. Hundreds of spent brass cartridges lay scattered all about, and the volume of fire was slowing. We can't hold, Elizabeth realized. We need to pull—

  A thunderous roar swept up from behind them, taking her completely by surprise. Her heart leaped into her throat in terror, and for a moment, she thought the dragon had come back to burn them all. Then, in a flash of dark green, the first army helicopter burst over the trees, with a dozen more flying behind it in formation. They had been flying so close to the treetops, no one had heard them before they arrived.

  The army!

  She recognized the CH-146 Griffins in a moment; there had been three stationed at the Magic Kingdom. The helicopters swept over the trees, putting themselves between the volunteers and the enemy. Griffins were primarily tactical transport helicopters, she knew, tasked with carrying troops and equipment, but these had belt-fed C6 machine-guns mounted in their open doorways. The defenders cheered as the formation of helicopters abruptly slowed and banked, positioning the door gunners to face the enemy warriors. All at once, the door gunners opened up with their weapons. Long bursts of 7.62mm machine-gun fire cut through the enemy. Spent casings fell behind the helicopters, glittering like rain.

  The cavalry had finally arrived—just in time.

  The noise was deafening, even with cigarette butts rammed in her ears. The enemy warriors screamed in pain and terror, helpless against this slaughter. Their ranks fell apart. One particularly large troll spun in place like a top, its massive chest shredded.

  A chill coursed through her when someone suddenly channeled mana!

  Orange flames blossomed within one of the helicopters. The aircraft's nose dipped, then it fell, plummeting to the ground to explode in a ball of fire. The heat caused her to turn her face away. When she could look again, dense clouds of black smoke obscured her sight. Someone else channeled mana, and two more helicopters fell out of the sky, trailing flames.

  The dark-elf mages! They're here. But where?

  She looked about wildly, seeing nothing.

  Cassie would know where they are.

  Three more helicopters crashed in flames. The remaining Griffins banked, their turbines roaring as the pilots increased their power and began to fly away.

  No!

  Then she realized where the mana use was coming from—directly above them. They're invisible, she realized, her blood running cold. Of course they're invisible. Cassie can do it—why not them?

  Flames suddenly appeared inside one of the fleeing helicopters, blossoming out of the open doorway in the cargo compartment. A charred door gunner fell lifelessly, tumbling as he dropped through the air. The helicopter exploded, sending burning pieces of metal showering upon the trees.

  Elizabeth concentrated on the sky where the mana-use felt strongest. Holding her rifle by the pistol grip, she channeled a bolt of lightning into the sky, lashing it across the air like a whip. The end of the arc exploded in a shower of sparks a hundred feet above her. A moment later, one of the giant winged lizards appeared, twisting and shrieking in pain as it banked away. A small form fell from its saddle—a dark-elf mage!

  The other mages must have felt Elizabeth channel, because seconds later, a fireball the size of a car appeared in the air, hurtling straight at her. She screamed, her fear paralyzing her. The fireball enveloped her—but she didn't burn. The flames cascaded around her, washing over an invisible dome barrier. The flames scorched away the surrounding vegetation but left those around her—Paco, Leela, and Corinna—unscathed. Leela stood in front of her, her hands out before her, still channeling mana.

  She had made a shield.

  Two more fireballs came roaring at them, as well as a bolt of lightning, but Leela's shield stopped them as well. Now, though, she looked over her shoulder, the strain obvious on her face. "We need to go!"

  "Pull back!" Paco yelled. "Everybody head for the bridge!"

  The enemy surged forward once more, running past the smoking remains of the burning Griffins. Four hellhounds, flames trailing from their jaws, bounded forward. Elizabeth slung her rifle and pulled two of the hand grenades from her bandoleer. She pulled the pins and used magic to levitate them straight into the hellhounds then caught the first hellhound in a telekinesis weave, causing it to stumble and fall, tripping the others as well. "Grenade!" she screamed, dropping down and covering her head.

  Both grenades went off, throwing hellhounds and parts of hellhounds into the air. The explosions were not what she had been expecting, smaller and accompanied by black smoke, without the orange fireball you see in the movies, but her ears still rang, and shrapnel tore through the trees around her, ripping pieces of leaves loose. Leela, still channeling her shield, blocked the jagged shards of metal. One of the hellhounds stumbled forward, trailing blood, but Clyde launched himself upon it, ripping its throat open.

  Paco grabbed Elizabeth's arm and thrust her back from the oncoming enemy. "Get to the truck. We're done here!"

  She stumbled away, pausing only to grab her backpack as she ran. Paco and Leela ran with her, with Clyde coming last, staying only long enough to bark furiously at the approaching warriors. More fireballs erupted along the wood line, accompanied by the screams of burning men and women. Fear twisted Elizabeth's gut, threatening to overwhelm her. Her vision tunneled in on Paco's truck ahead of them. If she got to the truck, she'd get away. If she didn't, she'd burn.

  Thick black smoke billowed before her, choking her. She channeled air, sweeping away the smoke. She saw Corinna throw herself in the front of a nearby RCMP cruiser with three other men and take off, dirt and clumps of grass flying behind the cruiser's wheels as it sped toward the highway. Elizabeth risked a quick glance back to see the enemy was already in the copse of trees, hacking away at anyone who still fought. One of the defenders, a hunter who had been running toward her, suddenly fell forward, a crossbow bolt embedded in the back of his head. A troll speared a woman through the back with a lance the size of a flagpole then lifted her thrashing body into the air. Elizabeth channeled a lightning bolt into the troll, killing it and the woman in a searing flash. Crossbow bolts whipped out of the trees, several rebounding as they struck Leela's invisible barrier behind them.

  Elizabeth reached Paco's truck.

  "Get in the bed!" Paco yelled. He stood at the open driver's-side door, looking back. "Clyde? Where are you?"

  She, Leela, and two others, including the mayor, jumped into the bed of the truck. "There he is!" Leela yelled as the German shepherd burst out of the trees, pursued by a half dozen hellhounds who were almost on him.

  Elizabeth channeled, picking the dog up and pulling him away from the hellhounds. The terrified dog yelped, his legs pumping wildly as he flew toward them. Elizabeth dropped him onto Leela's lap, and the young woman grasped the dog, wrapping her arms around his neck. Elizabeth pounded the truck window with her fist. "He's safe. Go!"

  Paco gunned the engine, roaring away across country, leaving the hellhounds to go after easier prey. Elizabeth gripped the side of the truck bed and hung on as Paco headed for the highway. Behind them, hundreds of enemy warriors ran out of the trees, screaming in triumph. One of the four-armed warriors held aloft a severed human head. It was Sergeant Samuel Yahey of the Hudson's Hope Ranger Patrol.

  The Battle of Taylor Bridge was over.

  The pickup truck rumbled and jostled as Paco sped over the rough terrain, following a half dozen other vehicles. Only four more vehicles—three pickup trucks and a green minivan—came after Paco. At least a dozen vehicles still sat behind the trees, with enemy warriors climbing over them. Elizabeth made the sign of the cross. "In the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, Amen. Lord, take their souls unto you. Save them."

  "Save us all," yelled Leela, her long brown hair flapping furiously in the wind.

  They hit the
highway, and Paco gunned the engine, accelerating toward town. In less than a minute, though, they reached the traffic-clogged outskirts of Taylor, with hundreds of abandoned vehicles blocking all four lanes. Corinna in her RCMP cruiser, her lights flashing, led them along the far edge of the highway, driving slowly, half on the gravel shoulder so that the vehicles were at an angle. Paco followed, sending Elizabeth, Leela, Clyde, and the others crushing against one another in the truck's bed.

  "I can still feel them up there, using magic!" Leela yelled, holding onto Clyde while pointing above them. She was right. Elizabeth sensed them as well, but she had only a vague idea of their direction.

  One of the pickup trucks behind them erupted into a fireball, sending volunteers flying in flames to roll along the highway. Another truck tried to swerve out of the way of the burning wreck but flipped over instead, crushing those in the bed.

  "There!" Leela pointed into the sky.

  "Where?" asked Elizabeth, near panic now.

  "There!" Leela pointed again.

  "Use clock numbers. Guess at the distance!"

  "One o'clock, thirty feet above us."

  Elizabeth removed her last four grenades from the sling. Holding two grenades in each hand, she held them toward Leela. "Pull the pins. Hurry!"

  Leela stared at her with frightened eyes but only hesitated for a moment before yanking the four pins from the grenades. Still holding the arming handles in place, Elizabeth channeled telekinesis, sending all four grenades flying up into the air, spreading them out over the area where Leela had indicated. As they flew, the arming handles popped off, glittering as they fell. The four grenades detonated in a chain, only moments apart. Four small clouds of black smoke appeared in the air, flowering outward like ink blots.

  "Shit!" exclaimed Leela, throwing her hands out before her and channeling a shield around their truck just before fragments of shrapnel ricocheted away. A moment later, one of the giant flying beasts appeared in the air, perhaps a dozen feet from where the grenades had detonated. It shrieked in pain and banked away. A dark elf rider clung to a saddle between its wings, just behind the long neck.