by Dave Hazel
“Sosos!” Towbar shouted just as the Kraft girl screamed.
“Run! Get up and run!” Mykal yelled as loud as he could.
“Back to the pit!” Jake ordered.
Mykal saw many arrows slam harmlessly into the ground. He couldn’t believe how lucky they were that more didn’t get hit with the death arrows. He glanced over and saw the lifeless body of the Kraft girl face first on the ground with a death arrow protruding from her back. Amazingly the arrows for the most part flew over them or fell before them. Lisa had been standing beside Towbar who sat facing in the Pass. Mykal thought Towbar had been the intended target.
Not far from the Kraft girl Mykal saw Krink fall kicking and jerking on the ground. A death arrow stuck in the back of his neck just under the base of his skull. The arrowhead pushed through his neck and poked through his thick beard. Krink’s eyes rolled back, his mouth widened while he choked on the foreign object lodged in his throat. His greyish flesh made him look as if he had already been dead.
“More arrows! Run!” Jake hollered beside the fallen body of Krink.
Karen Kraft reacted swiftly and bravely. Knowing one of her children had been severely hurt and possibly killed, she pushed her emotions aside, allowing maternal instincts to kick in and take over in order to get her remaining three children from the danger spot.
“Go, go, go,” she yelled at her children. She had to grab Annette’s hand and forced Annette with her. For Karen it had to be the hardest snap decision she ever made. If she didn’t react and leave Lisa behind she’d probably lose all her children.
Twelve year old Brian Kraft stopped running with his mother and turned. Brian had no hesitation when he began to shoot at the Sosos with the .22 rifle that had been loaned to him by the Dosch family. Every round he fired he struck a Soso and caused them to fall over reaching for their face or forehead. Brian knew he had to make every shot count because of the small caliber bullet. Brian had always bragged about how good he was with a pellet gun. He was just as accurate a marksman with the .22 rifle.
William Kraft broke down and collapsed on top of his dead daughter’s body. Gary Rogers and Boris worked as a team to try to pull the sobbing man from the girl’s corpse. William sobbed uncontrollably and fought them to pick up his child, but they fought harder to save his life.
Ted Kraft quit running with his mother and sister to turn to help others. He stood fast and began shooting at Sosos. He always joked around camp that he couldn’t allow his kid brother to show him up. “Pull back,” Ted yelled frantically at his father and brother while shooting as fast as he could. It seemed clear he only stood his ground to get them from the danger zone.
Mykal and all the others were all shooting to cover for those trying to run away to the safety behind the pit. Towbar’s soldiers and Dwarven warriors advanced from the pit.
When the command to run was given, little Ricky and Debbie Holen weren’t sure what to do. They ran toward the rock wall of the Pass as opposed to running deeper into the Pass to the pit.
“No come back,” Doninka screamed. “Children come back,” she yelled and turned to go after them.
“I’ll get ‘em to the pit,” Kurt yelled and turned to the two children going in the wrong direction. Mykal was sure Kurt’s plan was to scoop them up in his arms and turn toward the pit.
“No Kurt, don’t do it,” Boris yelled. He feared for his best friend’s life. Boris didn’t want to see the little children get injured or killed but he would selfishly choose the life of his best friend over two kids. He didn’t want his best friend to get injured trying to protect someone else’s kids, but he continued to struggle with William Kraft.
Towbar, Norg and Doninka pulled their hand held weapons and waited for the Sosos to engulf them so they could fight hand to hand. They were prepared to face death. However, they planned on making as many Sosos as possible taste death before they fell. If they were going to die because of this surprise attack they were going to go down fighting and not run away.
“The archers!” Jake yelled between shots. “Aim for those damn archers. Gotta stop the archers!” He continued to yell as arrows flew all around them. Miraculously no one was hit.
Mykal looked to his left and saw one of his Quecktarb pups gasping for air with an arrow protruding from its side. He knew the animal couldn’t survive and realized if they didn’t retreat they would all probably die. Though help came from the rear it didn’t get there fast enough. The wave of Sosos swarmed down on them quickly. “We gotta get outta here,” Mykal yelled. “Come on let’s go, let’s go.”
Boris and Gary Rogers dragged William Kraft away from his dead daughter but he still struggled to break free of their grip. An arrow ripped into Gary’s back just under his left shoulder blade and knocked his rifle out of his arms. He dropped to his knees and collapsed.
Boris knew it was only a matter of time before he caught a Soso arrow. He let go of William Kraft and began shooting. “Eat me you bastards,” Boris yelled while he picked off charging Sosos. “Screw you then,” he yelled to William Kraft who scrambled back to his dead daughter’s body. Boris continued shooting while backing away hoping a death arrow wouldn’t have his name on it.
“Dad no,” twelve year old Brian cried out as he watched his father hysterically make his way back to Lisa’s body. “Dad come back. Don’t--” his words were stopped when a death arrow struck him in the face. Violently, Brian’s head snapped back and threw him to the ground. While his young body was sailing to the ground he caught two more death arrows in his right shoulder and his right thigh.
“We gotta get outta here,” Mykal shouted between shots. He didn’t want to turn and run and leave his friends behind. “We can fight from the pit.”
“We gotta go get Kurt,” Boris yelled as he watched Kurt grab the two kids and run to the rock wall.
“Maybe they won’t see him,” Mykal yelled as he grabbed Boris’s shirt. They saw Kurt hiding behind an out cropping of rock that had a small tree and some brush. “We gotta get outta here,” he yelled as he shook Boris.
An arrow whizzed by Boris’s face and his eyes widened in terror. “Oh damn! It’s go or die,” Boris agreed. “We gotta go now,” he yelled with Mykal to the others.
All at once they all turned and ran with their heads tucked low. In a matter of moments Sosos were stomping over the very ground they had been resting on. Mykal’s three Quecktarbs followed and stayed with him despite their slight clumsiness.
While they ran, arrows could be felt slicing the air near them. They saw some hit the ground in front of them. The group all seemed to hold their collective breaths. They hoped, wished and prayed they wouldn’t be struck by the horrible death arrows.
Ted Kraft cried while he ran. Ted knew his brother and sister died. He feared his father would be killed in his emotional attempt to retrieve Lisa’s body, but Ted didn’t want his mother to lose the entire family.
The closer they neared the pit the more comfort they could take when they saw the overwhelming force advancing from the pit to come to their rescue. Some of Towbar’s soldiers stood on the north side of the chasm to help the smaller Dwarven warriors out of the deep obstacle. Their smaller bodies couldn’t exit on their own.
When Mykal and Boris stopped near the dividing line of the pit, they turned to resume shooting to assist the massive help that joined them. In the near distance, Mykal and Boris heard the distinct sound of automatic gunfire and then the separate sound of Kurt’s 9mm pistol being fired. They heard six shots fired and the shooting stopped.
“Kurt only had six rounds left for his 9 mil,” Boris said and tried to look in Kurt’s direction.
“That friggin idiot better not waste all his ammo on full auto,” Mykal responded while taking aim and shooting the nearest Soso.
“We gotta help him Myk,” Boris groaned to show his true concern for his best friend. “I can’t see him.”
“We can’t till it calms down. He’ll be alright,” Mykal felt bad for Boris. Boris
lost Denny and now his best friend was in serious danger. “We’ll go as soon as we get control.”
When the Dwarven warriors, Towbar’s soldiers and the few from Mykal’s world collided with the Sosos, vicious battles broke out. Mykal and his people kept their distance and killed from afar. They were not going to retreat one more foot. Many of the Dwarven warriors had crossbows and they didn’t have to be told to take out the archers first. They all seemed to be expert marksmen with the crossbows whereas the Soso archers struggled to hit anything despite their overwhelming numbers.
Mykal saw Roy Dosch standing side by side with his sons shooting as many Sosos as they could get into their sights. He felt relief Roy Sr. made it back to a safer area. He feared the older man would have lagged behind and been in danger.
Mykal felt an overwhelming pride for some of the people from his world. Some of them fought with only the primitive weapons of Towbar’s world. With their ammo depleted, they used whatever they could pick up such as swords, axes and spears. These brave people weren’t about to run away except for one. Lt Michael Edwards was nowhere to be seen. Mykal confidently believed the coward could be found hiding inside his vehicle.
A screaming Soso charged at Mykal with his crude axe raised above his head ready to bring it down on him. Mykal stood firm in his place and aimed his rifle into the Soso’s face. With a quick squeeze of the trigger Mykal quickly won the one on one face off while ripping the Soso’s face off. The insane war cry ceased immediately and the Soso tumbled backward.
The advancing Sosos tried to attack people two and three at a time to gain the advantage. Towbar killed them as quickly as they moved toward him. With each mighty swing of his massive glowing blue blade the sword cut through them as if they were made of soft fruit. Towbar felt no resistance when he cut into their expendable forms, slicing and dicing them into a gross fruit salad. Blood and body parts flew in all directions. As Great White sharks are called perfect killing machines in the ocean, Towbar is the perfect killing machine in his world.
Stinky Feet aimed his rifle at a Soso who charged in at him. His rifle jammed when he squeezed the trigger and the Soso slashed at him with his sword. Smith took a hit to his neck and it forced him backward. Blood gushed out but he reacted as if he hadn’t been hurt. He used his rifle as a club. When the Soso tried to chop on him again Smith blocked the blow with his M-16 and butt-stroked the Soso in the head which knocked him to the ground. He viciously beat the Soso to death with his rifle butt.
Mykal thought it was a miracle that Stinky Feet stood and fought. Stinky Feet carried on despite all the blood flowing from his throat. Smith fought fiercely and wouldn’t stop. After he brutally terminated the Soso he fixed the problem with his rifle, the butt of which was covered in Soso blood. Stinky Feet brushed away his blood as if it was an annoying gnat and continued shooting. By his actions Stinky Feet gave the appearance there wasn’t a crisis with his physical body.
Mykal kept shooting as fast as they came at him but they just kept coming. It seemed as if there was no end to them. He emptied his thirty round magazine but didn’t have time to reload. He drew the revolver and fired off six rounds from his .357 magnum. He killed all six hapless Sosos who ended up in his sights. He had a brief moment to reload his rifle and he heard Boris’s mini cannon exploding not too far from him.
Just as Mykal started to shoot again hundreds of Dwarven warriors and hundreds of Towbar’s soldiers ran past them to engage the Sosos with their expertise in hand to hand combat. A Soso seemed to jump out of nowhere and brought down a large spiked club on him. Mykal managed to block the hit with his rifle. The force of the blow knocked him to the ground where he dropped the rifle.
Mykal was momentarily stunned and terrified. He looked up into the aggressive madman’s wild-eyed sneer. The Soso looked to be the largest Soso in the assault. ‘How did nobody see this guy?’ If looks could have killed his snarling, hate filled, expression would win hands down.
Mykal knew the spiked club was going to come down on his head and crush his skull if he couldn’t get away. The deadly spiked weapon raised above the evil man’s head again. The Soso hesitated and a strange pained expression covered his angry scowl. To Mykal’s surprise the enormous Soso turned to see who stabbed him in the back. It gave Mykal the time he needed to collect himself and get to his feet.
It was then he saw Doninka behind the brutish Soso. It was her short sword that protruded from the big Soso’s back. Now the brave girl stood there weaponless before the irate monstrous foe. Mykal panicked that Doninka would die for trying to save his life. “Noooo!” He yelled to get the Soso’s attention. He didn’t want her to be harmed for his sake.
He scrambled to grab his rifle. He hoped and prayed the gas tube wasn’t damaged when he blocked the colossal strike of the club. If his rifle wouldn’t shoot, the poor girl would suffer for saving his life. His revolver hadn’t been reloaded.
Mykal fired twice into the back of the wicked Soso’s head making his face burst out all over Doninka. “Get outta here!” Mykal yelled at her. He wasn’t angry, but rather he felt desperately concerned for her safety. “Get behind the pit,” he ordered Doninka just as the Soso crumpled before her. Her face had been painted in Soso blood and gave the appearance she had been injured.
“No,” she shouted back. She placed a foot on the dead Soso’s back and withdrew her sword. “I am here to help.”
Mykal said nothing else to her. He finished off his clip and smiled at her stubborn bravery. The group started to beat back the Sosos. When the force from the pit became an equal, in size, most Sosos turned and ran away while some fought on.
Mykal used the easing of tensions to reload, but two Sosos charged at him while a third took aim with his battle axe to throw at him.
“Mykal, look out!” Doninka shrieked and dove on top of him.
Mykal had watched the axe being thrown while he inserted the next magazine into his rifle. He planned to dodge the crude missile but Doninka collided into him to protect him. Mykal knew by the way her head snapped forward that she took the axe to the back of her head.
“Nooooo!” Mykal cried out. He panicked, while lying on the ground he pulled the charging handle back to chamber a round. He had to roll Doninka off his body and by the dead weight of her petite body he knew the girl died to save his life. His heart sank but he had to stop the three Sosos.
Mykal heard Boris’s .44 magnum and watched one of the two Sosos head burst into a red mist. Mykal shot from the ground putting two rounds into the second while Boris fired another .44 magnum slug into the second Soso. The second fell lifelessly to the ground, dying before falling flat.
Mykal sat up just as the axe thrower charged in. He drilled two shots into the attacker’s head. He wished he could have made the savage die a slow painful death for killing Doninka. Mykal sat there overcome with grief, he wanted to yell because the girl risked her life twice for him in the span of a couple minutes. He couldn’t look at her for fear of seeing the damage of an axe buried into the back of her head. Emotionally Mykal shut down. He realized he had more feelings for the girl than he thought. Fortunately there were no Sosos nearby. Vulnerably, he sat there with his head hung between his knees fighting back tears. “Damn it, why?” He asked and held his face in his hands.
“C’mon Myk,” Boris yelled. “Get up we gotta get outta here before they come back.”
Heavy fighting raged around them but Towbar’s soldiers and the Dwarven warriors beat them back. A large number of Towbar’s soldiers on horseback returned. They rode into view from outside the Pass to attack the Sosos from behind.
“Myk, can you hear me?” Boris called out. “Are you hurt?”
Mykal shook his head. He wanted to answer that he didn’t care what happened right now. He felt nauseous and weak. Doninka cared so much for him to give up her life and he could only allow himself to be her friend. Mykal wanted to hold her and apologize but feared seeing a death mask cover her pretty face.
“Ohhhhhh.
” The sound of moaning came from Doninka and she started to stir.
“What the hell?” Mykal gasped. He nearly jumped out of his boots with excitement when he saw Doninka stir as if being awoken from a deep sleep. To his great delight the axe blade hadn’t been buried in her head, rather she had been struck by the thick wooden handle that had knocked her unconscious. “Oh Doninka, you silly girl. Are you okay?” He laughed with relief. He pulled her up and pulled her close to him to hug her. “Are you okay?”
“Ohhh, I think I am,” she continued to moan. “Ohhhhh.”
“Why would you do that?” He scolded her and held her tight.
“Because I love you Mykal,” she replied truthfully before she could catch herself.
“Listen, I think the world of you, but--look we gotta get outta here,” he changed direction before saying anything that would hurt her feelings. “I’m so glad you’re okay,” he shook his head and he hugged her tightly again. He had to help her to her feet.
Doninka held the back of her head while she staggered on her feet. “Am I going to live?” She asked after looking at the blood on her fingertips.
Mykal touched the baseball size bump on the back of her head. He gently pulled aside her hair. Her skin had been split. “You’re probably gonna have one hellova headache, but I think you’ll be alright. Let’s get outta here. Please don’t do anything like that again,” he sighed and helped her walk.
“Come on guys,” Larry said when he came along side and took the other side of Doninka. “We’re not outta danger yet.” Boris walked backward, rifle and pistol ready for any Soso too close.
Within another fifteen minutes the fighting had ceased.
“What the hell was that all about?” Larry asked. “They didn’t even try to take the Pass.”