by MacCraw
“My, my, oh my”, one of the men remarked, “This little piggy went to the brunch buffet.”
“Excuse me?!” Hannah angrily exclaimed, furiously slamming her tray down on the counter, “You want to run that by me again, you stupid troll?”
“You’re takin’ more than your fair share, sugar tits”, the other man smirked.
“’Ey, Ringo, mate; I’ve kinda worked me up an appetite for this little lady.”
With that single sentence, Kirkley immediately stopped talking with Pack and the woman in the buffet line and turned to look towards his lover being antagonized by the pair of bullies. His eyes smoldering with rage, Kirkley began to march towards the scene as the men inched in closer towards Hannah.
“Hey, hold this for me?” Kirkley stated, tapping one of them on the back. As the man turned around, Kirkley snarled ferociously as he slammed his tray into the man’s face. Kirkley’s act of courage was enough to bend Hannah’s fear into fury, and she too began pummeling the other man. After absorbing several strong blows or punches from the angered couple, the two dingbat thugs fought back, and began strongly slugging their smaller opponents. As one of them began choking Hannah by her relatively thin neck, Kirkley took a lesson from Samantha and sunk his teeth into the right arm of the man strangling her, causing him to grunt in pain and release his grip. Kirkley quickly spat out the arm hairs that had been introduced to his mouth upon contact, very much disgusted and in regret about using that particular attack method, but it did give Hannah an opportunity to raise her leg and firmly kick like a mule into the groin of the guy who had been choking her. The man squealed like a pig as he fell over backwards, but as he went plummeting to the floor, he snatched onto Hannah’s leg and slammed her down to the ground as well. Kirkley moved in to help her, but the second thug grabbed him by the back of his neck and began slugging him in the back. As Hannah fell down next to the first attacker, he made another attempt at sexual harassment by briefly caressing her rear end, which only infuriated her more. Hannah pulled out her boot knife and sent the tip of it through the right hand of the man, which caused him to shout obscenities as the blood poured over and down his hand.
As Kirkley was being punched, he managed to swing his leg backward and nail a direct hit on the pelvic region of his assailant. But as he broke free and turned to face the man, the brawl took a potentially deadly turn as the man whipped out a gun, which made many bystanders scream in terror. Kirkley’s eyes widened in terror as the man began shouting at him and waving the loaded handgun at him.
“Alright, party’s over, twat”, he hollered. “Where ‘ya want your bullet?”
“In the arm!” a voice from all the way at the front of the department store shouted, as a loud gunshot cracked and flew through the man’s arm. The gun fell from his hand as the man dropped down alongside his buddy, and the military riot control squad lead, coincidentally enough, by Sergeant Holmes, strolled inside.
“Alright, ladies and roughnecks”, Holmes barked, “You care to inform me as to what the fuck is going on over here?”
“Those two assholes were preparing to rape Hannah”, Kirkley growled as he intentionally knocked a tray sitting in the counter onto one of the incapacitated thugs. “They brought out a fucking gun.”
“But they threw the first punch”, one of the apparent supporters of the two men proclaimed.
Holmes mused to himself for a minute, and made his decision. “Alright; Darnell, Carson; get these two men out of here and have them detained. Mr. Kirkley, Ms. Hannah, would you step outside for a moment, please?”
“Step out into the hallway”, Hannah muttered under her breath, “Just like the 207 other times I heard that in high school…”
Once they were out of earshot of the civilian refugees in the breakfast hall, Holmes began to talk to the pair. “Kirkley, I’ve got a new level of respect for you”, Holmes said, lightly tipping his cap towards Kirkley. “A strong man stands up for himself…”
“…A stronger man stands up for others”, Kirkley replied, completing one of the most motivational and meaningful quotes from his favorite childhood movie.
“Alright, guys; you aren’t in any trouble from me or any of my men posted in this area, but I’m afraid you’re banned from the mess hall”, sighed Holmes.
“What?!” exclaimed Hannah. “It wasn’t our fault! Besides, how the fuck are we going to get food?!”
“I’ll have Darnell bring you up some food on regular intervals”, Holmes smiled. “How many folks will be served?”
“Six, but Kylie’s still in the infirmary, right?”
“Actually, we moved her back up into your apartment building”, Holmes answered. “I’ll go get the rest of your friends out here and you can go back up to the apartment. You folks aren’t in any kind of trouble, but I guess I need to set an example.”
“I understand, sir”, Kirkley nodded.
…
“I can’t believe we got kicked out of there!” Pack griped. “That’s like a denial of rights!”
“You have the right to remain silent”, Hannah hissed, which made Kirkley and Royce laugh, and Poet snicker.
“Oh, shut it, Snips”, Pack growled.
“Look, I don’t know what you’re complaining about, Captain; we’re still getting food”, Royce added.
“Alright, keep it down”, Pack uttered as he slowly unlocked and opened the door. “Kylie might be asleep sti-.”
WHUMP!
A large, fluffy pillow whacked Pack in the face as he stepped inside, and as soon as he dropped to the ground, Kylie reemerged from the shadows.
“Oops”, she giggled.
“Goddamnit, is everything in this fucked up world out to get me?” Pack asked rhetorically.
“Ah, zip it, Packster”, Kylie scoffed as she tossed the pillow back onto the bed, but moaned in pain as she did so.
“Kylie, you need to be in bed”, Hannah insisted as she escorted her friend to the bed she had flung the pillow on.
“I know, but it was boring as crap in that infirmary and when they moved me into the apartment”, Kylie replied. “So how was your, uh, ‘morning’?”
“We got banned from the mess hall”, groaned Pack, “Because of Kirkley and your ‘BFFFL’.”
“Well what happened?” Kylie asked in concern, primarily for Hannah.
“Some ugly fucklings tried to rape me, but after the damage I caused to their crotch area, they would only be able to dream about successfully doing it.”
“Sounds like something hilarious to watch on a replay”, Kylie chuckled, but received a shocked look from Hannah.
“…The ball-busting part, I mean…”
…
“I fucking hate patrol duty”, sighed Darnell as he, Holmes, and the rest of the patrol squad mindlessly wandered around in the area outside of London.
“Stow it, Private”, Sergeant Holmes ordered with the snap of his fingers. “You know full well how important it is to fully inspect the zones outside of London. We’re the first line of defense, and pretty much the only line, since the bulk of our forces are posted on the border.”
Although it was a dreadfully boring post, the squads selected in rotation for basic patrol duty around the city had one of the most important roles out of the entire regiment of British forces protecting London. The idea behind this was to check for any potential flaws in the blockade, as well as to mark out exactly how far away the dog soldiers were. If so much as a single dog came into sight, the troopers were instructed to open fire on the creatures in an attempt both to drive them off and warn the rest of the army forces that the hostiles were closing in.
“Aargh!” Holmes growled as he swatted at a small swarm of obnoxious gnats with his cap; “Why couldn’t the spirits have cursed these atrociously annoying little twats?!”
“Good one, Sarge”, Corporal Potts snickered.
“That wasn’t a joke, Corporal”, Holmes snapped. “These things are fucking intolerable.”
“Target; 300 meters, uphill�
�, Darnell announced as he snapped his fingers and attempted to order his fellow squad members to crouch down.
“Spotted one dog”, Darnell whispered as he trained his reflex sight on the stationary predator, who merely stood still and patiently observed the men.
“Do we fire yet, sir?” asked PFC. Griffin.
“Negative”, Holmes insisted. “Hey Rover? You want a bone?”
The dog shook its head once as it continued to maintain visual contact on the confused humans.
“Who wants a tummy rub?” Potts asked in a mocking, derogatory tone of voice.
All of a sudden, a rustling was heard from the bushes around the soldiers, who had unknowingly meandered into the forest and out of sight from the sentries posted in the city. Potts and Griffin turned to face the source of the suspenseful sound, and that’s when a large dog crouched down on all fours sprung upwards and pounced on Griffin, who screamed in agony as his attacker began mauling him. Potts and the rest of the squad opened fire on the dog soldier, which flinched in pain as it finished slaughtering the defenseless soldier. Potts ultimately ran out of ammo, and attempted to grab his backup shotgun kept on a single-point sling, but before he could bring up his secondary weapon, he was grabbed from behind and hauled off into the bushes as he wailed. Pretty soon, the squad was whittled down to Holmes and Darnell, who desperately attempted to hold their ground until they came to the dawning realization that they weren’t going to win this battle. Darnell continued to unleash hell on the wolves with his squad automatic weapon, which dealt considerable damage and inflicted massive spikes of pain that pulsed through the predators, and for a brief moment, the pair felt triumph and valiance… until Holmes took a fatal hit.
One of the dog soldiers was able to briefly overcome the agony induced by the 5.56 millimeter bullets being wildly sprayed out of the SAW carried by Darnell, and in this narrow window of time, it managed to slash Holmes and knock him to the ground.
“Get… out of here, Private!” Holmes roared as he thrashed around and desperately tried to cram his internal organs back into his torso.
“Sarge! Not without-“
“GET OUT OF HERE!” Holmes bellowed as his life began to fade away from him. The young support gunner’s eyes watered as he obeyed the final order of his squad leader and father figure. Seconds after the passing of Holmes, Darnell’s weapon jammed, and since he didn’t have time to reload his weapon, Darnell angrily threw it at the dog who had slaughtered Holmes before breaking into a full sprint towards London as the trio of wolves gave pursuit.
Darnell’s heart loudly thumped as he frantically sprinted downhill towards London. The dog soldiers were hell bent on catching up with their prey, who was only narrowly outrunning them. Eventually Darnell reached the visible range of London, and the turret gunners and sharpshooters posted on the borders of the city spotted the wolf men chasing Darnell. The sentries opened fire, which began to chew through the wolves. 7.62mm and .50 caliber bullets rained down on the dogs, who roared in frustration as they turned tail and fled back into the woods. A small squad of foot soldiers stepped outside to cover Darnell, who continued to run into the city. Once he was behind the turrets, Darnell dropped to the ground in exhaustion.
“What happened to the rest of your unit, son?” the officer overseeing the turrets and snipers asked.
“They’re all dead”, Darnell moaned. “All of them. The wolves are here. They’re all here.”
“Well then it looks like we’ve got ourselves a serious issue here”, the officer sighed.
“Sir, should I spread the word to the refugees?”
“Negative. We don’t want to cause mass hysteria and panic.”
“But it isn’t right to hide the truth from these people”, Darnell protested.
“Do not, under any circumstance, tell anybody about what happened out there. That is a direct order.”
…
“You lot all heard that, right?” Hannah asked in regard to the gunfire.
“Yeah”, Kirkley mused. “There’s something that just kind of unsettles me about that. I’m gonna go out and ask the soldiers about that. Anybody coming with me?”
“I’ll go”, Hannah smiled.
“I’ve got your back, sir”, Pack nodded.
Kirkley and his two followers walked outside to go investigate what had awoken them, and much to their surprise, a good percentage of the refugee population had also come out of their homes to find out what was going on.
“Hey, what’s going on here?” Hannah politely asked.
“That’s what we’re here to find, shithead”, the man in front of her snidely replied. Hannah growled in aggravation and clenched her fists, but before she could move in to swing a punch, Kirkley grabbed her wrist and shook his head. Hannah sighed reluctantly, very much disappointed by not being able to beat the everliving fuck out of the man who had insulted her.
The people gathered around the perimeter fencing were shouting not in anger, but in confusion.
“Citizens, please calm down”, the officer who had blackmailed Private Darnell said as he raised his arms.
“Are we being used as cannon fodder or something?” one of the disturbed civilians hollered.
“No; absolutely not!” the officer responded.
“Then what the fuck’s going on, huh?” Hannah shouted.
“The wolves were in visual range of our border guards, who took action and prevented the beasts from assaulting our position. The situation is under control, ladies and gentlemen.”
“Sir, with all due respect, this is temporary relief for a long-term problem”, Pack pointed out. “Those things are probing our defenses, whittling down our ammunition. Waiting for the proper time to strike.”
“Rest assured, that shall not happen. Now all of you folks, head back to your designated homes, and kick back and relax. You all deserve it after surviving out in the wild for so long.”
…
“Alright, lads, let’s pack up”, Kirkley declared as he grabbed his backpack and his reliable shotgun.
“What’s the rush?” Royce asked as he walked out of the bathroom and ran his fingers through his scraggly hair.
“Look, the military might be planning something questionable, and I don’t want to linger around and find out what it is”, Kirkley quickly replied as he unloaded the magazine in his shotgun and checked his shell count.
“There’s nothing to be concerned about”, said Kylie.
“That’s what concerns me”, Kirkley insisted. “A heavy volume of gunfire… the military choosing to not inform the refugee population about what exactly had happened… …there’s something ominous going on here, and we need to leave before it reaches its peak.”
A knock echoed on the apartment door, and everybody raised their weapons.
“Who goes and what are their intentions?” Kirkley hollered to whoever was knocking on their door.
“Private Darnell. I bring lunch and important news.”
Hannah held the door open for Darnell to bring in a tray of food, and shut the door once he had placed the tray down on the coffee table.
“So what’s this news of yours, Darnell?” asked Kirkley as he bit into his buttered toast; “And where’s Sergeant Holmes?”
“They’re dead”, Darnell replied. “All of them. My squad got ambushed while on patrol, and the dogs killed them all. They might’ve taken some of them off to turn, if that’s how it’s worded.”
“Shit… shit”, Kirkley groaned, bowing his head.
“Well wait, why didn’t that officer guy mention that?” added Kylie.
“He doesn’t want to cause mass panic; it’d interfere with his plans.”
“What do you mean… what ‘plans’?” Kirkley questioned.
“Right as we speak, the last ships, both military and civilian, are being prepared and loaded up for the voyage to the European mainland. The catch? The military forces are being prioritized over the civilian population. They’re a secondary concern, and their
primary purpose is to serve as a diversion when the dogs finally come.”
“By Su’s spirit…” Kirkley groaned, absolutely mortified by what he was hearing; “Okay, we are definitely moving out. Darnell, care to join our little group in our journey? We wouldn’t mind the extra firepower, and an extra soldier, no less.”
“I lost my SAW during the ambush”, Darnell replied. “That being said, I know where the arms caches are located, and with military clearance, that’s no deal whatsoever.”
“Well we’re good for guns, but we need some more food and medicinal supplies”, said Kirkley. “Know where to get those items?”
“Umm…” mused Darnell; “…Best bet on the food would be the cafeteria you lot got banned from, and the medical supplies… I don’t quite know.”
“Let’s just go ahead to where we know we can get the things we need, then we’ll worry about the meds”, Pack proposed.
“Smart thinking”, Kirkley nodded. “Alright, Darnell; you and I are gonna bring Pack and Hannah in a raid on the armory. And Royce, bring Poet with you into the kitchen. Kylie, you stay here.”
“Sounds like a plan, little man”, Kylie grinned.
…
Several more attempts to breach the outer defenses were foiled, and the dog soldiers were becoming ever more restless and angered. They had to find some way to get to their prey, for their primal urges were becoming ever stronger. Under the Samantha wolf’s leadership, the gigantic army of wolves had begun to explore the areas around London, but being a colossal city, the perimeter of London was almost limitless.
The persistence of the predatory abominations finally paid off though, upon the wolves’ discovery of a sewage treatment plant some distance away from the big city. The place already looked like shit prior to the eclipse, but now without a crew maintaining it, the plant was even further rundown and derelict.
The door into the repulsively filthy building slowly creaked open as Samantha eased inside. Like dogs and unlike humans, Samantha and her fellow dog soldiers were able to see in the dark just as well as they could in the light. The eclipse was responsible for plunging the land into near absolute darkness, which played out in the favor of the beastly wolf men. But being creatures with superior senses did have its drawbacks – the revolting smell of shit and septic was enough to make some of the younger wolves vomit. The more experienced wolves, the ones that had been in bipedal wolf form for many months or even years were disgusted by the smell, were put off by the hideous scent, but were able to deal with it fairly easily.