"What will we do after?" she said.
"I have a ship that can take any of you wherever you want to go. But first, we must fight," Phoenix said, looking her in the eye.
Her hand trembled slightly as she brought it up to wipe the blood from her face. Phoenix gripped her hand and shook his head. "Leave the blood, it will show you are serious," he said.
With a slight nod, she took as many weapons in her hands as she could carry and made off down the hall. Phoenix walked in the other direction. As he passed the decapitated head, he grabbed it by the hair and whistled his favourite sound track, from the movie Twisted Nerve, as he made his way down the hall.
He knew he should be stealthy, but that was never his strong point.
Yells erupted behind him and told that his presence was now known. With his free hand he took two round black balls out of his jacket one by one and pressed a red pulsing light on each before throwing it over his shoulder. He continued on, still whistling, listening to the hurried footsteps making their way towards him. They were still some way off.
"Hey, you! Stop!"
The footsteps grew louder as they started to sprint towards him. "I told you to stop--"
The explosion from the bombs shook the building's very foundations. Phoenix felt the heat on his back as he turned a corner, and dust from the ceiling rained down on his shoulders. He brushed it off as he passed a dead guard. The man had been stabbed in the chest repeatedly.
Phoenix stepped over the body without a backward glance. More footsteps echoed off the walls up ahead.
"Who the fuck are you?" said the leader of a group of men.
"Your worst nightmare," Phoenix said, throwing the decapitated head towards them.
55
All eyes were on the head as it bounced along the stone floor towards them. None were on Phoenix as he sprinted towards the group. He fired his pistol, catching the first two guards in the chest and knocking them back. His other two shots went wide as the guards moved out of the way to return fire.
Phoenix dropped to his back, sliding along the floor. Shots sailed over him as he targeted the guards' knees, bringing the men down with howls of agony. Phoenix got to his feet in one smooth motion and opened fire on the men on the floor.
A rifle swung into view before his eyes, and his right hand jammed it up into the air where it went off. Phoenix kicked the guard who held it in the chest, sending him crashing into a nearby door.
Phoenix jumped back as a plasma blade was swung his way. He grabbed a guard attempting to get up, and threw him in the blade wielder's direction. Both guards went down in a heap.
Phoenix opened fire on the pair, putting an end to their movements.
The door that he had kicked the rifle holder into opened. Two guards started to emerge but Phoenix sprinted towards them. He jumped into the air, delivering a two-footed kick that sent the guards back into the room. Phoenix followed them in and was struck across the back by someone who was waiting near the door.
The blow threw Phoenix forward into a table.
He turned and brought his hands up to defend himself as a chair was swung his way. It broke against his forearms, pushing him back over the table.
As Phoenix got up, he saw that they were in a room that the guards used to play cards. Four guards occupied the room in total. One stood in front of him, holding the remains of the broken chair. Two to his left had metal bars in their hands, and one to his right wielded a smashed glass bottle.
"You have fucked up, my friend," said the guard in front of him.
Phoenix looked around the room but couldn't see what he was looking for.
"You looking for them?" said the guard to his right, pointing at Phoenix's pistols, which lay on the floor near the doorway.
"You gotta go through us if you want those beauties," laughed the chair holder.
"Well, boys, I didn't want to get my hands dirty, but seeing as it's you, I'll make an exception," Phoenix said, flipping the table over with one hand.
He ducked a swing from one of the guards to his left and grabbed the metal bar, pulling the guard towards him. Phoenix brought the top of his head down, so the guard's face met nothing but hard bone. As the guard staggered back, Phoenix kicked him into the path of his friend.
Phoenix yelled out in pain as he felt something cut him on his side. The broken bottle was now stained red with his blood. Phoenix threw the metal bar he had acquired at the bottle wielder, knocking his front teeth out. The guard clutched at his mouth and blood dripped through his fingers. Phoenix kicked him in between the legs. A hard punch to his throat crushed his windpipe, and he collapsed on the floor.
One down, three to go.
The three guards had now gathered as one in front of Phoenix, waiting for him to make the first move.
"Come on then, you bastards!" Phoenix said, picking up the table and rushing the group of men. Wood splintered and cracked as Phoenix forced them back out of the door and into the hallway.
The table was now useless, and he kicked the remains of it at the guards while he blocked a swing from a metal bar. Kicking the guard who had swung the bar in the shin, he delivered an uppercut to his jaw, which took it clean off. As the guard's tongue dropped to his throat, Phoenix grabbed it and squeezed.
It came away in his hand in a wet mess, and he threw it towards another guard's face. The guard yelled in surprise and tried to bat it away.
Phoenix grabbed him by the head and slammed him into the wall, face first. Bone crashed into stone, and the guard dropped away. Only a red smear remained.
The last and final guard swayed on his feet, holding his hands up in surrender. But Phoenix wasn't taking any prisoners.
Phoenix walked towards his pistols and picked them up.
"Look, I'll tell you whatever you want to know. All I ask is mercy," pleaded the guard.
"I'm all out of that," Phoenix said, shooting him in the head.
Phoenix took a deep breath and looked around at the bodies at his feet. All were dead. Blood pooled at his feet like a satanic ritual, and he moved on, leaving bloody footsteps in his wake.
56
Phoenix's side was bleeding; one eye was purpling and close to swelling shut. He walked with a limp as he made his way into a hallway. A grand flight of stairs, carpeted in red, stood in front of him, leading to the upper floors. In the middle of the hall, stonework formed a hand wrapped in chain links that formed the words "We never forget".
Phoenix stood on the image and wiped his bloody boots along it.
He closed his eyes and lifted his face to the ceiling, letting out a sigh. He was so tired that he could barely stand. He couldn't remember the last time he slept; he couldn't remember the last time he ate. It was just one big blur.
One big emotional rollercoaster.
He took a step forward and the doors along the bottom floor burst open. Men poured out. All were armoured, and all had weapons pointed in Phoenix's direction. They stood in front of the flight of stairs in a semicircle.
"I'm the new gardener Holger's just hired in," said Phoenix. "I wonder if any of you boys know the way to the storage cupboard? Just need to grab a few things--you know how those weeds can get. Always coming back, never staying dead. I don't need to tell you guys how hard management works us, right? Am I right?"
Phoenix lifted his head at the sound of clapping. Holger, flanked by some of his men, made his way down the stairs. He clapped slowly as he strutted down the steps, an army jacket thrown over his shoulder. The medals on the breast pocket rattled as he walked. Halfway down the stairs, Holger tripped over his own feet and was gripped by one of his men before he could fall face first.
Phoenix sneered and shook his head. "Smooth! Real smooth!"
Holger shook off the man's grip before stopping halfway down the stairs. "I see you have arrived."
Phoenix's brow furrowed in confusion as he looked around the hall. "Don't do that."
"Don't do what?"
"Act like this is all part
of your brilliant mastermind plot, fuckface. We both know that you had no idea this was coming. We both know that if it weren't for your daddy, you would be living on the streets. I'm here because I wanted to be here, through blood and guts and willpower. I got myself here. So don't pretend. We're both a little too old for that shit."
"You dare address me in that manner!" Holger spat.
"I can address you however I like--"
"Listen, you lowborn--"
"Hey, you," Phoenix cut in over Holger, pointing at one of the guards. "How much do you get paid to do this shit? Honestly, it can't be that much, with the amount of bullshit you--all of you--have to put up with. The pay can't be that good. Is it because of his father?"
The guard gave a slight nod that only Phoenix caught.
"Wow, I really need to meet this Lord Portendorfer. The apple must have fallen really far from the tree."
Holger stared at the guard Phoenix had spoken to before turning his attention back to Phoenix. "You will die the most horrible death I can imagine. Words can't describe the pain I have in store for you."
"Like those poor girls?"
All eyes were downcast as Phoenix looked from face to face. They all knew--every single last one of them--and yet they had done nothing.
"What I do with my property has nothing to do with you!"
"Your property," Phoenix said with a slow nod of the head. "It seems slavery is still alive and well among the stars. I wonder how the Council would feel about that?"
"What they think has no bearing on me!"
"From the first time I saw you, I knew, you know."
"Knew?" said Holger.
"That I was going to kill you."
Silence.
Phoenix planted his feet and stood tall. His fingers tapped the triggers of his pistols. He looked at each face before him with disgust.
"Yet, here we are, me still alive, and you surrounded by my men who are about to kill you." Holger smiled.
Footsteps echoed as the servant girls poured into the hall. Most of them had bags under their eyes; a few had split lips and bruising along their jaw. A ripped shirt here and there spoke of hands that were a little too gropey. But they all had one thing in common: fire in their eyes that spoke of wanting change.
"Ha! This is your backup? A couple of serving girls who don't know how good they have it? Who will be punished--severely--once this is over? Phoenix Jones. I don't know why the name instills such fear in everyone around. You are nothing special. What a fool."
Phoenix looked over at the girls and allowed a smile that didn't reach his eyes to grace his lips. "You shouldn't have come. You should have stayed put."
"Well, what say you, Phoenix Jones?" Holger yelled, throwing his hands in the air.
"Bad decisions are going to be made," Phoenix whispered, as the walls shook from an explosion that threw everyone off their feet.
57
Phoenix was one of the few who remained on his feet as the castle shook once more. Part of the ceiling near the top floor exploded outwards, and two figures dropped through the newly created hole. Plasma fire rained down from the top floor, hitting Holger's men.
Phoenix opened fire upon the men on the ground floor. Chaos erupted amongst their ranks as they tried to combat fire from above and below. The servants' screams filled the air as the building shook once more.
Phoenix dropped to one knee, as he heard the sonic boom of a ship flying overhead.
"What is going on? This will not stand! Do you hear me?" Holger said, jumping up and down on the spot.
Phoenix brought his pistols up and fired Holger's way. Both shots missed Holger's head by inches as he was pushed down by one of his men. Holger glared back, but all he got in return from Phoenix was a friendly wave.
Phoenix got up from where he knelt and began making his way towards the stairs. Firing his pistols at the men in front of him, he tried to clear a path as he sped forward. He ducked and rolled as incoming fire came his way. He had one goal in sight.
Holger's round face filled Phoenix's vision. He had come too far to not get what he wanted; he would not be denied.
A projectile flew towards Phoenix and exploded metres in front of him, knocking him back. He slid on his back, coming to a stop further away than when he first started. Slamming his hand down on the floor, he cracked the marble as he got back up to his feet. He ducked a punch from a guard and head-butted him out of the way.
Another guard jumped in his way, swinging a plasma blade towards his head. Phoenix grabbed it by the hilt and twisted the weapon out the wielder's grip before jamming it into his stomach. He yanked it up and out, the guard's guts spilling out onto the floor.
Phoenix's face was masked in blood. He bore a pistol in one hand and the plasma blade in the other. Phoenix bellowed in rage. The number of men who blocked his path to his target had thinned, but it wasn't going to be easy to get to Holger.
When was it ever easy, dickhead?
Phoenix moved forward, cutting down man after man. He moved quicker than they did, their movements appearing slowed down.
Stab, slash, cut, duck.
Phoenix hacked without mercy, one eye always on Holger, the other on his men. He moved doggedly forward, inch by inch.
A circle had formed round Phoenix, and it was growing smaller by the second. The image of Holger was now blocked out as bodies took his place.
Shit! No!
Then a war cry cried filled the air, turning heads. Phoenix knew that voice anywhere... But how? Screams filled the air from behind the guards that surrounded Phoenix. Blood sprayed into the air as one guard after the next went down.
Midnight-blue skin flashed before Phoenix's eyes before it was gone again.
A guard thrust a gun in Phoenix's face, but before he could fire, the point of a black dagger jutted out through his eye. The look of shock was the last thing to remain on his face, and he collapsed to the floor.
In his place stood Saoirse in all her glory. Cuts covered her face. Mud and blood caked her clothing. But it was her.
Phoenix's brow knotted in confusion as he shrugged at her. "How?"
Saoirse ducked a punch and stabbed the offender in the neck, before wheel-kicking another guard in the face. A voice filled the room. "Now is not the time! We have work to do. Plowstow, lay down some fire to clear Phoenix's path."
The building shook once more as explosions echoed in the distance.
"Is that L?"
"Who else?" said Saoirse.
Guards dropped like flies and the sound of a bolt-action rifle filled the air. Phoenix's path was clear, and he looked over to Saoirse once more.
"I'll be fine! Trust in your crew!"
He gave her a nod before making his way towards the stairs. They were empty. Holger had fled.
58
Holger ran through the halls of his home. His breathing was laboured; the small of his back was sweaty. He looked over his shoulder for the hundredth time as he tried to push his legs harder. He had never been one for exercise; he saw it as a way for unintelligent people to feel powerful.
But as he leaned against a wall to catch his breath, he was beginning to see the folly of his ways.
Dirt and bits of rubble rained upon his shoulders as another explosion rocked the compound. Who did these people think they were? Attacking a member of a Council family. Did they have no respect for the way of things?
Footsteps came his way; he could hear them echoing ominously over the shouts and screams of battle.
Holger patted himself down and cussed when he realised he was unarmed. He would need to change that--and quickly. Continuing down the hall at a run, he dialled the only number in his holocom that could fix this problem.
It rang and rang as the footsteps grew louder behind him.
"Come on, Father. Pick up."
He glared at his holocom, head down, and ran into one of his men coming his way. Holger's startled expression was overcome by rage as he pointed behind him. "There is someone a
fter me! Deal with it!"
He didn't wait for a response, pushing past the guard and continuing to run. Looking down at his holocom, he noticed that the call had been rejected. Shaking his head, he stopped at a crossroads in the hall. Which way should he go? Left towards his bedroom or right towards his office?
He started to go left and stopped. Hiding under the bed would be the first place they'll look. Holger turned around and made his way towards his office, but a cry of pain cut through his thoughts.
He stopped and looked behind him. It had come from the direction of the guard he had passed.
"Holger! Holger! I'm coming, ready or not!" a voice sang in the distance.
Holger's mouth went dry as the voice taunted him. His arms swung wildly as he ran with speed he never knew he had. His jacket flapped behind him, falling from his shoulder as he skidded round a corner.
"Holger!"
He saw the door to his office up ahead and bent his head down to sprint forward. His heart threatened to explode in his chest. He stretched his hands out in front of him as he tripped forward, and the door slid open. Holger landed on his face as he fell through the doorway. Scrambling to his hands and knees, he turned and saw an empty corridor.
"All systems lock down!"
Nothing happened.
"All systems lock down!" he shouted louder.
The door to the office still remained open, and Holger made his way towards it. He grunted as he slid the door closed again. Walking away from it, he hid behind his desk but shook his head as he peered over the desktop. He made his way towards a chest of drawers and grunted and strained as he pushed it in front of the door.
Holger took a step back, nodding in approval. Making his way back round to his desk, he pulled out a pistol from a drawer and hid under the desk.
No sound came from outside. He was sure that his men would win the battle that was raging outside, but if those fools couldn't, then he would have to take matters into his own hands. That's what he would do. He would show them what it meant to fuck with a Portendorfer.
Revenge: (Space Outlaw 3) Page 19