Madman's Monster

by Michael Louis Weinberger

  "What did you do!?" the woman shrieked at Lei with such raw emotion that everyone in the immediate area stopped and turned toward her in surprise.

  Chris’ eyes squinted in order to see what had happened, and looked from Lei to the man kneeling on the ground with three large gashes in his neck and a fourth beneath it that had only raised a welt.

  "Oh," Chris nodded, "That's what you were doing."

  The two men Chris faced looked horrified by the sight of their compatriot kneeling purple faced on the ground, now with copious amounts of foam bubbling out of his mouth, as he tried to scream either from the pain or knowledge of his imminent death.

  One of the men shook the image off and turned back to face Chris as he leveled the knives he held in readiness, but the other man just let one of his knives fall to the ground.

  "Fuck this," the man said as he reached for something behind his back.

  Chris rolled his eyes at the man, "You're no fun." Chris nonchalantly tossed the heavy Karambit with what appeared to be minimal effort, almost as if he were throwing the blade away in disgust and surrender, but directly at the mercenary that had dropped the knife. The mercenary found the sidearm that had been holstered behind his back and had raised the gun up just as the Karambit slammed into the center of his throat. The heavy, wickedly curved, double edged blade shattered through the man's hyoid bone as if it were made of paper, and then continued to penetrate through the soft tissues before hitting the back of the cervical spine. The point of a Karambit blade is made to be extra fine so it can do it's intended job at cutting open human throats more efficiently; however, in this case the fine tip wedged it's way between the vertebrae and just barely nicked the man's spinal cord.

  When the mercenary simply toppled over and began hacking up blood even Chris looked surprised.

  Chris looked at the dying man, "Whoa...um...Yahtzee!"

  The second man let out a scream that might have been a battle cry but sounded more like a roar as he charged forward. Chris braced for impact when out of the corner of his eye he saw something large coming toward him from the side at a very fast pace.

  It was the body of a woman, another of the mercenaries who sailed limply through the air and collided with the oncoming attacker. Chris spun to see Zach still fighting the last mercenary that had attacked him and Lei holding the woman who had shrieked down on the ground as she tore at the woman's neck with her teeth.

  Chris shook his head as he watched Lei consume the woman she had pinned and mounted and sighed, "Damn if there wasn't a time that would have given me a raging bone..."

  The impact that struck Chris' side wasn't overly hard, but it was enough to jar him off his feet as the remaining mercenary tackled him. Chris twisted as he hit the earth and brought up his forearm just in time to stop the rapidly descending tip of the combat knife from penetrating into his chest. The blade was sharp and slipped through his forearm, lodging between the radius and ulna bones, until the hilt hit and stopped it's momentum. The man tried to rip the blade away but the back of the blade was serrated and, as sharp as it may have been, the living flesh and bone of Chris' arm held the knife in place. Chris cried out in pain, but didn't stop fighting as he pulled the man's head down and wrapped his legs around the back of the man's head. The hold was a jujitsu chokehold called a "triangle choke" and once it had sunk in there was no way to escape it. The mercenary realized his mistake and abandoned the knife, trying to pull his head free, but Chris reached up and grabbed his right foot and cinched it solidly into the space of his left knee. Then Chris flexed his thighs and arched his back to increase the pressure until he heard the telltale gurgling sounds that indicated he had the hold properly applied. With the blood cut off to his brain the mercenary passed out in seconds, but Chris held the hold for almost a minute until the screaming muscles in his legs and back demanded he let go.

  Chris flopped on his back and tried to unwind his legs from around the man's neck but found that his legs had cramped into position. Using his hands he pulled one leg out from under the other and forced them straight. Not wanting to waste more time and potentially allow the man to recover again, Chris crawled the ten feet to where the other mercenary lay, still holding onto his gun. Chris looked into the man's still seeing eyes as he pried his unfeeling fingers off the weapon, aimed it at the unconscious man he had just choked out and pulled the trigger twice. The explosive sounds of the double tap to the head were thunderous and made Chris' ears ring, but he still swerved the weapon to the paralyzed man and aimed.

  Before he could fire a sound made Chris look up to see Zach holding the last of the mercenaries aloft by the neck. The man was struggling and trying to tear away the giant's hand but was making no progress. Then the muscles in Zach's arms flexed as he closed his grip on the man's throat and crushed the tissue and bones underneath, rendering the mercenaries body limp in his death grasp.

  Chris looked back to the paralyzed man on the ground next to him and saw that his eyes had gone wild with fear as Chris lowered the gun.

  "No, it's all right," Chris said sympathetically, "I won't leave you like this."

  Chris reached over and pulled his knife out. The curved blade sliced straight through the man's carotid artery on it's way out, but the man didn't even flinch as the part of his spinal cord that sent pain messages to his brain had clearly been severed. Chris tried to get his mouth into position to catch the blood geyser erupting from the man's neck, desperately trying to swallow as much as he could, but it was like trying to drink from a fire hose, and most of it splashed over his face and chest before the torrent quickly subsided.

  Zach released his grip on the now dead mercenary he held in the air and let the lifeless body fall to the ground. He looked to Lei and saw her straddling a dead woman, face and chest covered in blood while running her hands erotically over her body. He frowned at the scene but, as he saw she wasn't in need of assistance, turned to Chris and saw him lying motionless over another of the mercenaries. The merc's eyes were staring lifelessly into the distance...dead, but Chris was draped strangely over the man and appeared to be shuddering. It was concern that made Zach turn toward Chris, but he stopped when Chris removed his mouth from the ruin of the mercenary's throat, sat up and began laughing manically.

  Lei sauntered over to the door and ran her hands over its smooth surface as she pressed her ear to it.

  "Little pigs, little pigs, let us come in," Lei purred creepily as her hands left streaks of red blood on the door where she caressed it.

  Chris' laugh abruptly stopped and he stared intensely at Lei, as if she had just recited a passage from the bible in its original Aramaic tongue. He turned to the mercenary he had just fed upon and then started searching the area for another that might be still alive.

  "Are any of them alive?"

  Lei purred, "Mmm, not mine."

  Chris looked to the twisted bodies that lay at Zach's feet and shook his head, "Damn."

  Lei cocked her head, "Aw, what's wrong sugar?"

  Zach walked over and gently guided Lei away from the door before running his hands over it, apparently studying it.

  Chris was pacing now and speaking out loud more to himself than to Lei, "The way they moved, and the way they attacked. It makes sense, but a collective group? Has that ever been documented?" Chris pulled out a cellular phone from his pocket, but cursed a moment later when he saw he had no Internet connection.

  Lei was sobering from the blood drunk euphoria as well, "Okay we need to focus here." She took a couple deep breaths, "We need to get past the door, even though it is likely being covered inside by several guards armed with automatic assault rifles."

  One of Zach's hands paused near the doorknob and he gently touched the heavy wood door with his fingertips. He stepped back from the door a couple paces and studied it a moment longer before he nodded and turned to walk away.

  "Wait!" Lei called to him, but Zach never turned around.

  Chris was still lost in whatever thought had come to
him, "Christ, if that was what we were dealing with it would be unprecedented in medical history, I'm almost sure of it."

  "Chris!" Lei called to him, "How are we going to get in there?"

  Chris seemed to wake from his daydream and turned to the door, "I don't know but," he looked at the ground and noticed something, "The ones we just killed all had two of those special combat knives on them. Try to keep one of them alive, if there are any more inside."

  Lei put her hands on her hips angrily, "That isn't really our focus here!"

  "I know," Chris responded, "I'm just saying if it's possible."

  There was a sound of bushes rustling as the villagers emerged from the forest. Zach was standing at the exact point where the first small man emerged carrying his hunting rifle. The two exchanged words as more villagers poured in from the surrounding foliage until nearly thirty people stood around holding various versions of their ancient rifles. They followed, as Zach led them back to where he had fought the trio, many of them highly disconcerted by the sight of the dead and mangled bodies lying on the ground. Disconcerted, but not shocked or revolted, as they had all seen their share of the cruelties that people could inflict on each other. It just wasn't all that uncommon in this part of the world.

  Zach turned and called to one of the boys in the back of the pack. The youngster, maybe thirteen, ran forward enthusiastically and saluted Zach. Zach said something in Thai and the boy nodded before removing a fanny pack that he had cinched around his waist. Zach thanked him and unzipped the pack, then removed two M67 Delay Fragmentation grenades.

  Chris' eyebrows shot up, "Well, well. Where the hell did he get those?"

  Lei was nodding, but still looked concerned, "Those will probably get us through the door, but we still have to worry about the guns beyond the..."

  Zach held the grenades in one hand and pulled the pins with his other, his large long fingers prevented the activating levers from disengaging, leaving the grenades active, but un-triggered, as he knelt over and lifted the largest of the mercenaries off the ground. The villagers all seemed to know what was about to happen as they worked the bolts on their rifles or pressed a lead shot into newly powder packed rifle barrels. Lei and Chris were just staring wide-eyed and unsure if they should run for cover.

  Zach effortlessly dragged the body over to a spot about fifteen feet from the door and looked at Chris and Lei as if waiting for something. The pair just stood there gawking until Zach inclined his head at the villagers who had moved as a group to one side of the building. Recognition hit them simultaneously and they jogged over to where the villagers readied themselves while Zach set the body down on the ground in front of him. He altered his grip until he had a solid grasp of the thick fabric of the mercenaries vest and checked the grip by flexing his bicep and doing a bizarre kind of curl exercise with the body.

  "What the hell's he going to do?" Chris whispered to Lei.

  Lei shook her head and shrugged her shoulders in return, "I don't know, but he seems to have a plan."

  Zach glanced over to the group and one of the villagers gave him a "thumbs-up" signal. Zach nodded, and with one hand he lifted the body completely off of the ground. He released the arming levers on the grenades and shoved the two round cast iron balls of death into the dead mercenary’s pants.

  "Holy Shit!" Chris screamed, "Get away from..."

  Zach spun around in a three hundred and sixty degree turn, the body of the mercenary gaining the momentum of centrifugal force until Zach completed the turn and threw the mercenary's body at the heavy wooden door. Over two hundred pounds of flesh and bone was launched as if weighing no more than a football and it crashed into the heavy door with a sickening sound that was part wood cracking and part human body caving in under the force of the impact.

  Chris watched and was surprised that the mercenary's body didn't simply fly straight through the door, noticing it was actually the door molding that framed the door that had given way. The wood that the hinges and doorknob had been screwed into were regular plywood and shattered as the body hit. Still the objective had been attained as the door, though still upright, had given way on one side as the body fell through the new opening and came to rest about a foot inside the doorway.

  Zach had continued his spin after he had thrown the body and raced for the spot where the villagers were waiting, most of which were covering their ears in anticipation of the explosion. Chris whispered to Lei, "And how is it, exactly, that we aren't going to get blown up as well from this distance?"

  Lei had been covering her ears, but Chris' words had somehow penetrated and she turned wide-eyed to him as she realized the truth of what he was saying. Lei opened her mouth to say something, but Chris never heard it, as the grenades exploded.

  Chapter 54

  "Just shoot him."

  The bastard had said, "Just shoot him." "Him" meaning me! At those words my whole body tensed and, as the adrenaline burst through my system restoring what little strength was left in me and I pulled against my restraints with everything I had.

  The light from the outside hallway flooded into the room as the doctor opened the door and ran through. I watched as Pollard followed, but turned to face me in the doorway before he looked away and gestured at someone to come over.

  I stopped trying to flex my whole body against the restraints and concentrated on my right arm. I willed everything I had into my stronger arm and pulled against the restraint for all I was worth. Pain shot through my wrist and a ripping or tearing sound came from the area. I had the random thought that the sound might have been the tissues of my arm tearing when my hand and arm burst free of the leather that had held it fast.

  I reached up to my throat and tore away the restraint around my neck and head, which came away easily compared to my arm restraint, before reaching over to my other wrist, in order to help my other arm pull free. Pollard had seen me break the restraint and all the color drained from his face as he backed out of the room and let the door shut just as one of the guards arrived. I pulled my second arm free, and was working on the restraint around my waist when I heard the doorknob click as it turned.

  Then there was a boom and a rumble that managed to shake the ground on a barely perceptible level. I frowned, but saw that the door knob quickly turn back to it's original position as the sound of people running and shouting came from just outside the door.

  Realizing that I had just received a reprieve from my own execution I desperately tore at the remaining restraints, completely freeing myself, yet when I tried to stand, I promptly flopped to the floor. I had nothing left, my legs felt like Jell-O and the burning pain in my arms made me just want to crawl into a ball and sleep. Instead I crawled on my elbows and knees for the door. Sooner or later they would come for me and deliver that bullet to the brain that had been promised. So I crawled and with every shift of my weight the agony in my limbs and core increased. I don't know what I thought I was going to do when I got near the door, but a part of me was screaming at me to just keep moving and be ready when the guard returns. I suppose I was just hoping for an opportunity, but I doubted that I would be able to capitalize on anything that presented itself.

  I still had another five or six feet to crawl when the doorknob turned again. I tried to roll onto my belly, but I only managed a half turn before the pain stopped me. The door began to open slowly and the room suddenly came alive with sound as men screamed both in pain as well as what sounded like battle cries. The number of different voices raised were far more than I would have expected, and an image filled my head of a civil war battle just as the two opposing armies met in the center.

  The door continued it's cautious opening swing and it was all I could do to raise my hand to block the bright light from the hall.

  "Steve!" a woman's voice called out. No, not just any woman. MY woman! It was Lei and the next thing I knew she was on top of me, arms around my neck and her mouth over mine.

  When she finally parted her mouth from mine I was panti
ng for the lack of air and no strength to resist Lei's amour to get a breath.

  "Oh God, what did they do to you?" Lei's voice broke, and it seemed to take all her will not to actually break into tears.

  "I'm fine," I somehow managed through gritted teeth, "Just real weak."

  Lei set my head down on the floor and I found myself staring at the ceiling as she ran to the door, "Chris! Get in here now!"

  Then she was back again, "Steve, Chris is here and he's coming."

  "It's...okay," I managed, "I'm okay." I looked out in the hall and saw a small group of men armed with what appeared to be Pangas, which was kind of an all-purpose knife/machete used for cutting meat or chopping wood.

  They hacked mercilessly at the guard, who screamed as his blood splattered over the men and the white walls of the hallway.

  I must have reacted to the sight because Lei tightened her grip on me and whispered urgently, "They're from the village and they brought us here."

  It took a moment to have that set in, but when it did I felt my body ease and I let my weight drop into Lei's arms.

  "So, what did you blow up getting in here?"

  Lei smiled, "Just the front door, and a big chunk of what looked to be a reception area. After that we just gang rushed our way in."

  Chris appeared in the doorway, "Steve!" then he took a closer look at me and bolted to my side, "What happened?"

  "They were using electricity, why?"

  Chris looked at Lei who was staring at me intensely. Chris turned back to me, "Steve you look like death. I mean your pallor is almost as pale as Alpha’s."