As the group of men and women asked Constan questions about the risky operation they were going to embark on, Governor Maurice, who stood up against the railing on the right corner of the balcony, gestured to Julia, “Come here wife. I want to give you a proper send off in case the curtain doesn’t hold me.”
Julia walked over to the Governor and he pulled her into an embrace with his meaty arms. Finishing all of the questions Constan turned to the Governor and asked, “We’re ready for the distraction you promised sir.”
Governor Maurice kissed Julia on the forehead, and looked up at Constan, “Of course Tourmarches.”
Smiling down at Julia Governor Maurice whispered, “Just remember dear, that when you are cursing me from hell you’ve earned this.”
The Governor dropped his hands to Julia’s hips and grabbed her, “What th-.”
Julia was unable to complete her sentence as Governor Maurice lifted her up and hurled her out into the crowd of damned below. As she struck the cobbled ground with a sickening sound of bursting skin and crunching bones. The damned turned and lunged toward the fresh meat.
Everyone on the balcony stood in stunned shock at this turn of events. “Well what are you staring at, there’s your distraction, go!” Governor Maurice yelled. As Athos and Baltazar began descending onto the street below, Governor Maurice turned and smiled as he watched Julia quickly disappearing down the throats of several damned, I should have done that a long time ago.
As Athos and Baltazar struck the ground, they quickly pulled the rectangular metal shields off their backs, and began killing the damned. In the time it took the distracted undead to notice their presence, Damon and Nasir had joined them on the ground. The four Skutatoi formed a half circle around the two curtains that served as ropes, and fought the damned. Who were now fully aware of the living flesh amongst them.
In a few more seconds Constan and Novin joined the fight on the ground. Followed by Athea and Liana. Hundreds of the damned pressed toward the small circle of the living. As quickly as one was cut down another stepped in to fill the void. Despite the pressure from the undead, the skilled fighters of the 5th Parthica held the line. Finally, it was Governor Maurice’s turn to climb down the curtain.
Nervously, he placed his large hands on the edge of the balcony railing and pulled himself over. Constan looked up and said, “Hurry sir, I don’t think we can hold here much longer.”
“Be right with you Tourmarches.” The Governor replied.
Taking a deep breath, he grasped the curtain tightly and stepped off the balcony. Shocked at the sudden drop his hands clenched the curtain tightly to arrest his decent. With a jolt he came to a stop. His shoulders screamed in protest at the sudden halt and the immense weight they were being called upon to hold. Luckily for the Governor’s hands, the curtains were made from lamb’s wool and not hemp rope. This saved the skin on his hands from being removed from the friction of his sudden decent.
Governor Maurice gulped and prepared to loosen his grip to complete his decent when he heard a tearing sound. He looked up and saw the curtain fabric above his head separating from the part tied to the railing. The cloth, despite its high quality, was unable to support his immense weight. He loosened his grip to continue his decent but it was too late. Tearing quickly, the curtain came loose from the balcony rail and the Governor plummeted to the ground. Unluckily for him, or lucky for those below as they would not have survived such an impact, he landed outside the safe perimeter.
As he struck the group of damned below, his immense weight drove two of the hapless creatures into the cobblestone roadway. Compressed between the stone and Governor Maurice’s immense weight their skulls were crushed. Fortuna shined on the Governor for the last time in his life as he was able to survive the short fall. He attempted to rise quickly to seek the solace of the perimeter. He began to place a knee on the ground to stand. Before he could do so, the surrounding damned registered his presence and began to feed.
The damned, hearing the sound of their brethren feeding, turned away from Constan’s line of fighters. Everyone in the defense line, immediately stuck their respective weapon in the back of their opponent’s head. This bought the group some precious space. As the Governor’s screams echoed off the building Constan ordered, “Turn and run toward the window!”
Without hesitation the well trained Skutatoi and the ladies turned on their heels and dashed for the window that led to the latrine. As the group arrived Damon, barely touching the window sill, leaped into the room and dashed toward the door at the far end of the room. At the same moment Damon crossed the room, Liana and Athea crawled through the window together.
Nasir, with Maarika’s assistance due to his bad shoulder, made it through the window next. Maarika turned to assist Constan when he said, “Go ahead lass, I can make it through on me own.” Maarika nodded and her lithe form easily scrambled over the window sill into the latrine. Athos and Baltazar were forced to turn and fight as the damned were upon them once again. Picking up where they had left off in the hallway above, the two friends began dispatching the damned with ruthless efficiency.
Above, in the former Governor’s office, the door shattered and the damned entered the room followed by Fonda and Legion. Fonda gazed about the empty room and let out a string of curses, “Where have they gone?”
Fonda closed her eyes and reached out to the damned around her. An image of Baltazar and Athos fighting appeared in her mind. From her perspective she could see several damned in front of her rushing to attack. Behind this most frustrating pair, a female she didn’t recognize was hoisting herself up onto the window sill behind the two Skutatoi. This body feels athletic, I think I can make that leap.
Commanding the body, she occupied to take a running leap, she flung herself into the air. Her timing was perfect as both Athos and Baltazar crouched low to avoid attacks from several of the other damned. Fonda’s target turned her back to her and moved their legs over the window sill and inside the room. Before the target could jump into the room, the form Fonda controlled slammed into her back.
Novin cried out as a damned struck her back and wrapped its arms around her. Before anyone could react, the damned woman, with a very shapely athletic form, sank her teeth into the back of Novin’s neck where the base of the neck met her right shoulder. Novin let out a scream and tried to fling the damned woman off of her back.
Constan turned and drew his Spatha. With a quick thrust he ended the attack on Novin. Novin looked up at Constan and met his gaze. She began sobbing as tears slid down her cheeks, “I don’t want to die.”
Constan gave Novin a reassuring smile. He reached out and wiped the tears away with his thumb and said, “There, there lass. It’s ok. Have ye accepted Jesus into your heart?”
Novin nodded and said, “Since I was a little girl. Mama would take us to church every Sunday.”
Constan smiled at her again reassuringly, “There ye see? Soon you will be in heaven enjoying the company of everyone that ye have lost in this life.”
Novin, gave Constan a weak smile. Her features contorted and she said, “It hurts sir.”
“Call me Constan lass.” Without warning, her last breath rattled through her lungs, and her eyes dulled. She wouldn’t be seeing anything else ever again. As Novin’s body began to topple forward, Constan thrust the tip of his Spatha into the side of her head, to ensure she would not rise as one of the damned.
Sheathing his Spatha, he caught her form and gently lowered it to the floor. He poked his head out the window and saw Athos and Baltazar locked in desperate combat with the damned, “Can ye two break contact and get through the window?”
In between kills Athos answered, “I don’t think so, there are too many and they aren’t giving us any space.”
Baltazar added, “Whatever you do, do it quickly. I won’t be able to hold much longer. I’m exhausted.”
“Hang on lads.” Constan turned and began to open his mouth to address the group inside the room when a large
thump struck the door that Damon had just closed and barred, “Bloody hell, do these beasties ever stop?” Constan snarled, his voice filled with frustration.
Constan quickly glanced around the room to take stock of the available resources. Other than the three seats situated underneath the window, there was nothing. He quickly devised a plan of action and began barking orders, “Maarika, I need ye and that amazing sling of yours. Damon and Nasir, be prepared to pull Baltazar through the window.”
Constan turned to address Athos and Baltazar through the window, “Listen up lads, Maarika is going to help Baltazar break contact with the damned. When an opportunity arises Damon and Nasir is going to yank ye through the window.”
Baltazar ducked under the grasping hand of a damned and thrust his Spatha upward into the bottom of its chin. Pushing another back with his shield to give him room to swing his Spatha he replied, “Aye, sir.”
Constan took a step back from the window and said, “Maarika, Nasir, and Damon up here. Maarika, do what you can to give Baltazar some separation.”
Maarika nodded as the door to the room once again shuddered under a blow from the damned’s make shift battering ram. Straddling the circular opening to the sewer below, Maarika began dropping the damned closest to Baltazar with her sling shots. As she dropped her third undead, Baltazar pushed forward with his shield knocking the damned in front of him back.
He then took a step back which gave him some separation. Seeing a chance, Damon and Nasir reached around Maarika and grasped Baltazar’s shoulders. Maarika quickly hopped out of the way so that the men could complete their task. As they began pulling him into the room a damned smashed into the shield that Baltazar held in front of him. As the two men in the room pulled him in, Baltazar delivered a vicious kick to the damned’s head. This sent the creature flying backwards into the hungry crowd. The sudden unexpected obstacle tripped them up. As the damned worked to detangle themselves from each other and resume their attack on Baltazar, Nasir and Damon completed pulling him to safety.
Setting Baltazar down, Nasir and Damon returned to the window as Athos took a step back into their grasping range. Thanks to the temporary relief that Baltazar’s parting attack had bought Athos, Nasir and Damon saw an immediate opportunity and began to pull him through the window. As Athos was being hauled inside, the damned, frustrated that their meals were getting away, grabbed Athos’ legs and tried to pull him back outside.
Constan climbed up onto the latrine seats and drew his Spatha. He then swung it in an overhead arc, through the window, that brought it down onto the damned’s grasping arms. The sharp blade cleaved through the sets of arms grasping Athos’ legs. As the arms fell to the ground, Maarika slammed the shudders shut.
She looked around for the bar and spotted it on the floor in pieces. It had been smashed by the damned’s battering ram earlier. Desperate, her eyes look about the room for something else as the damned began pounding on the shutters from the other side. As she spotted Novin’s gladius on the floor she said, “Liana hand me Novin’s sword, so I can bar the shutters. Liana nodded, picked up the blade, and handed it to Maarika. Maarika quickly dropped it into place to bar the shutters. As she did so, the damned on the other side of the door in the hallway stuck it once again with their battering ram.
Constan’s attention now turned to the next matter at hand, gaining access to the sewer below. He looked down at the marble toilets and sighed, “What have we got that will get through this?”
Baltazar handed his metal shield over to Damon and said, “Try to break through with this.”
Damon nodded and took the shield from Baltazar. He brought the lower edge of it down with all of his strength. The shield vibrated from the impact with the marble and it numbed his hands a bit. He pulled the shield out of the way to see if his blow, had any impact on the marble. A small chip of it was missing from the circular opening.
As the battering ram struck the door, and the sound of wood cracking could be heard from the other side, Damon brought the shield down upon the marble once again. This time he angled it, so that the bottom of the large rectangular shield struck the edge of the circular opening in the marble. The marble cracked and a finger sized chip broke off and fell into the sewer below.
Constan smiled, “That’s it lad, you’re getting through.”
In quick succession Damon delivered a series of blows to the marble. On the eighth blow the marble completely gave way, broke apart, and the remaining pieces of the seat fell into the sewer below. Turning to Constan, Damon said, “I think the opening is large enough to get one of us through at a time.”
Constan nodded in agreement, “Right ye are lad. Let’s get the ladies down, and then Baltazar.”
Athea, pulled out a flint and used it to light one of the lamps in the room. Holding it into the opening she wrinkled her nose in disgust, “What a wonderful smell.”
As she peered down into the opening, she saw that there was a tunnel below. The tunnel, square in shape, had a stream of water about a foot deep covering the bottom. The water ran constantly in a strong current, much like a fast running brook or stream. She held the lamp aloft to push back the gloom and get a better look at the tunnel. The bottom was covered in a carpet of green algae.
Taking one last deep breath of fresh air she grabbed the sides of the newly hewed opening in the marble, and slowly lowered herself down into the tunnel. As she let go of the rim of the toilet and landed in the water with a muted splash, the combination of the slick algae and quick flowing current threatened to push her down the tunnel into the darkness. Reflexively, she stuck her arms out and braced herself against the walls to prevent herself from being swept away by the strong flowing current. Taking a deep breath and letting it out slowly she said, “Liana I’m down. You’re turn.”
Before Liana could respond the battering ram struck the door again. The door visibly cracked on their side as the wood splintered and small pieces fell to the floor. Constan quickly glanced around the room to see if there was anything to reinforce the door. He was hoping to find something to brace it like they had done up in the Governor’s office. There wasn’t anything of use, “Ladies, make haste we do not have long. As soon as the women are down, Baltazar ye go next.”
Liana, with Athea’s assistance, quickly lowered herself into the tunnel. Liana, not expecting the strength of the fast-flowing current stumbled as her feet sank into the water. Athea reached out with her right arm and steadied her friend. Liana smiled at Athea in thanks and said, “Smells like we have crawled into a giant arse.”
Athea seeing Liana’s smile in the faint light from above smiled in return and nodded in agreement. A pair of legs appeared in the hole above their heads, and both ladies reached up to assist Maarika as she lowered herself down from the opening. As Maarika’s feet splashed into the water her face crinkled in disgust and she said, “I wish I could cleave my nose from my face right now.”
Before either lady could respond to Maarika’s observation, Baltazar grabbed the edge of the opening and lowered himself into the hole. Landing with a splash his arms shot out and grabbed the walls to steady himself. As he did so, the muscles in his arms shook with the exertion, “You look exhausted.” Liana said.
Baltazar gave her a weak smile, “I just don’t have the strength that I had before my stay in Farid’s dungeon.” He finished by spitting into the water that was flowing around his shins to emphasize his opinion of his recently deceased jailer.
As Nasir lowered himself into the hole, the battering ram struck the door again. With a horrendous combination of cracking and snapping, the wood gave way and the battering ram penetrated into the room. It hit the bar holding the door shut and stopped. Seeing that the time the door had bought them had ended, Damon jumped into the hole and landed down in the tunnel with a splash of water that drenched everyone up to their waist. As his legs absorbed the impact from the jump, his knees touched the rushing water.
Several pairs of eyes glared at him in disgust for
getting them wet. Not wanting to waste an opportunity to further enhance everyone’s revulsion, he took a deep breath, and then broke wind in immense fashion. The sound of the blast, echoed off the stone walls of the sewer.
Liana, with a disgusted look on her face, said, “Why must you be so foul?”
Damon smiled, “Why not? We’re in the sewer. It already smells like someone crapped in an arm pit down here.”
Damon looked up and saw the bottom of Constan’s feet above him and stepped out of the way. He then reached up, grasped Constan’s waist with his hands, and helped to lower the middle-aged man down into the tunnel. As Constan disappeared from sight, Athos drew his Spatha, readied his shield, and began backing up toward the hole. Several sets of putrid undead hands reached through the jagged hole in the door and lifted the bar up. Without anything further to hold them back, the sheer weight of their numbers flung the door wide open. Nasir jumped into the hole as soon as Constan was clear.
Seeing Athos as they pushed their way into the room, the damned cried out and charged. As they did so, Athos’ calves bumped into the marble of the commodes as the damned reached him. He brought up his shield and blocked one of the creatures, a wiry boy perhaps fourteen years of age, and swung his Spatha in a wide arc. The Spatha cleaved the skull of a middle-aged woman in an apron, and sliced into the side of an overweight man cleaving his left arm off close to the shoulder.
Athos yanked his Spatha free and swung it at the next growling damned. Without warning, Constan’s head popped up out of the hole behind him, “Lad, ye need to just leap up on the toilet and jump into the hole.”
“Won’t they just follow?” Athos asked.
“Aye, but the sodden buggers will have to catch us first. Trust me. Just do it.” Constan replied.
Byzantium Infected Box Set Page 62