Chapter 8- Let the Bodies Hit the Floor

Even Tomax had to wince at the sound, and he had been expecting it. The Baroness had one of the shrillest, loudest voices he had ever heard. And her scream was loud enough to alert three counties.

He could hear thumps overhead, and a loud thud. As if something, or someone, had fallen. Then the loud thump of footfalls, and angry voices echoed through the door.

The cellar door crashed open with a thud and three Dreadnocks hit the top step at the same time. The board flew out from under them and all three kilted head first into the wall at the bottom of the stairs.

Buzzer moaned piteously, lying in an awkward heap. Legs overhead. The other two, Torch and Ripper were silent. He tried to straighten himself out, but Ana whacked Buzzer as hard as she could with her stick. He thumped back over, twitched twice more, and then was still as well.

"Three down." She mumbled to herself. The sounds of a struggle brought her attention back to the top. Half way up, Tomax was brawling with Firefly.

Firefly!

Ana was shocked to see him. Why in the world was he here. He hated Zartan?

Firefly knocked Tomax backwards, and Ana gave a tiny shriek as he fell, his head connecting with the bottom step. Then he too was still, his head resting on Torches ankles.

Firefly turned and grinned at the Baroness.

She was not fooled by that smile. While not as deranged as Zartan, he was just as lethal. Still he would be a preferable choice to the other.

"Where is the swamp rat." She spat out bitterly, retreating as she spoke. Backing up slowly, her hands gripping her wooden make shift bat.

"O, I should think he is still asleep. The pills I paid these morons to slip in his beer should keep him occupied for the rest of the evening."

He said it as casually as if he were talking of something mundane. Like the weather.

Ana tilted her head, and gave Firefly her most scathing look

"So, to what do I owe the pleasure of your company, hmmm?" she asked huskily. All the while scanning her escape options out of the corner of her eye.

The stairs were pretty much out. With the pile up of men at the bottom, there would be no way to navigate her way up them without help. She had to get upstairs. But how?

An idea formed in her bleached blonde head and she smiled.

Firefly saw the smile and chuckled inside. O, this was going to be too easy.

"Well, two million dollars for your pretty head is quite a nice price." He said smiling greedily. She could almost see it in his eyes.

A vision of Firefly sitting at a table, surrounded by all that money, laughing.

"I could double that, you know" she said as she slightly relaxed her stance. In an attempt to diffuse the situation. She needed him comfortable. So comfortable that when she struck, he wouldn't see it coming.

He tilted his head back, seeming to consider her offer.

"Ah yes, I am sure you could. If I survived your knife in the back, on my way to collect said funds."

He slowly circled around, coming closer to her.

"I think, Baroness ol' girl, I will be delivering you to the Commander. Besides, the one who brings you in alive will be much in his favor. And I have use for his favor at the moment."

He advanced on her, she stood her ground. Then when he was within range she threw the stick for all she was worth. He hadn't been expecting that.

It connected with his face and he let out an enraged howl. Ducking down, holding the right side of his head as blood gushed through his fingertips.

The baroness bolted. Racing to the foot of the stairs she took the mound of men in a flying leap.

Climbing and scratching her way over them to the steps.

She tripped over one of the men's bodies and sprawled heavily on the staircase. Her rib meeting wood with a sickening crunch.

She plunged onward.

Now reduced to crawling up towards the door. She used her last bit of energy to push herself up, over the gaping hole left by the top step, her hands finding purchase on something hard at the threshold of the doorway.

A hand, strong as a vise gripped her ankle, and she felt herself start to slip downward. She tightened her hold on the object above her, and glanced down,

Firefly, blood gushing from his eye, had her ankle. His face twisted in a feral snarl.

"You bitch!" he roared.

Suddenly a hand reached up from the pile of men to grab Firefly's leg.

He let out an inhuman scream as the fingers gouged into his flesh.

Tomax held on to him with all his strength. Ana met his eyes.

"Go!" Tomax yelled.

Ana kicked at Firefly, connecting her boot heal against his chin, his hold slipped just a little.

She reached her other hand up and tried to grab onto the hold she had found.

Her eyes widened when she realized she was holding onto a boot.

Her gaze traveled up it to the black pants, the long cape, and the red collar. Up straight into the Beryllium Mask of the said owner of the boot.

He was holding a very deadly looking gun. He was looking not down at her, but beyond her.

Firefly's eyes widened and he let out a scream as Destro calmly put a bullet in his back.

Firefly went limp. His hold on Ana's leg loosened and she pulled free. Kicking his slumping body one more time for good measure.

Tomax still lay in the heap at the bottom of the stairs, his face pale and clammy looking. Sweat dripping from his forehead.

"It...It's about t. you got here." He labored out. His breathing ragged.

Destro turned his gaze to the woman at his feet. She was looking up at him, and what a sight she was.

Blood caked the side of her head, her lower lip torn and bleeding. And the whole side of her face was turning a sickening shade of purple. He uttered not a word and almost gently pulled his boot from under her grasp. He backed away and turned out of the doorway.

Ana gave a strangled cry of terror, he was leaving?

It was then that the Grenadiers appeared in the doorway. One reached down and gently grabbed her out stretched hands, pulling her up, and out of the Hell hole.

It took the others a little longer to reach Tomax. The bigger one shoved Firefly's limp body off the side of the staircase where it landed with a thud below.

It took them both, straining, one under each arm to hoist Tomax under his shoulders and walk him up the stairs and out the doorway. Once outside, Ana realized they were in a small shack of sorts, beer bottles and refuse littered the floor and tables. It was disgusting.

She saw Destro striding towards the front door, and the young Grenadier took her arm, and tried to help her limp along behind him.

It was then that Ana spotted Zartan. He was lying in the floor by the kitchen table. His head under the table part way.

He looked peaceful.

He was snoring.

Rage filtered into her numb body. Reaching beside her she grabbed the Grenadier's side arm out of its holster before the man knew what she was about and racked the slide.

Destro spun at the sound. His own weapon at the ready, as well as his other guards in the room and out. In the space of three seconds at least fifteen guns were pointed in her direction.

She didn't even flinch.

Cold fury coursed through her veins as she leveled the gun at Zartan's sleeping form and fired five rounds into his body.

She watched it jerk spastically, and then it was still.

Suddenly she felt so tired, everything seemed to slow down. The adrenaline filled rush she had been surviving on suddenly ebbed out of her veins.

She smiled at the young guard and handed him his sidearm back, handle first. Destro looked at her, and she saw the look of astonishment on his face.

Good, let the bastard stew on that for a while, her tired mind said.

She suddenly felt dizzy, her legs, so strong only a few minutes before were tingling.

Limp, tired, they could no longer support her. She felt herself sink to the floor and heard an exasperated shout. Everything was spinning.

In her haze, her eyes registered the sheen of silver bending over her, and then someone lifted her up. Her body was floating, weightless.

And the darkness once again claimed her.


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