Author's Note- Okay a little slower releasing this one as I have had my head stuck trying to wade through chapter nineteen. But I have managed to complete it so we're looking good at attempting to post consistent chapters now (although I do keep saying this, I may be in denial). I have also pretty much completed it, so at least I have an idea as to where I'm going with this.
Anyway, I digress. I'd like to thank my one dedicated reviewer, I look forward to your reviews, at least my written words are being read by someone who appreciates them.
For your enjoyment, chapter eight, when everything goes to hell...
Chapter Eight - Onslaught
Aidie woke before the sun had risen for her stint on watch. Padding quietly to the courtyard she cautiously took in the mossy cobblestones and knelt down to face the statues.
"Well I suppose this is as good a place as any," she said as she ran her fingers over the moss half expecting to see some kind of movement from it like the night before.
She shook her head in bemusement, how had it come to this, that she was talking to a statue. It reminded her so much of her childhood when her Lieutenant had made the boys take morning drills in their Compound, the girls had to sit facing the statues praying for virtue.
A sound rustled from behind the wall, alerting her to movement. She rose to her feet to investigate the noise, unhooking her Gorgon from its holster in readiness. Hoisting herself onto the wall she peered over it. A blanket flapped in the breeze, lifting and dropping as if in a gentle dance each time it touched down like a caring shroud over a pile of decomposing bodies.
As she looked across she caught sight of something that made her stomach empty. She had found the dismembered bodies of Tate's children, strewn over the wall like rejected rubbish.
For a moment she didn't really know what to do, her instinct told her that she couldn't leave them scattered and torn. They deserved a decent burial.
She climbed over the wall and dropped to her hands and knees, scooping at the earth with a rock to create four small graves. Before she even knew what was happening tears had streaked down her cheeks as she dug away at the ground. She stopped to steady herself as she approached the bodies, picking the children up into her arms and carefully laying each body into their final resting place. By the time she reached Tyrus, wrapping his bloodied blanket around his tiny frame, the tears wouldn't stop falling. It hit her like a kick in the heart.
"I am so sorry this happened to you," she sobbed as she tried to push the earth back over them, "I'm so sorry."
She retreated back, her muddied hands trembling on her lap, her body stopping her from continuing. How could she possibly do this, covering those innocent tiny beings with earth seemed like such a final thing to do.
She was unaware of the sound of footsteps rushing behind her, the stones crunching under his boots. All she sensed was his distinctive smell enveloping her as Wilks embraced her into his protection. He lifted her into his arms and carried her to the wall.
"Shh, it's okay, you're not doing this alone,"
"Oh god Olly," she clutched hold of him, "how did it come to this?"
He placed her to a sit, crouching before her to fix her with a look.
"Sit for a bit, let me take over,"
She watched as he tucked each child tidily in their final resting spot like he was putting them to bed for one last time. His hands were gentle and caring as he tidied the messy strands of hair behind their ears. Each scoop of earth he placed was laid in care. The attention he paid to each child as if they were his own, he took his time and placed his hand on each grave in turn to utter a silent prayer to say goodbye. The baby was the hardest he stroked the soft edges of the blanket to swaddle him safely and padded the earth in comfortably around him.
Aidie took note as he bent his head in prayer with one hand resting on the final grave, tears made their way down his cheek. She rushed to him, kneeling beside him in support
"I did this Aidie," he said as he straightened up and looked at the graves.
"Don't be ridiculous,"
"I set off the chain of events that caused this. I drove Tate here. I am just as responsible as the bastard that did this,"
"Ollyvar," she placed her hands on his, forcing him to look at her, "you did not do this. If you blame yourself for this, for such a monstrous act, you're more of an idiot than I give you credit. We're going to get this bastard and we're going to help Tate over this. Don't you ever forget the strength of our family."
He leaned his forehead against hers, "what did I do to deserve such a strong person like you?"
She gave him a gentle smile before she rose to her feet to scout pebbles and spell out each child's name.
He unfolded himself out and sat back on the wall to watch her, the lost look returning to his face as if he was processing something.
"You okay?" she asked.
He looked sadly up at her, "it just dawned on me. I have held every single one of Tate's children within hours of their births and the youngest one was the only one who ever had an effect on me."
"He looked more like Tate than the others,"
"No I don't mean it like that, I mean that I actually felt jealous when that smug bastard handed me his son and told me how I was missing out,"
"He was never very good at tact," she made her way towards him, "why didn't you do something about it then? If you were jealous about what Tate had, there were plenty of women in that village who would have loved nothing more than to provide a child for a Sergeant. Damn, that midwife would have paired you up within seconds."
"Because there was only one person I wanted," his vision remained fixed on the graves so to avoid her gaze, "why would I ever settle for anyone else."
She sat silently on the wall beside him, wiping the tear tracks from her cheeks. She had always been aware of his conflicting feelings, she had never known anyone to feel emotion as strongly as Wilks. She also knew that his position as her Sergeant also forced him to maintain his professionalism. And it was this responsibility that kept him as her protector instead of her lover.
"Olly..." she tried to start.
"Let's face it Aide," he interrupted, "I'm a Sergeant in my twenties who nearly died several times over in a world that has been warring for decades. I've messed up one relationship and I'm doing a pretty good job of sabotaging the second. The chances of us actually working out is ranking with me living into my thirties,"
"That's rather defeatist talk coming from you,"
"My positivity is running on empty these days," he grumbled to himself.
"Well I'm not ready to give in yet,"
They sat silently for a while staring at the graves in contemplation until Wilks made the move. He straightened up and headed back towards the church. As he entered the courtyard he stopped as something moved in the shifting shadows. He glanced back at Aidie who had mirrored his actions in anticipation and stared cautiously in the distance.
"Did you see that?" she asked him, making her way to the courtyard to join him.
The ground started shaking around them, causing them to steady themselves against anything that didn't move. The ground suddenly parted and a Stalk burst through the mossy courtyard, ripping up the cobbled stone and smashing apart the statues as it twisted and towered into the sky. Before Wilks could pull out his Lancer the pods split open and spewed out a curled up creature covered in Imulsion. As it unfurled itself to its full height both Gears took a step back in horror.
Clearly it had once been a Locust, it's features displayed all the attributes of a Drone. But something had gone horribly wrong, it's hideous face was now deformed and its skin partially pealed back over its jaw, revealing the obvious glowing Lambent indications. Imulsion dripped from its eye sockets as it searched around for a target. The ribcage looked like it had been ripped open baring the beating Imulsion core inside. It's talon like claws were sharp and deadly as it fixed upon the two Gears and let out a screeching roar, behind it three more birthed themselves into the courtyard grounds.
"Aide," Wilks cautiously took a slow step backwards with one hand outstretched to usher her behind him, he kept his voice low and steady, "go get the others... now."
She nodded obediently reflecting his slow movements so not to incite the creature. She backed into the church, heart thundering inside her, it had been a long time since she had confronted something deadlier than a Polyp. As she drew near her companions she felt her knees grow wobbly, she steadied herself against a rotten pew.
"Cam," she fought against the quiver in her voice.
At the sound of his name Cam startled himself awake, jolting to a sit quicker than Aidie had ever seen. He didn't even look bleary eyed from his slumber.
"What's wrong?" he asked fixing her with a serious look.
"Lambent," she took a breath, "Locust."
He was on his feet in seconds, grabbing hold of his Lancer and holstering his Boltok. He planted a nudging kick in Miles' ribs to rouse him from his sleep.
"Gerrup Miles," he barked, "Grubs."
"They aren't Locust though, they're Lambent," she tried to explain, "like the Polyps but worse."
"Okay," he thoughtfully nodded, "you go get in position, take the window to the roof and back Wilks up, I'll get these two up."
Aidie perched on the broken window sill so she could hoist herself via several handholds to the roof of the church. She gripped hold of a jutting brick and levered her body to edge upwards, using every part of the crumbling building to assist her. She dropped flat to her stomach and shuffled across the roof till she could see the approaching creatures and instantly her view cast a more disturbing revelation.
Lambent Stalks had broken through the ground around them and the pulsing pods were spewing out even more brutal creatures than the Lambent Drones already surrounding them. Creatures with tentacles swaying as they spat out Imulsion. She had no clue where to start. She watched as the tentacled creature caught sight of her, letting out a gurgling roar and belching out a ball of Imulsion at her. She leapt to her feet and skidded down one side of the roof to avoid the shot. She edged back to the apex of the roof feet firmly planted either side and unhooked her Longshot from her back, raising the weapon upwards to track the beast. She blindly aimed letting off a shot at its head, the bullet ricocheted off it like she had been throwing beans. She took a step downwards as the creature jettisoned another Imulsion ball at her. Deciding on her next tactic she reattached her Longshot and took out her Gorgon, approaching closer this time she fired again at the creature. It screeched at her as she blasted at its bulging sac of Imulsion, flinging itself backwards each time she hit it. Suddenly its bulging eyes pulsed and its body started shaking as if it was about to explode, except the upper half of its body bust upwards and its arms mutated outwards.
In her shock Aidie slipped on a loose roof tile, sliding downwards until she caught herself on a jutting beam.
"Shit!" she cursed. Swinging herself back to her feet to avoid the creature as it started spewing Imulsion from its maw like mouth.
She edged cautiously up the apex again this time catching the creature before it could get her first. The bullets from her Gorgon stuttered outwards planting itself inside the beast as it started to scream. Building up confidence she moved closer along the roof towards it, aiming at the obvious weakness that hung and glowed below its chin. She watched as it started shaking and vibrating again then with a loud pop of Imulsion a head like snake slithered out of the destroyed body towards the others.
"Wilks!" she yelled downwards, peering over the roof ledge, "Behind you!"
Wilks twisted where he was standing to fire at the incoming creature. He blasted it to bits before he even knew what was coming at him.
"You okay?" he called up to Aidie briefly.
"Not really," came her response.
"Hang in there,"
Wilks returned fire on the Lambent Locust tearing it apart bit by bit until it exploded in its final crescendo. He had encountered an earlier stage of Lambency a few years earlier, but they had mainly been Locust that glowed. Now they had entered a completely different stage of hideousness.
On the ground they positioned themselves in an arc, giving each an advantage point where one may have missed. Miles currently favouring the Scorcher, which encouraged him to get closer to the action than Wilks would have liked, but the flaming weapon seemed to be doing the job. He watched as Miles mowed down the scuttling carpet of Polyps, leaving them screeching and twitching behind him. Both Cam and Archer were using Boltoks, although Archer had opted to dual wield his pistols. Despite the creatures pushing they worked hard to maintain their arc, knowing full well that the moment they fell back the Lambent would have the advantage.
A Lambent Drone staggered in front of them as a remnant of its brain splattered outwards, it kept moving forwards even with its brain hanging out of its skull. A yell of frustration behind him caused Wilks to glance backwards at Aidie perched on the roof with her Longshot held steadily in one arm as she aimed and fired again. This time successfully dropping the creature with her next shot.
"That's more like it!" she chirped reloading her weapon.
He leapt slightly backwards to avoid Miles jumping wildly at an injured Lambent Drone. He grabbed hold of it slamming it roughly to the ground where he jabbed the end of his Scorcher into its stomach and squeezed hard on the trigger. It wriggled and writhed as the flames licked at its insides. Quickly Miles leapt away as the flames reached the Imulsion filled core and the creature exploded. Miles drew back to Wilks with a joyful although singed smirk on his face.
"Miles that was just nasty," Wilks commented with a look of disgust.
"Yeah but so satisfying," Miles responded, "been wanting to do that for a while now, but those damn Polyps are so small."
"Remind me to book you in for counselling if we ever get through this alive,"
"And have Cam sit there shaking his head pretending to care, nah I get enough of that as it is,"
Wilks returned fire at the Lambent creatures, revving his chainsaw to descend upon them. He sliced down to their Imulsion filled core letting their insides spill out. He then sliced back at their heads letting them roll across the ground as the bodies dropped beside them.
"And you said I was disturbed!" Miles called over to him after cooking the insides of another mutated Lambent Drone.
"I was made like this Miles, you got like that all on your own,"
The pair looked back at each other momentarily before sharing a grin as they both descended upon the next Drone. Cutting through the stragglers until the field was a mass of Imulsion splattered body parts.
As they returned to the enclosure of the now destroyed courtyard they took in the look on Archer's face as he stared horrified at the Lambent Stalk. He shook his head apologetically as he tried to talk to the stone deities to no avail.
"What have they done?" he muttered sadly, "The Allfathers were never involved in this war."
"I don't think anyone has a choice as to who is involved anymore Archer," Miles told him flatly, "can we help at all?"
"Please," Archer sent him a slight pleading smile, "I can't move the Stalk but we could remove the bodies."
Whilst the Gears were busy with the Lambent, the Nightmares had already made their first move. Hidden from the Lambent attack they watched the battle unfold picking out the particular skills from each soldier so they knew which weakness to exploit. The Leader lowered himself behind a rock as he neared closer, unhooking a pair of binoculars from his belt and holding them to his eyes.
"No," he breathed darkly, "it can't be."
"Sir?" one of his men asked beside him.
He turned back to face his expectant followers, men all willing to die for him.
"We have faced a slight set back," he announced to them, "the rules have changed."
"What do you mean?" one questioned as he peered over the rock to gain a clearer look at their targets, "Okay so they all have weapons, but nothing we haven't seen before."
"I've dealt with some of these Gears in the past," He started to explain but changed his mind as the words left his mouth, "the girl is a problem. But she is also a weakness."
"So what are you suggesting?" his next in line queried, a man of similar age and experience to him named simply as Thaw.
"To take their leader down you need the girl,"
"I could shoot him from here," one suggested, "a quick headshot and he's down. He's not even wearing a helmet."
"No," The Leader reined in his anger, "there's a change of plan, I don't want you to kill these Gears. I want them alive, but I want their Leader to feel agony and suffering like he has never felt before, I want him begging me to end it for him."
Thaw eyed him curiously, "unfinished business?"
"Something like that," He responded with a grumble, "Take them alive, we'll take them back to the Professor to play with. Use as much force as needed."
He watched as his small group of chosen mercenaries separated around him, scrabbling around the dirt like the rats they had become. Their movements completely missed by their targets. Only their Sniper kept watch, which was why it was important that she was the first one they took down.
He could see his chosen two men pick their way to the building and scale it like vermin. They stopped mid climb to send him their signal. He drew his mask over his face and made his approach in the shadows.
Aidie watched from the roof, concentrating on something she thought she had seen in the distance. But each time she lifted her sights she couldn't see anything. A scuffling sound behind her diverted her attention and she edged to the location of the noise.
As she peered over the ledge of the roof she came face to face with a pair of disfigured eyes leering back at her. She let out a gasp and leapt backwards just as the other person scrabbled up behind her and flattened her to the roof with a heavy thump. She fought against him, kicking out with her legs enough to free herself and stagger across the tiles to alert her squad.
"Wilks! Behind you!" She screamed just as her attacker grabbed her, clamping their hand over her mouth and twisting her to her knees.
Wilks looked up too late just as a group of horrifically disfigured beings sprung from their hiding places. They acted with such stealth that no one was able to discharge their weapons in time. Two of the attackers disarmed Wilks, yanking hus Lancer from his grip, forcing him to fight them back with his fists. He threw a punch to the one to his left, just as he ducked a swipe from the one on the right and caught a blow to the stomach. His existing bruises throbbed and ached in response.
Miles thumped to the floor like a felled tree as an assailant took him down, blade against his neck. He hissed as he arched backwards, twisting round enough to knee his attacker backwards as he grasped hold of his Scorcher and blasted him in the face with flames.
Cam and Archer formed a surprisingly effective team, using their wits against their three attackers. Taking one down to use against them.
Aidie struggled against her assailants, one she had managed to kick away whilst the other dragged her to the ground off the roof, disarming her in the process. He sat astride her to pin her down whilst he pulled out his knife. He lowered his body closer to hers and gently ran his blade against her cheek, it was sharp enough to draw blood. She remained still as she lifted one knee up and reached downwards with the corresponding arm, slowly and carefully sliding out her own knife from her ankle strap in her boot. Just as he chuckled at the satisfaction of control she jabbed her blade into his inner thigh and sliced it upwards to make sure she lacerated the important blood vessels. Her attacker let out a gasp and jerked forward suddenly, his masked face glancing down at her in shock revealing the whites of his eyes. Blood squirting dramatically from him as she drew the knife out and slid it back in her ankle holster. He screamed as his buddy grabbed him and pulled him away from her, giving her enough time to stagger to her feet. She crept silently away from them, carefully taking steps backwards.
"Take one more step and I will kill you," A voice sounded behind her.
She turned to take in the Leader towering menacingly over her, dressed horrifically to instil fear in his victims. She let out a gasp and stumbled backwards in a bid to escape him. He caught her quickly, his heavy hands fumbling over her female frame as he forcibly dragged her to his men. She struggled a few times against him, but each time met his fist, thrown so hard she was starting to taste blood. She learnt quickly to submit for fear of being beaten to death. Resisting him longer than his other victims, staring defiantly into his disfigured skull masked eyes.
"You don't scare me," she spat, "you think you can hide behind those pathetic masks and scare everyone. Well you're wrong."
He slapped her so hard she let out a yelp, "shut the fuck up."
He roughly handed her to Thaw who pulled out his pistol and held it to her head then dragged her behind the Leader who emerged from his cover to address the Gears.
"Surrender," He yelled as his men retreated behind him to allow his introductions.
"I don't think you're in a position to be making demands here," Wilks responded.
"And neither are you,"
At his signal Thaw dragged Aidie out to reveal her for her squad to see. She tried her hardest to maintain her composure, blood dribbled down her forehead in defiance to her strength.
Wilks' eyes grew wide with fear as she gazed back apologetically at him.
"Aidie, are you okay?" He asked her, concern lacing his voice.
"Olly," she uttered ready to respond but received a clout in the face from the butt of the pistol to silence her.
"You touch her again and I'll fucking kill you," Wilks bellowed taking a step forwards ignoring the weapons aimed at his head.
The distraction was enough for one assailant to grab Miles by the arm and wrench it awkwardly backwards, it snapped with a loud crack. Miles screamed in agony, dropping to his knees in surrender. Cam and Archer both assessed the situation and dropped their own weapons, raising their arms to concede. Wilks stared back steely eyed at the Leader as he approached him.
"It looks like you are defeated COG,"
Wilks shook his head defiantly, "I am a soldier but the COG no longer exist. These are my family you've hurt. You kidnapped the women from our village and we have come to return them."
"You are in no position to negotiate soldier," the Leader responded, carefully assessing his position in their standoff, "besides the women are no longer with us. They've been taken elsewhere."
"What needs to be done to negotiate their return?" Wilks watched the Leader carefully, mirroring his movements so not to wrong foot himself.
"Your surrender will go a step to securing my compliance to start with. I will assess what needs to be done once we return you to our base as our prisoners." To ensure he had Wilks' full attention he made his way over to Aidie and grabbed her by her hair, dragging her roughly backwards until the Leader was standing face to face with Wilks with his knife pressed hard against Aidie's neck. "If you don't surrender I will hurt her so bad you'll be begging me to finish it."
Reluctantly Wilks thoughtfully nodded his head in agreement, dropped his weapons and held his hands out in surrender.
"Promise me you won't hurt them,"
As the Nightmares bound their captives up by their wrists the Leader spat.
"I promise nothing of the sort."