25. Knock, knock, knock!

It was dark. It was cold. It was so quiet... He did not want to open his eyes to find that he was still in that place. He had been in and out of reality for a while. The pain was almost gone, but his despair was growing. He hated being confined. There should be a way out.

"...And when I found the door was locked, I pulled and pushed and kicked and knocked... And when I found the door was shut, I tried to turn the handle, but.*"

"Drusilla?" Hogan pushed himself on his elbows, focusing slowly on the lady vampire.

She was sitting by the opposite wall next to Captain Grunwald. "Oh, hello, Colonel Hogan."

"Is he-?"

"What? Crazy? Angry? Hungry?" She shrugged. "I don't know. He doesn't talk too much, though."

"I mean, dead. Is he dead?"

"Not yet," she grinned. "Shall I?"

"No... please, don't." Hogan sat up slowly and rubbed his head. "What happened?" he asked, as though he did not know.

"The ground opened under our feet and the sky closed." She looked up at the ceiling. "That's exactly how Mother Cecilia, from the nunnery, described the sinner's passing to hell."

"Great!" He began to raise but his right knee protested. He pushed some debris off his legs to find that the gravel had scratched the skin. Although it was very superficial, the lacerations had bled enough to stain the leg of his pants. Under any other circumstances, he would not have minded at all. It barely hurt. But Drusilla was too close and he began to wonder how long a vampire could go without drinking blood.

She was staring at the red spot on his knee when moaning came from the other side of the room. Hogan took that as a great distraction. He sprung up to his feet and dusted his clothes as well as he could.

"Someone else fell down with us." Hogan began to work his way through debris and furniture in the direction of the moaning. As he suspected, Mr. Jones had survived the blast too. "Well, Mr. Jones, how good to see you."

"Tremendous fall. I saw it all. I didn't pass out, not once. The door opened and we fell downstairs before part of the roof came down on us." He smiled nervously, as he searched first for his glasses and then, for his notebook. Everything was in order. "I'm ready. What's the next step?"

"Getting out of here, I guess." Hogan got up and looked around.

The room was not small, a circumstance for which he was really grateful. Being stuck with a Nazi, a vampire and a bureaucrat in a reduced space would have been simply unbearable. There were two exits, both blocked by concrete and broken beams. He remembered that there was a passage behind the altar in the church, so the other one had to lead to the cemetery. Hogan thought about their chances.

He knocked on the entrance to the church. The wall of debris did not look too thick. If there was anybody on the other side, they might hear any noise from inside. He went to the other door and it seemed to be in the same condition. He nodded.

"Mr. Jones, what do you know about Morse code?"

"Three dots, three slashes, three dots mean SOS."

"That's all you need to know." Hogan gave him a piece of wood. "Please, choose one door and start knocking. We might get some attention sometime."

"This is so much fun! What do you want me to do?" Drusilla grinned.

Hogan thought fast of something to get her out of the way. "Go and play with your cards."

Drusilla's eyes glowed as she took the tarot out of her velvet purse. She spread five cards to form a cross. She sighed, shook her head and finally, shrugged.

Hogan could not help getting interested. He sat close to her, trying to figure out what she was doing. After a moment, he could not wait any longer. "Well? Bad reception?"

She smirked and hit him with one of the cards. "Bad boy." She pointed at the cards. "They don't like things as they are. They believe us buried and gone..." Drusilla turned and smiled. "Shall we take advantage of that?"

Hogan felt her face coming too close to his. "Drusilla?"

"Mmm?"

"Stop smelling my neck."

She giggled. "I can't help it... The smell of living blood excites me... Yours is so young and... alive..."

For a moment, Hogan's mind went blank. He forgot about their predicament, about the egg and about the vampires. It took a great deal of will power to push the girl away as gently as he could.

"Hey!" He said with fake enthusiasm. "You know what would be really great? Why don't we call Newkirk and we have a party?"

"A party! Yes!" Drusilla clapped. "Marvelous idea!"

"Can you do it? Right now?"

Drusilla nodded as a obedient little girl. She sat up straight and closed her eyes.

"Little boy blue, come blow your horn..."

()o()o()

"The sheep's in the meadow, the cow's in the corn..."

Schultz turned to Newkirk's bed. The corporal was mumbling a nursery rhyme in his sleep. The sergeant thought it might be the fever, but Newkirk looked rather comfortable. He checked the young's man temperature with one hand on his cheek. It was warm but nothing alarming. Newkirk moved but did not wake up.

"Schlafen Sie gut, mein Freund," Sleep well, my friend, Schultz shook his head. Poor Newkirk had suffered enough already. Losing a friend like Colonel Hogan was a bitter pill to swallow. The sergeant went back to his chair and his book. He was still getting comfortable when Newkirk opened his eyes and sat up. "Did you rest well?"

Newkirk did not answer. He sat on the edge of the bed, with his eyes on the door.

"Newkirk? Are you all right?" Schultz got closer.

"He's in trance." Spike emerged from the shadows. He smirked. "I knew my girl was still around."

"Where do you come from? Were you here all day?" Schultz did not hide his annoyance. Then, he turned to stop Newkirk from getting up. "Go back to bed, Newkirk."

"Leave him alone, he's got places to go." Spike crouched down. "C'mon, Newkirk, just follow her voice."

Schultz saw the corporal getting up and he pushed him back to the bed. "Oh, no. If he's going, I'll go too." He looked under the bed for something.

"What are you doing?"

"His boots. You don't want him to walk around barefoot, do you?" Schultz handed Spike one boot. "Here, make yourself useful."

Spike rolled his eyes as he tied the shoelaces of Newkirk's right boot.

Colonel Klink was in the hallway with Countess Elizabeth when Newkirk came out, followed by Schultz and Spike.

"Sergeant Schultz! Ich möchte eine Erklärung jetzt!"I want an explanation right now!

Behind him, Countess Elizabeth made a helpless gesture with her hands.

"The glamor is worn off," Spike shrugged when Schultz turned to him. "Only Dru can turn it on again."

"H-Herr Kommandant, I-"

"Was ist Corporal Newkirk tun draußen? Wo ist Colonel Hogan?" What's Corporal Newkirk doing out there? Where's Colonel Hogan? Klink looked around. He did not even remember the house or what he had been doing the night before. He stared at Spike. "Wer ist dieser Mann? ... Oh, es tut mir leid, Vater." Who is this man?... Oh, I'm sorry, Vater.

"What, Father? Who?"

"V-Vater William doesn't speak German, Herr Kommandant."

Spike laughed. He suddenly remembered that he was in a priestly habit. "It's all right, my son." He raised his hand and pretended to make the sign of a cross that looked more like the letter X.

"I need to know what is going on!" Klink was almost jumping in anger.

Newkirk, oblivious to the commotion around him, was already gone down the street. Schultz rolled his eyes. "We need to go now."

"Go where?" Klink stared at Newkirk as he stepped past him. Spike followed the Englishman.

"You can stay here with Charlie McCarthy.*" the vampire said to Schultz with a grin.

"Kommandant, please?" Schultz went after Spike and Newkirk. "I have to go."

Klink shook his head. "This is not acceptable!" He found himself talking to himself. He turned to Countess Elizabeth. "I'm sorry, Fraulein. I have to go after them too."

She nodded. After they were all gone, she shook her head. She did not understand half of what was happening but wished them good luck all the same.

()o()o()

"And then, we stayed in China during the Boxer Rebellion... When it got boring, we came back to the Continent, traveled to Russia by train... we got there right in time for the October Revolution. So exciting!" Drusilla strolled around. Sometimes, she walked; sometimes, she danced. The pattern was the same for a while until she stopped and shaded her eyes with her hand.

Hogan did not pay much attention. He had been knocking on the rocks for a while and now was taking a break. Mr. Jones was still working on the other exit but once in a while, he stopped to write something on his notebook. Hogan stayed in his corner, reading the diary that Newkirk had given him in the church. He had also been studying the room.

It was not a basement but a chamber, beautifully decorated. The walls were gold-plated with biblical paintings. Candles all around, so Hogan was able to light up the place without much trouble. Besides the usual ornaments, the chamber had been used as a storeroom for statues and other religious objects. There was also two doors, one that might go up to the back of the altar, and another on the opposite side. Hogan tried both but they were blocked.

He took his time to look at Drusilla.

"Something wrong, dear?" Mr. Jones asked kindly.

"The glow, hurts my eyes," she said.

"What glow?" Hogan frowned.

"That glow over there," she pointed at the wall.

Hogan took the book and walked closer. He compared some drawings on the diary with the ones on the wall. "What do you know? I think we have something here."

"Something? About what?" Mr. Jones was near but he could not see what Hogan was talking about.

"A clue? I love clues!" Drusilla sat on the ground. "What are we looking for, exactly?"

"The big prize on this scavenger's hunt." Hogan touched the wall."And you saw a glow here?"

"Right behind the wall, don't you see it? It's still there... So shiny." She frowned and touched the stone. She moaned and giggled.

"Do you feel anything?"

"The end of the world... So much power contained in such a little space... It tickles."

"The end of the world... and it tickles?" Mr. Jones chuckled. "Quite a peculiar girl, isn't she?"

"And she's not suffering from shell shock," Hogan grinned. He kept on reading the diary. Only now he began to understand. He got up and walked to the door opposite the exit to the altar. He knocked once and it sounded hollow. Hogan had a hunch about that door and kept knocking. Somehow, some way, somebody would listen.

()o()o()

Newkirk stopped at the ruins that had been a church only the day before. He stared at the altar and woke up.

"What the blazes?" He turned to see Schultz, Spike and Klink behind him. "What are you doing here?... How did I get here?... Where's here?"

"You came walking," Schultz stayed close to him. "Do you want to go back now?"

"Why am I here?" Newkirk remembered bits of his day. A horrifying memory of his worst nightmare. "Spike!" He glared at the vampire. "What was that bloody potion you gave me? What did you do to me this time?"

"They always blame it on the doctor," Spike said to Klink with a shake of his head. He walked forward. "You're alive, and walking. The pain is gone, innit? This little stroll wasn't my idea. Dru must be somewhere around calling for her knight in shining armor."

"Who's Dru?" Klink asked.

"Newkirk, she's here. And for what is worth, Hogan must be around too." Spike grabbed Newkirk's arm.

"Alive?" Newkirk frowned.

Spike chuckled. "Well, with Dru," he shrugged. "Who knows?"

"What is he talking about? What is everybody talking about?" Klink's patience reached its limit. "Schultz!"

The sergeant sighed and turned to him. "Kommandant, this has been a very strange weekend, and it's not over yet. I think that the best we can do is wait until it's over. I'll explain everything later, all right?"

Klink stared at him and then at Newkirk and Spike. "Colonel Hogan is under there?" He pointed at the rocks. The three men nodded at once. "You'll explain everything after we find him." Another trio of nods followed. "All right. Take him out. Do you have shovels?"

Schultz turned to the cemetery and saw the undertaker's storeroom. He nodded. "I'll bring the shovels."

"Er-," Spike came forward. "You may like to start digging in that mausoleum. I think there must be a door somewhere."

"And why should I believe you, vampire?" Schultz stared at him warily.

"Vampire?" Klink adjusted his monocle and turned to look at Spike.

"The name is Spike. And last night, when you kicked me out of the group, before I saved your pathetic German butt, I came here. There is a mausoleum and a doorway to the church. One wall fell down and it's blocking something. Maybe a door?"

Newkirk sighed and led the way. The mausoleum was half destroyed. There was a coffin and a fallen wall, just as Spike had said. The corporal took one of the two shovels and began to dig. He stopped and turned. "I know I'm the only POW here but any one care to help with this rubbish?"

Spike looked around. Klink was sitting on a broken pedestal shining his boots. Schultz handed the shovel to the vampire. He grinned.

"You don't expect a man of my age to do such a heavy job, do you?"

Spike clenched his jaw, but snatched the tool off Schultz's hands. "I could be your grandfather, sonny boy."

Klink stared at Spike. "He's not a priest, is he?"

"No, Kommandant, he isn't." Schultz sighed.

"I lost an entire day," he checked his watch. "What's going on, Schultz?"

"I don't know much about this, sir. They are looking for something that's been missing for over fifty years. It's dangerous and very valuable."

"A treasure?" Klink frowned. "And Hogan is trapped in there with it?"

"Apparently. I do hope so. I'm getting tired of looking for him everywhere."

"Hogan escaped?" Klink sprung up.

"Not exactly," Schultz said. He was too tired to care for his kommandant's alarming tone. "He was just looking for Newkirk-"

"Newkirk tried to escape? And where have I been all this time? I don't remember much of this trip." Klink shook his head.

After a few minutes of work, Newkirk felt dizzy and had to sit down. He put his head in his hands, resting his elbows on his knees.

"Hey, sonny," Spike called Schultz and offered him the shovel. "Make yourself useful."

Schultz was fuming with rage, but he did not dare to antagonize the vampire. Besides, that was a good excuse to stay away from Klink's interrogatory.

Spike sat next to Newkirk and lit two cigarettes. He offered him one. "Tough day?"

Newkirk glared at him before accepting the smoke. "Blimey! You could've warned me about those bloody giants before I met them in person."

"I could've, couldn't I?" Spike chuckled. "But it wouldn't have been half the fun it was."

"You have a wicked sense of humor, you know that?" He inhaled and let the smoke came out very slowly. "It ain't over yet, is it?"

Spike smirked, making an effort not to look so excited. "There are three horsemen, mate."

Newkirk sighed. "Dark Midnight... and what's her gift?"

"Oh, she's been working you since day one," said he. "She plays with your fears. Haven't you noticed?"

"Shortly before we came here, she asked me what I feared the most..."

Spike saw him go pensive all of a sudden. "And what is it?" One look at Newkirk and he understood. "Death isn't the end of everything, Peter."

"Rubbish."

"Hey, I've been dead for many years, you know?"

Newkirk stared at the vampire. His skin was paler under the moonlight. Even so, there was not a wrinkle or flaw on him. "How old are you, Spike?"

"Me?" He laughed. "Counting from the year I was born, nearly ninety-two."

"Blimey," Newkirk's voice was low in energy. "Have you seen many friends die?"

Spike shook his head. Brooding was not his thing. He hated brooding people, they were such a waste of energy. "Is that your biggest fear? People die on you all the time, Peter. You'll die on someone some day too. That's what makes life so precious."

"Says the vampire?" Newkirk smiled.

"Hey, it's not like I have a choice in the matter." He shrugged. "But it's been fun, anyway."

"Everything has to be fun for you?" Newkirk shook his head and stood up. "Honestly, Spike." He walked towards the sergeant and grabbed a shovel.

()o()o()

"Dig here... dig there... dig here... dig there..."

Hogan rubbed his temple. Drusilla's chant had been going on for almost an hour. He did not dare to interrupt her for fear of being bitten. The lady vampire was as unpredictable as an earthquake.

"Drusilla?" He prepared a silly question to take her off her reverie.

Before he had to do that, Mr. Jones perceived a noise coming from one side of the room. He put his ear on the chattered door. "Someone is digging!"

"I told you: dig here... dig there..."

Hogan turned and knocked on the door as hard as he could.

"I hear something!" Schultz shouted.

Spike put his ear against a big rock. "Someone is knocking. Sounds like that rubbish with dots and dashes."

"Morse code." Newkirk felt so useless. Without his hearing, he could not read the code. "Blimey! I can't hear it!"

"How come? It's loud and clear." Klink came closer.

"Newkirk had an accident, he hurt his ears," Schultz told him.

"An accident? The other day with the storm!" Klink turned to the corporal. Newkirk frowned at the compassionate eyes.

"What's going on?" He asked.

Spike jumped in front of Newkirk. "Yeah, he lost his hearing in that accident and now he's deaf as a bat... so to speak."

"Spike, what are you talking about? I didn't-"

Spike elbowed Newkirk and glared.

Klink still had the memory of that incident very fresh on his mind, and he paled to see that there had been consequences. He felt really bad about it.

"Oh, never mind," Newkirk said. "We can't waste time talking. I need someone to listen to the beats and tell me-"

"I know Morse code," Klink said suddenly. Every pair of eyes set on him in disbelief. "What? I do. I was in communications on my first year at the Academy." He shrugged. "I think I still remember some of it."

Newkirk stared at Schultz and both shrugged.

The kommandant listened to the beats and answered. Then, he turned to them with a ingenious smile. "It's Colonel Hogan!"

Newkirk was just assimilating the news when he felt some giant lifting him off the ground. It was Schultz, happier than ever as he screamed. "He's alive, Newkirk! Colonel Hogan is alive!"

The corporal was happy too. He let Schultz vent all his emotions in a bear hug before daring to talk. "Oh, I knew he was all right," he laughed. He finally went back to earth both physically and mentally. The nightmare was over. He turned to Klink and nodded. "Just tell him that we're getting him out, all right, sir?"

Klink tapped on the rock and then, listened. "He doesn't want to come out, he wants you to get in."

Spike raised his eyebrows. "Must be a cozy place."

"He says Hurry up, Drusilla is getting frisky" Klink frowned. "He has a woman in there?"

"Son of a b-!" Spike took a shovel and began to dig with renewed energy. "What are you waiting for? We've got to get them out of there now!"

Hogan sat back. "They're there." He smiled at Mr. Jones. "Klink is with them too."

"Oh, this is going to make a great story in London." The man laughed. He got up and began to move some rocks. A shot bounced on the concrete and hit the opposite wall. He turned around to see Captain Grunwald aiming his pistol at him.

"Gentlemen, stay away from the exit. We'll wait quietly."

tbc

* Humpty Dumpty, Through the Looking Glass.

*Charlie MacCarty, a puppet, famous for it's own radio show. He wore a monocle :)