Purple mist enveloped the metal links of the fence. Green sparks of energy jumped about the thin metal encompassing the compound. Black birds circled the night sky above the factory. Their green eyes loomed over the metal and concrete building, scanning it for any sign of their enemy.
The Raven grabbed onto the links in the fence as rust bloomed over the dull grey surface. His boney fingers gripped the fence tightly as he yanked downwards, pulling the decaying scrap to the dirt road below. The rest of the fence to his left and right turned reddish-brown as the rust spread throughout the barrier. The Necromancer smiled. His black teeth visible through the hole in his cheek.
The dark figure stepped into the realm of the factory. He was now inside the gates, awaiting the inevitable appearance of the Nazi’s robot guards. Cameras placed on the outside wall of the factory turned towards the newcomer, fixating their attention on the Necromancer.
He had looked up the Nazis on a machine the humans of this time called a computer. They had acted truly evil indeed, killing millions of Jews, including innocent children. The Raven let out a quick grunt. There was no excuse for hurting a child, and for this horrendous act, the Nazis had not paid enough. He would make them pay, blood for blood, ounce for ounce, until retribution was paid in full.
The crunch of dirt, followed by the metal clanks of the marching guards was quicker than the Raven had expected, but just as Sam had planned. He
would draw out as many of the soldiers as he could, but that wasn’t all he would do. He had his own orders from Mr. Bartlett. He would carry out both plans and then he would watch the night enfold.
Several dozen on the robot soldiers surrounded the Raven. Their metallic arms rose as they pointed their plasma cannons at the undead savant. “Scanning: incomplete. Organic flesh unfound.” The hollow voices of the robots sounded out in unison. Several faster steps came from the doors on the exterior. Cyborgs with red bands around their arms came running towards the intruder with guns raised. Various body parts were replaced with metal and machinery.
The Raven chuckled to himself, “This is going to be interesting.”
The beat of his heart hit rhythms only heard of in rock music. He continually slid his glasses up the bridge of his nose. Sweat had claimed his face and was there to stay. Harold had trouble controlling his breath in this dark night, up to the extent his chest started to hurt. He wasn’t used to being out in the field, but the feeling was better than any other he had ever experienced. The excitement was just too good to pass up. He finally felt alive.
A large group of armed men had gathered in the front of the factory. They formed a circle around some sort of creature, that resembled a man that had melted the gate down. Harold had never seen anything like it before, but he didn’t doubt the existence of such a man. He had seen his fair share of inexplicable things. More on the subject, this would make things easier than he thought. With all these guards outside, there would be less inside. Hunting down Andrelle would be a simple affair.
Harold turned away from the scene in front of him and began canvasing the side of the factory wall. There ought to be a door or window along the side of the building. His hand gripped the pistol within it, sweat making his palms sticky. If he needed to, he could drop anything in his sight with his gun. Things just best not come to that.
He slipped past a jumble of barrels lying about the ground when the glint of a window above caught his eye. Harold looked around to make sure he was alone. He slipped his gun into his belt and stacked some of the barrels on top of each other. He carefully climbed the makeshift tower he had built and peered inside the factory.
There was little to be seen from this vantage point, but what he did see was exactly what he wanted. He caught a glimpse of the woman with the axe, Sam, as she was known. She had killed Ra’s cousin, Horus, a year ago. Ra was still very upset about this endeavor, even if he didn’t portray his emotions; his family’s blood had been shed.
Soon the axe wielder had disappeared up a set of stairs, leaving a rag tag group about, including some wild animal Harold had never seen before. He pushed his ever sagging glasses up the bridge of his nose yet again. His eyes hovered over the figure he had come to kill. Andrelle was within this group, glancing upwards at something Harold could not see.
Something wasn’t right here. If Andrelle was in this factory fighting the guards, then who owned the factory? Harold thought Andrelle and her husband had holed up here, but since his arrival, Harold had found this quite odd. Things weren’t adding up.
Harold leaned backwards as Andrelle vanished from his sight, jumping upwards and climbing up random pipes racing throughout the factory. He best play it safe. He should watch and observe what happens here. His life most surely depended on it.
Hans gazed at the monitors in front of him with the clear intent of examining the creature he could hardly fathom. The flesh that encased his organs was pale and decomposing, yet his body seemed to retain its shape without fail. The clothes that half-hung to his rigid body were outdated for several hundred years, but they hung on the verge of life, just like their host.
Hans leaned backwards and scratched his chin with his metal hand. He would need to catch this rare specimen alive, so he could study what had kept this perverted version of man able to stand on two feet, even though its body was well past its prime. The dissection table would need to be readied instantly.
Hans reached down to the control panel to signal his aides to prepare his lab.
“Hans!” Wolfic entered the room with urgency in his voice, the fleshy parts of his body sweating profusely. “The prisoners have escaped.” His sentences were curt. He feared the wrath of his employer.
Hans slammed down on the control panel, denting the metal table. He quickly flipped from the half-man to the prisoners he had caught beneath his factory. They had all split up, but the ones that worried him the most were the man holding the pack of explosives. He was followed by a young girl carrying the same pack as the man.
Hans’ head quickly turned to Wolfric, “How’d they escape?”
Wolfric choked on his words. He couldn’t quite tell him the fact that a mouse had turned into a massive bear, and then into a young woman with blue tattoos.
Hans waved his hand, “Forget it. We must find these two and stop them. If they plant the explosives, our whole operation is as dead as it was seventy years ago. Stop them Wolfric, take whoever is left and kill them on sight!”
Wolfric nodded and took off down the hallway, shouting out for anyone to follow him, but there was no one left to hear his plea.
Hans glanced back at the monitors. He could see the woman with the axe coming up the flight of stairs that led right towards his office. Most of his guards and cyborgs were outside with the dead man walking. He sneered. Did she plan this? Did she pull out his guards outside with the distraction of the dead man? She was more of a threat than the rest of her party combined. She was smart and cunning, as well as ruthless. He would have to take her out himself. He couldn’t rely on his underlings anymore. Their incompetence was costing him his dreams for a better world.
Hans turned and stormed over to a nearby cabinet. He ripped the door off with his metal arm, forgoing the unlocking, and grabbed a submachine gun. He inspected it quickly. It was a weapon of his design; something of this age, with a spruce of future innovation. He loaded the clip into his gun and turned towards his door. He would end this war with his own hands. His fleshy hand reached into his jacket and pulled out a key. If he couldn’t end this, then he would escape like he did before, and return again with more ferocity. He would bring his past convictions with him and start all over from scratch. He did it once, he could do it again. Hans looked down at his metal body. He was immortal now.
Her heeled boots clanked down upon the metal landing, not resting long as they picked up again, following the smell left by the pair of psychics. The thick heavy clothes, concealing her skin from the sun, were shed quickly, leaving only her own black skinsuit. Her mouth filled with saliva as she thought of sinking her teeth deep into the old woman’s jugular. Her hand griped the knife tightly. She was out for blood now. Nothing would stop her.
Andrelle sniffed the air. There was still a hint of the woman floating about. That was a start. She followed the whiff of air through a narrow hallway until it came to a t-fork. She looked both ways but there was nothing to be seen but pipes and several doors on either sides of the hallway.
Andrelle punched the wall next to her, the sound of her fist echoed throughout the metal hallway. She hung her head down, listening to anything she could pick up from the vibrations. The slight scratching of metal caught her ear. Andrelle looked up to the wall in front of her. Before her eyes, an arrow began to appear in front of her. It looked as if someone was scratching the shape into the metal wall before her. The arrow pointed to the right and Andrelle began to move down the right hallway. The thought of this being a trap set by the old woman crossed her mind, but it was the only lead she had. She must follow it.
She raced down the right hallway, keeping her head on a swivel to catch anything that would bring her to the old woman, and her husband. She only hoped that Red was okay, and that nothing bad had befallen her love. If anything were to happen to him… Andrelle snarled and continued racing down the hall.
Andrelle could see a large room opening up at the end of the hall. She slowed herself until she was planted at the halls edge. She peered out into the room and looked about. Her eyes instantly settled on the couple standing in front of a large window overlooking the front of the factory. Andrelle expected her to take notice instantly. She could never sneak up on Red, and this woman was supposed to be a more powerful psychic, so what was happening here?
“That is the… thing we found on the optical recording. Something is off about it. I can’t sense a lifeform within it.” The old woman turned to Red, “What about you my love?”
Red shrugged, “I can’t sense one either love.”
The old woman turned back to the window. Red’s head slightly turned toward Andrelle. He fought for a moment to get out a wink. Something wasn’t right here. Andrelle readied her knife. Now was the moment to strike.
Andrelle darted from cover, hanging low and running from the toes of her shoes to be as silent as she could. She was almost upon the woman now. She leapt into the air and aimed her knife into the spine of the woman. She was about to break the spell once and for all.
A jolt suddenly shot through the old woman’s spine. She turned around quickly just in time to see the woman she left for dead in the road flying at her with a knife in hand. Maria quickly raised her hand and spread her fingers. Andrelle was blasted backwards in midair and landed face down across the room.
The vampire had almost killed her. Maria swallowed hard. How had she been blinded by this woman’s presence? She should have sensed her from a mile away. Maria took a few steps towards Andrelle, “I see you are quite the sneak.” Maria smiled, “You almost had me, but alas, I have come out on top.” Maria raised her hand again, carrying Andrelle upwards with an invisible force. She brought her hand down and whisked it towards the wall opposite her.
Andrelle slammed down on the metal floor and flew across the room, smashing into the wall. Maria flipped around her new plaything so she could see into its eyes when she extinguished the vampire’s life. “You cannot stop us now, poor thing; we are the most powerful psychics on this planet. We have soldiers aplenty being made as fast as we can pump them out on our assembly lines, and I have the best thing a woman could ask for, your husband.” Maria laughed as she started turning her hand into a fist.
Andrelle cried out with pain, “Red!” She could barely manage to get her words out as her body felt an invisible pressure surrounding her, crushing her body with immense force. She tried to fight back, but nothing she did could shake the unseen grasp. With every wiggle, with every squirming struggle, she could not overcome the old woman’s power. “Red, help.” She whispered out one last time to reach her husband.
“Your pleas for help are a futile gesture. He is under control of his new love, and soon we will sit atop the world in our thrones of dominance. The two of us are unstoppable.” Maria turned towards Red, “Come kiss me love.” She held out her other hand, gesturing him forward with her fingers.
“Maria.” Red approached her slowly. His head fought to swivel to look at the woman across the room being crushed by Maria’s psychic energies. The woman was familiar to him. He could feel emotions rising in his chest. His eyes watered the more he thought of this woman. Her pale skin and dark demeanor blanketed him in comfort he hadn’t felt in days. These feelings were not lies. They were not deceit placed in his mind to confuse him. Part of him knew this beauty before him. It was the part of him that left the arrow in the hallway. The part of him that masked her presence from Maria, even though he was faithful to Maria, this woman came first for some reason.
Red stopped moving forward and stared at the white skinned angel trapped across the room. “Andrelle.” Red looked back to Maria. The young woman he envisioned while he was trapped here was replaced by a woman of age, old and decrepit. A lie placed in his mind to lead him down a path against his will. This woman had invaded the last citadel of privacy he contained. She dumped images in his head like it was a mass landfill full of poisoned garbage.
Red’s eyes darted to Maria’s hand, and instantly, it snapped backwards with a sharp crack. That wasn’t enough in Red’s eyes. Maria’s fingers shot in different directions, breaking to the last bone, as the ancient woman yelled out in pain.
Andrelle dropped to the ground, her chest heaving up and down with difficulty. She tried to stand up but was stilled by Red’s hand.
“Stay there my love. I have to take out the trash, and then I will be right there.” Red turned towards Maria.
“But I had control over you!” Maria backed up towards the window. “How did you break free? I am the strongest psychic on this wretched planet.” She lashed out with her words, spiting as she spoke to Red.
“You might have been powerful at one time, but there is more to power than strength.” Red looked over at his wife. All the memories of her taking care of him while he was sick. He was high off despicable drugs, unable to function, yet she stayed by his side regardless of the situation. She put her life, her dreams, on hold just to save him. If that wasn’t love, than Red couldn’t fathom what was.
Maria quickly raised her good hand at Red. An invisible energy blasted around the sides of a barrier about Red. He didn’t flinch as the powers of the old woman raced about him. He was invincible to this woman. Her powers were fading, a thing of the past, just like she was.
“Die damn you, just die!” Maria forced more power about as the air in the room swirled about aimlessly.
Red took an unhampered step towards the woman, “You should have died all those years ago. It’s time we right history.”
Maria took a quick glance over at Andrelle slumped on the floor of the room. She smirked as she changed her hand from Red to the vampire woman, but before she could focus her energy, Red raised both his hands with a mighty yell and blasted the woman through the massive window overlooking the courtyard below.
Maria rose as a jolt of energy blasted her backwards. She screamed as the glass about her shattered and she fell to the ground below. The swirling wind followed her, forcing air out of the room.
The wind settled down and Red ran over to Andrelle on the ground. “You alright?” He gave her the same awkward smile from when they had first met a year ago.
Andrelle smiled back, “I was going to ask you the same thing. I was supposed to be saving you.”
Red looked deep into her eyes, “You did.” He bent down and took her head in both is hands. He pressed his lips against her, connecting deeply in a tender kiss that both participants didn’t dare pull away from.
Several moments later, Red pulled Andrelle to her feet. They gave each other a tight hug before Red’s attention was pulled towards the shattered window.
Outside in the deep of the night, clouds began to form in the sky. Black birds began circling about the factory in droves, too many for one to count. Green lightning battered about the dark clouds as they overpopulated the sky above.
Red shivered for a second and turned to Andrelle, “Some sort of power is forming. Nothing I have ever felt before. It would be best for us to leave as soon as we can.”
Andrelle grabbed Red’s hand, “Sam and the others are still here. We have to stop Hans from escaping. This factory needs to be brought down before we can leave.”
Red nodded, “I still can’t sense her with the talisman on her axe.” Red’s brow furrowed, “She came here to save me?”
Andrelle chuckled, “More like as a side note she bothered to help save you. She’s here with some British dude and his henchmen, as well as Brockly and some young girl with tattoos. You can meet and greet once we blow this place to oblivion.”
Red focused on the energy about the factory. It was clouding his mind, making it unable to read anyone’s position in the metal cathedral. “Let’s hope we aren’t too late.”
Tentin wiped the sweat from his forehead. The underbelly of this hellhole was filled with demonic heat and muggy steam. Not someplace he would enjoy spending on vacation. Hell, this is why he stayed out of the south. The humidity was not his thing, not while he carried both packs of explosives, not ever. Keitha had begun to tire as they made their way to the support beams below, so Tentin had taken her bag upon his shoulders as well. He shook his head. He was getting too old for this shit.
“How will we know what these support beams look like? Keitha chimed in from behind Tentin. She was covered in sweat as well. Her white clothes stuck to her skin like bugs on a summer night. She brushed a matte of black hair from her head. “This place is worse than the church.”
Tentin spoke over his shoulder, slightly looking back at her, “What church?” He slowed down as Keitha caught up to him.
Keitha shrugged, “Oh yeah, I guess you weren’t there. This crazy stuff went down back at the church Sam found me in. Glad she showed up in time, otherwise I would be stuck in some dimensional hell with my face plastered on a demon’s tentacle. Not much fun if you ask me.” Keitha dodged a bead of steam coming from a pipe. “What about you? Why are you here?”
Tentin stopped and pulled a canteen of water from one of the packs. He handed it over to the girl. “My job’s to protect Sam, so the best way to do that is to follow her around myself. Plus, she hasn’t got much family and we’ve bonded quite a bit since she inherited Bartlett’s empire. I haven’t had much luck in the family department myself, so you can say I see her like a daughter.”
Keitha took a few swigs of water to cool off. She didn’t know Tentin was so sentimental about Sam. She handed the canteen back, “Well I think that’s cute. It must be killing you that Sam is somewhere else here without you.”
Tentin took the canteen, “You bet it does.” He felt weird pouring his thoughts out to a stranger, but he didn’t know if he was going to make it out alive. He gulped down some water and poured the rest over his face. He tossed the empty canteen to the floor. “The best thing that can happen tonight is for all of us to get out alive, but you never know what will happen in these situations. Something can swim up from underneath you and bite you in the ass.” Tentin shuddered as he thought of the waterfall pool in Haiti. He had lost James that day, something he never got used to.
“Sounds like good advice.” Keitha took a step forward, “You’ll be fine old man. You got me to watch your back.” Keitha smiled as she stepped out into a new hallway.
Tentin went to follow as he heard a slight click through all the steam. He stopped and grabbed the back of Keitha’s shirt. He pulled the girl backwards with all his strength, launching himself forward as he did so.
Flashes of light filled the new hallway as bullets sprayed across the pipes and walls about Tentin. Sparks erupted and bullets ricocheted across the hallway. Keitha fell to the floor and covered her head with her arms. Tentin felt a pain flare up in his chest. He looked down at a stream of blood staining his shirt. He turned to Keitha with his eyes wide, “Run.”
Sam bolted up the stairs, her face smitten with determination, her hard stare never wavering. Brockly struggled to keep up with the axe-toting woman. He panted as he reached the top of the stairs, leaning on the nearby wall for support. He was definitely out of shape. His gut was aching from all the running.
Sam turned to the winded man, “You alright there, old-timer?” She winked as she cracked the joke.
Brockly shook his head slightly, “I hate you.” He took a few steps towards her as he straightened out his back. “How do you know he’s up here? He could’ve been on any of the floors we passed.” One of his twin pistols sheened in the dim light of the factory just inches away from his face as he covered his mouth while stifling a slight cough, he just hoped he was still as good a shot as he was a year ago.
“If you were king of the castle, wouldn’t you sleep on the top floor?” Sam gripped her axe tightly. She glanced around the small open room. Several hallways stretched off in different directions. Sam couldn’t tell which one would contain Hans. There could even be a mass of robot guards around each corner, waiting to eviscerate her with one blast. She would need to play this one safe. “He’s up here somewhere. The coward disappeared from the last war he was in. He probably is trying to disappear again.” Sam stepped in front of the first hallway. It was dark, not a movement in sight. “We need to catch him before that happens.” Sam circled the room around to the next hallway. The hairs on her neck stood up on end as she peered around the corner.
A mass of bullets sprayed from a gun, pattering against the metal walls in the small room. Brockly ducked down the stairs, peeking over the lip of the stairs once the bullets stopped. Sam hugged the wall behind her for safety. Something on her leg started to flare up in pain. She looked down to her left calf. A small trickle of blood crept down her leg and into her boot. She was grazed by one of the bullets, maybe even a ricochet. The bullets sprayed again. There were too many to count as the blasted into the room. The pattern of fire was foreign to Sam, it was some sort of submachine gun, but it sprayed a plethora of bullets at a speed she had never seen before. If she was caught out in front of that gun, she would be torn to pieces in an instant.
“Come on out little girl! I would love to finish this once and for all!” Hans’ voice shot from the hallway. “I haven’t field tested my new weapon yet. It’s a bit of a hobby it is, making weapons that are most effective for killing.”
His voice grew louder. Sam could hear his feet planting against the hard, metal floor beneath. He was closing in on the edge of the hallway. If she could get one good swing in, she could end this once and for all.
Sam shifted her feet as quietly as she could. She raised her axe into a swinging position. She only had once chance at this, and she couldn’t raise her axe upright or she’d give away herself away. Her heart beat like a drum within her chest. Her breath was getting harder to regulate.
“No answer huh? Maybe I already caught you with my new toy. I could still use your body for my experiments I suppose.” Hans chuckled slightly, projecting his arrogance as best he could.
Sam kept her mouth shut. She couldn’t give in to his taunts. Her eyes widened as she saw the black barrel of Hans’ gun emerge from the hallway. Her adrenaline picked up as she swung her axe with all her strength, taking one step forward to get a good hit on the cyborg.
Hans’ red eye recognized the threat before his real eye could. He quickly stepped backwards and bent back. He pushed his robotic arm upwards, along with his submachine gun, to try and block the blow.
Sam’s axe slid over the gun, slightly skidding upwards. She couldn’t take anything back now, she was already committed to her swing, but she could tell instantly that something was wrong. Her attack was going to miss. The axe slid slightly across the metal side of Hans’ face, sparking as her axe then slammed into the wall.
Hans calculated the force needed to force the woman backwards. His robotic leg slid backwards as he pushed forward, slamming the flat of his gun into Sam’s chest.
Sam let out a short grunt as she was knocked off balance. She wasn’t about to let this man get the better of her. If she did, she was dead.
Sam reeled backwards, trying to absorb as much of the blow as she could. She brought her axe down with her, hooking the spiked end on the edge of Hans’ machinegun. She pulled with all her strength, using her momentum from falling to try and rip the gun from Hans’ hands. Hans toppled over, his leg overextended behind him. He fell on top of Sam as she rolled onto her back. Sam kicked outward to launch the man into the small room behind her. His weight was unimaginably heavy for such a man. He must’ve been heavily implanted with robotic parts. Sam yelled as she pressed all her might into kicking the cyborg off her.
Hans flew into the room, landing with a loud thump on his back; his gun skid across the floor towards the stairs. Both of the combatants turned to look at each other from the ground before scurrying to their feet.
Sam still had her axe in hand, while Hans had lost his gun. She had the advantage. They both raced to their feet. Sam raised her axe and began move towards Hans. The cyborg quickly reached to the small of his back, procuring a pistol, and aimed it at Sam.
“Looks like I have come out on top.” He cocked the gun and aimed at Sam’s face. “Now it’s time to die.”
“Hold it.” Brockly moved towards the cyborg with his twin pistols raised. “You kill her and your head gets turned into human pulp.” Brockly tilted his head to the side, “Then you can kiss your world domination goodbye.”
Hans stared at the man in the black suit, his eyes burning with hatred. This wasn’t supposed to happen. He was supposed to conquer this new world and bring it into the light. Their future was a pit of hell encompassed in endless despair. If they knew what was in store for their young, they would have bowed down to him and his new empire.
“You okay, Sam?” Brockly risked a quick glance at his companion.
“We’ll see in time.” Sam kept her gaze on Hans. It was a bad situation.
“I see your name is Sam.” Hans’ head glistened with sweat. “Well Sam, I would urge you to tell your compatriot here to let me go. All of our future is at stake here. My robot army could help save this world.” His red eye scanned the man holding the pistols. There was no obvious weakness to exploit. His only chance was to keep talking.
“You mean by killing anyone that stands in your way? Murdering Jews like your predecessors did?” Sam tightened her grip on her axe. Just one swipe at his head and he was gone.
“Not just Jews, dear, but anyone with the genetics that are responsible for the blight in the future. It is not a pretty place. That is why I have returned. Not for destruction, but salvation.” Hans clenched his teeth. These people wouldn’t understand. He needed to get out of this factory. Die Glocke was in the sub level. Just one jump from the catwalk outside the room and he could be free of his failure.
“Wait.” Brockly spoke up, “Your robots kill based off of genetics?” Brockly remembered the robot that scanned Keitha and took another step inwards. “So you can program them to kill any race, even the Drow?”
Sam looked back to her partner, “No Brockly. Don’t.”
Hans perked up. This could be a weakness he could exploit. “Yes, even the Drow. They will kill whatever we tell them to. They never sleep or eat. They never rest till the job is done.” Hans had no clue what the Drow were, but it seemed something dear to the heart of the man named Brockly. This could be his ticket out of this situation.
“Join me, and we can kill these Drow, all of them!” Hans smiled at the man.
“Brockly you can’t give in.” Sam started to breath heavily. Brockly wouldn’t give in to Hans promises, would he?
Brockly paused for a moment. He turned his guns on Sam. “Sorry Sam, but I have to find her.”
“This way, Master.” The Ginger helped his employer through a twist of halls. “It would be his most protected possession, so we must expect some resistance before we can get to it.” The Ginger held his double-barreled shotgun tight in one hand, leading Lord Blud with his other. “I still don’t know what you hope to find.”
Lord Blud kept his head on a swivel. There was no telling where someone would be hiding in this labyrinth of metal. “There is only one reason Hans could disappear for all these years and return with advanced technology. He had to of made Die Glocke operational. We must find it.” Lord Blud adjusted his trousers, “He wouldn’t keep it far from himself. It’s here somewhere, I know it.”
The Ginger gave a silent nod. His master was probably correct. If the machine was here, then it would be close by.
The duo rounded a corner, and the Ginger held his hand out to stop Lord Blud. “Wait.” The large redhead left his British counterpart behind as he moved up to a large metal door. A large circular handle held two bars in place, fastening the door tightly shut. The Ginger set down his gun and grabbed onto the metal handle. He twisted the handle slightly, but the locks didn’t budge. He twisted again, forcing it with all his strength. The bars began to slide open, inch by inch.
“Careful, we don’t know what’s behind that door.” Lord Blud felt his way over to the wall. “I can’t see any signs of life in there, but that doesn’t mean there won’t be resistance.”
The Ginger grunted as he twisted the last of the metal bars from their slots. He grabbed his shotgun and moved to the side of the door. He glanced back at Lord Blud.
The Lord nodded, “Do it.”
The Ginger swung open the heavy door. It squeaked all the way open. The Ginger fanned his gun over the opening door. The room inside was dark and quiet, not even an echo. The Ginger stepped inside the room and felt around for a light switch. His feet pattered against the metal floor below him. He found a large handle on the side of the wall. He pushed it upwards, and in an instant, the room was illuminated by the sweet caress of light.
The room was large and surrounded by a catwalk that the Ginger found himself standing upon. Below him, in the center of the room was a large bell shaped machine. Massive wires rolled out from beneath the machine and plugged into various walls throughout the room. Large computers lined one side of the wall, while tables filled with documents littered the other.
The Ginger stepped up to the railing lining the catwalk. He gazed upon the machine for a few seconds before turning to Lord Blud, “Die Glocke, we found it.” The Ginger grabbed Lord Blud’s arm and led him into the room. He began to walk along the catwalk, heading for the stairs down to the strange machine.
“I can feel its power.” Lord Blud lifted up his head. “This machine is what protected that war criminal for all these years.”
The Ginger led Lord Blud down to the concrete floor below and up to Die Glocke. Lord Blud ran his hand across the soft metal exterior. “Finally.” He walked around the machine, looking on it as if he could see. “We can return to the past and stop what had happened to us. We can finally return to our normal lives.” He made his way around the machine and back to the Ginger. “I can live out my days, seeing the sky, the plants, and I can die along with my family.” He turned to look at the mass of veins that was the Ginger. “And you can be normal once again. We can stop what had happened to us that day. We can change the past and live a better future.” Lord Blud stared in awe, his mouth slightly agape.
Both men jumped at the sudden clapping behind them up on the catwalk. “Bravo, bravo. You’ve found it, chaps.” Footsteps clanged out against the metal floor of the walk, followed by the pang of a thin cane. “But I’m afraid that you can’t keep it. You stole one item from me, and you won’t get another.”
The man in the white suit descended the stairs down to the floor. The Ginger pulled up his gun and aimed it at the intruder.
“Tsk, tsk. You should know that won’t work on me, boy.” The man smiled and winked at the Ginger with his left eye. Its black void sucked in any light around it, swirling the matter around into an unknown abyss.
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“Mr. Bartlett.” Lord Blud stepped forward, “If I knew how to kill you, I would’ve done it all those years ago.” Lord Blud gazed upon the body of Mr. Bartlett. There were no mass or network of veins circulating the life source known as blood, but instead, there was a ghastly image of a perverse human. Black streaks merged into the darkness around him, blending all edges into a black emptiness.
“Please, don’t act so righteous, Lord Blud. You have your fair share of secrets.” Mr. Bartlett twirled his cane and tucked it under his arm. “Does Sam know what you are using her for? I doubt you’ve told her the truth of why you approached her at the Institute.” Mr. Bartlett walked past the duo and let his eyes rest on the machine. He spoke in a hushed whisper, “She just might kill you if she knew that you had here come halfway across the world just to draw me out. Not to mention your own selfish reasons for returning to the past.” He turned back to Lord Blud, “But I’m afraid you won’t be having this machine, but even if you did, what would you do with it? Hmm? Go back in time? Fix what happened to you?”
“I’d kill you the moment you stepped out of that truck and onto the sand.” Lord Blud kept a stern face. He was now face to face to his enemy, but was helpless to do anything about it.
Bartlett laughed, “I’m afraid you would have to go back further than that to kill me. You see, this is just a shell, a body I have come quite fond of, and now that I have complete control over it, I won’t be slipping out anytime soon.” Mr. Bartlett raised his cane in front of him, “The problem with the past my dear Blud, is that the past returns, and it’s a son of a bitch.” Mr. Bartlett pulled up his cane, “I too have a grudge to settle, and I need this machine to do it. Stay a while and rest, and then I will kill you.”
Lord Blud looked to the Ginger. The Ginger nodded and aimed his gun at Bartlett’s head. Lord Blud rubbed his temple, “I too am sorry. I need this machine, and I won’t leave without it.”
Mr. Bartlett smiled, “So be it.”
Glass shattered down the side of the factory. A woman flew from the window high up on the factory’s wall. She plummeted down towards the ground, accompanied by a hail of clear shards of razor sharp glass. Her seemingly endless length of hair whipped about in a fury of lashes as the wind tore through it. Her body spiraled out of control as gravity took her in its swells and thrust her to the ground.
Her body stopped inches from the dirt below. She hovered over the ground, being held up by some unseen force. The glass spattered about the dirt around her as her body righted itself, and she touched down on her feet. Her ancient hand wiped away the loose strands of hair covering her face. Small lacerations dotted the ever creasing lines that inhabited the once beautiful visage upon the woman.
Maria looked about the area she had been tossed out to. She was in front of the factory, just by the main gate. Hans’ robot guards stood all around her, accompanied by some of the loyal cyborgs from the last remnants of her old Regime. Their attention was pressed on a dark individual standing in front of the dense throng of guns aimed directly at him.
Maria moved forward, pulling her hair from the tangle mess behind her and twisting about the front of her body. She carefully placed her steps, winding in and out of the guards, moving up to meet the dark figure. The closer she got to what appeared to be a man, the worse the smell that hung in the air became.
Her eyes scanned the man with great intent. He was familiar to her. She had seen him somewhere before, but where. Her mind reached out to the man, but nothing came back to her. She couldn’t even sense the man’s life force. Were her powers truly fading? A shudder passed down her spine in quick succession.
She was close enough now for his eyes to now rest on her. Their milky white, soulless gaze rested on her own eyes. His greasy black hair was hidden beneath a top hat, while his blackened teeth were visible through the missing skin on his cheek. The man’s black lips curled as she came closer.
The fluttering of a bird’s wings drew Maria’s attention from the man. She looked up to one of the guard towers. Upon it sat a dozen black birds, all their green eyes rested on her. Their heads turned side to side rapidly. Maria shuddered again, this time from the strange power flowing all around her. Thunder cracked in the sky. Maria turned her head upwards at the dark clouds lighting up with green streaks of electricity. She turned back to the man and finally knew who he was. The man that Hans had picked up in his cyborgs video feed. This was a man of true power, power over Death
She squinted at him, “What is your purpose here?” This was no ordinary man. He was something more powerful than anything she had seen in her life. She prepared her mind for battle. This man was with the woman that Hans had caught earlier. There was no doubt he would fight.
“My purpose?” The Raven lifted up one of his boney fingers and scratched his chin. “That’s a tough question.” He pulled the top hat from his head and ran his hand through his hair before placing the hat back on his head, “My foremost purpose would be to put stop what you are doing here, but I’m afraid that is a feat to easily done.” The Raven chuckled slightly at the woman. He looked around at all the guards. This was getting better by the moment.
“You think that you can destroy what we have created? I’m afraid you overestimate yourself here.” Maria took a step forward and held out her hand. There was no way her powers could diminish. She was the most powerful psychic of all time. Nothing had been able to stop her before. She picked a piece of glass from her hair with her other hand. Once she was done with this man, she would go finish another man that made a fool of her.
“I don’t know what you are, but you won’t be around long enough to bother us anymore.” Maria wrapped her mind around the man.
“What are you doing?” The Raven spouted out in a panicked voice as his body rose from the ground. “Ahh!” He started to yell out in pain as his arm broke in half.
Maria smiled as she began to snap the bones of the creature in front of her. One by one, she crumpled his body in half, crushing his body as easily as paper. His screams refreshed her mood. It gave her an empowered feeling. Her powers weren’t diminished. They were in full tilt, and she was happy.
“Stop it!” The Raven cried out to her.
“Time to finish this.” Maria spoke calmly as she squeezed her hand together in a tight fist. The man, with one final crunch, was smashed into a ball and was tossed out the gate, rolling a few feet before stopping. Maria smiled and turned to her guards, “There are others inside. We must help Hans. He could use the extra firepower.”
A flash of green lightning sparked against the ground behind her. Maria turned at the sound of laughter.
“Hahaha!” The laughter became sporadic and loud, like a patient at an asylum.
Maria’s eyes squinted at the ball of flesh. She waved her hand to stop the robots from going inside the factory. “What?”
The ball of rotten flesh began to tremble. First an arm sprouted out, followed by another. Next the body unfolded and the man did a short summersault and landed on his feet, grabbing his cane from the ground.
He tapped his cane on the ground and caught it in the air. “That was a nice try,” The Raven raised his arms up to the sky and tilted his head down at the psychic woman, his voice gruff and thick, “But now it’s my turn.”
Green lightning burst from the clouds above in hundreds of pillars, launching themselves at the Earth. They splattered against the ground all around the factory for miles on end. There seemed no end to the lightning as it stroke the ground everywhere. The birds on the nearby guard tower took flight before a strike of lightning plowed through the tower, reducing the structure to rubble.
Maria felt a terrible force awaken around her. Whatever it was, it was not something she wanted to be around. “Kill it! Kill the man!” The cyborgs began to fire upon the Raven, their bullets hitting his chest in the hundreds, but to no effect. The Raven just began to laugh again as their futile attempts to kill him had failed.
“Shoot him!” Maria turned to one of the robot guards and shook it about. “Kill the man.”
“No object detected. Target has already been eliminated.” The metallic chime sounded out in unison around the several dozens of robot guards.
“Shoot at the dead man!” Maria yelled out in a panic. She turned her attention to the newly created ruble nearby. She shot out her hand to the largest piece of wall still intact. With one quick motion, she jerked her arm at the Raven. The massive piece of drywall and stone flew at the Raven, crashing through the withered chain link fence next to it.
The Raven looked down at the hunk of building headed straight at him. He let out a long sigh, “Shit.” The hunk of wall crashed into his chest and launched him across the field in front of the factory. He crashed several hundred feet away in a heap of broken building material. His arm shot out and lifted his head from the ground. His smile had faded and a scowl had taken over his face. “This ends now.” He muttered under his breath as he raised his arms up once more.
Purple mist materialized from his hands, spreading across all the lightning scorches across the ground faster than the Blitzkrieg. The haze covered the ground for several miles. Bullets raked the ground around the Raven as the cyborgs continued to fire on him. Blasts of plasma erupted around him as well, burning the ground and decimating any plant life unfortunate enough to find itself beneath the unrelenting plasma.
The Raven bent down and stuck his boney fingertips into the ground. “From death, you shall avenge the past. From Undeath, you shall exact your revenge.” The Raven pressed his hand deep into the Earth below, clasping the hand of a long forgotten soldier. The Raven pulled upwards, yanking the body from the ground, at the same time all around him, hands shot from the dirt, reaching forever upwards for the heavens that had forsaken them.
All around, for miles on end, men crawled from the dirt. Old uniforms adorned with iron crosses, and sickles crossed with hammers, were caked in dirt and blood. They moved onwards to the Raven’s side, shambling forwards as bones popped and dry flesh ripped. Bent helmets, some covered in holes, sat atop their decaying heads like a topper to a vile, viscera filled cake. Old, moldy wooden guns, antiqued and rusted weaponry, and makeshift clubs were clutched in the hands of the masses. Green sparks shot throughout their bodies, jumping from hole to hole.
The horrible churning sound of metal scraping across metal filled the air. The Raven turned to face an approaching soldier. He saluted the former man with a crisp snap of his hand to his head.
The soldier’s jaw flapped back and forth below his mangled face. “Sir!” The soldier saluted as a blast of plasma raced past his head.
The Raven shot his head in the direction of the factory. The guards started to fire upon him now. Gauss blasts erupted all about the dirt in front of him and the undead soldier.
The robot guards and cyborgs started taking up positions behind the gates and guard towers. The woman with the long hair was shouting orders at the men. She turned to the rubble and started chucking large hunks of metal and wood out towards the battlefield.
The soldier sat slack jawed, staring at the Raven without a single flinch. The Raven turned and saluted the undead man.
“The cavalry has arrived sir!” The soldier pointed at the horrendous noise of metal grinding on metal, the shriek of high pitch forged steel scraping against itself rolled up to the Raven. He turned and gazed on the rusty hunks of past tanks, filled with large holes and scorched marks covering the casing.
The Raven turned to his soldier, “Don’t be so cliché.” He gripped the side of the tank and hoisted himself on top of the rust bucket. He looked inside to a crew of undead tankers. The Commander was missing half his head, grey pulpy matter was spilling out onto his uniform.
“Orders sir?” The Commander looked up at the Raven with his one remaining eye. He held out an outdated commanders cap for the Raven.
The Raven took the cap and replaced his top hat. “All tanks, fire at the factory. Show them how the undead fight back.” The Raven smiled as all of the decrepit tanks fired a blast of green energy from their barrels. The boom of the blasts sent shockwaves throughout the battlefield. The cyborgs and the long haired lady dove for cover as the blasts arced over their heads and smashed into the factory. The building erupted in explosion as large chunks of the side blew in all directions. Detritus fell all around the force of robots defending the factory, smashing onto the concrete below.
The Raven smiled and turned to his captain, “Aim the next shots at our enemies. Let’s blow them into oblivion.”
The barrels of the tanks’ main guns lowered at the Nazi robots and cyborgs. The Raven raised his hand, ready to drop down more carnage on his enemies, more importantly, the woman with the long hair. He would drain her life away. She was long past due.
“Ready!” The Raven glanced down at the tank crewman when a massive fireball erupted from inside the factory. Fire blasted high into the sky, lighting up the midnight hour. Not even the dark clouds spewing green lightning could hide from the explosions light.
The Raven smiled as part of the factory began to sink in on itself. “Looks like Sam is still at it.” He brought his hand down with a sharp snap. The tanks fired their green energy once again, launching their otherworldly firepower at the factory’s defenders.
Steam burst from a pipe, spraying the water vapor throughout the already humid hallway. One body lay on the floor, while another sat beside it. Blood started to pool around the body while a heavy chuckle was barely heard above the hiss of the steam as it escaped through the puncture in the pipe.
Keitha reached into the top of her dress, fondling her bosom for a very special seed. She pulled the small red seed out with a cheer of victory. She glanced over her shoulder at the man who was making the chuckling noise. He was getting closer now. Keitha grabbed ahold of Tentin’s shirt and began to drag him with all her strength, but the man was easily heavier than her by over a hundred pounds.
She slumped him down beneath some piping and held the red seed up to her face, “This better work.” Keitha kissed the seed. Her hands were shaking as the rest of her body was jittering nervously. Her stomach felt heavy as she pressed the seed into Tentin’s chest wound. Her finger slid into the wound, blood spurted out onto her hand as she did so. She covered the wound with both her hands and started to chant in her native tongue. The blue tattoos that covered her body began to glow brightly, lighting up the steam that surrounded them, making them look like a poltergeist on a foggy morning.
The seed opened inside of Tentin’s chest and burrowed deep throughout the torso of the wounded man. Keitha finished her cantrip and looked over her shoulder again. This time a boot shot through the steam and met Keitha’s face with limp resistance. She cried out in pain as she fell to the floor. Blood streamed from her nose as she held herself up with one arm, wiping her nose with the other.
“Please stay seated, it will make my job easier.” Wolfric smiled.
Keitha turned to look at the cyborg man with the beard that was with Hans earlier.
Wolfric pointed his gun at the girl, “I’m not sure what you are, but machines will take over this world. It’s a good thing you won’t be around to see them rip apart nature as they do so.”
Gunshots sounded off as sparks and blood burst off of the cyborg. Tentin held his gun up and continued to pull the trigger of his pistol until it clicked empty. Wolfric stumbled backwards with each bullet panging into his chest. One of the bullets missed its target and pierced a pipe next to Wolfric’s face. The pipe covered the cyborg’s head in burning hot steam. The cyborg let out a yelp and fell back into a cloud of steam, disappearing from sight.
Tentin looked down at his chest. Thick red vines were protruding from his chest wound, grappling tight to the skin on his chest. He looked over to Keitha, who was smiling at him, blood running down her nose and into her mouth. “What did you do to me?” He asked as he pulled himself sitting up against the wall.
“It’s a rare blood seed from a tree deep in the Siberian forests. I spent a few years there with the trees, one of which is closely tied to humans, guarded by an ancient golem. I made friends with him, and he gave me one of these seeds.” She smiled again, blood smeared across her teeth.
Tentin nodded at the girl. She was shaking with terror, yet, she went out of her way to save him. He was proud of her. He looked around and held tried to stand up, but he winced with pain. “Could you give me some help?” He held out his hand, “I just got shot, and it hurts just a wee bit.” He chuckled and winced in pain some more.
Keitha grabbed his hand and yanked him from the floor. She threw his arm over her shoulder, “What do we do now?”
Tentin looked down at the two bags of explosives on the floor. Keitha knelt down and Tentin started to type away on the small panel inside. Once they stood he looked over at Keitha, “We should get out of here.”
She nodded and the two started off down the hallway, sweat dripping from their faces.
The ground then shook as the sound of metal grinding and snapping filled the air. The two friends stopped and held onto the wall to keep from falling over.
“What the hell is going on out there?” Tentin looked around.
“This fight isn’t over!” Bullets smacked the concrete all around Tentin and Keitha. Wolfric stepped through the shroud of steam and continued to fire his gun.
Tentin pushed Keitha forwards up the steps leading to the ground floor of the factory. Keitha stopped and set down a seed by the entrance to the pipes below. She spoke a few words as her tattoos began to glow. A mass of vines shot out and covered the entrance completely. Keitha grabbed Tentin and the two ran as far away as they could.
Wolfric looked down to his feet as he kicked something while walking by. Two bags were planted there, with one of them opened. He dropped his gun and whispered one last word to himself. “Shit.”
The bags them erupted in a mass of fire, blasting the cyborg into dust as fire began to burst throughout the tunnels below the factory. Fire beamed against the mass of vines blocking the entrance. The vines held strong as the outer layer began to burn red hot, melting away against the fire.
Pressure built up with the fire having no way to escape the tunnels below. Soon a massive explosion shook they building as the foundation finally gave way to the immense pressure. Fire shot up into the sky, blowing away part of the roof.
Tentin and Keitha fell to the ground and turned to marvel at the fireball lighting up the night sky. Debris started to rain down on the factory. Tentin covered up Keitha and whispered to her, “It’s all good now. Were safe.”
“Brockly, what are you doing?” Sam shifted in place. Her friend was aiming his twin pistols at her, each weapon pointed at a kill zone. She had known he was obsessed with finding his lost love. She was part of the carnage that took place in the bar. He had told her what he did to the Drow, sparing not even the youngest of their brood. She shifted again. Sweat dripped down her forehead. She had Hans in a stalemate only with Brockly’s help, but now it seemed like his mind had fallen to the delusions of Hans’ promise to wipe out the Drow. Sam was in a bad place. She was now alone with no hope of escaping this situation.
“You know I need to find her Sam. This way is easier than with your help. If the world belongs to one man, I can find her.” Brockly scratched his head with one of his guns, “I can’t even return to the states. What if she’s there?” Brockly took another step backwards towards Hans. He glanced over his shoulder to look at the Cyborg Commander, “You can find her, right?”
Hans nodded his half robot head, “Of course. Anything is possible. Look what I have accomplished in such a short time.” Hans held his hands up and turned around the room. “This factory is just a small testament to my ambitions. We can take it even further. Just take care of the girl and her friends, and then we can take care of the world.” Hans pointed his gun at Sam, “All you have to do is kill her. One bullet to the head and you have my word that I will help you.” Hans smiled as far as his half-metal head would allow.
Sam scoffed, “You can’t trust him. Look what he’s done to those people downstairs. He’s taken their humanity and turned them into mindless slaves. How do you know he won’t do the same to you?” Sam twisted her hands around the hilt of her axe. Her nerves were getting shaky now. She was barley holding her axe steady. Her mind was trying to come up with a solution, but she couldn’t think of anything sound.
“Do it.” Hans looked Brockly directly in the eyes.
Brockly turned his head back at Sam. He stiffened his arms and stared at his friend.
“Do it!” Hans shouted at Brockly.
Brockly tightened his fingers. “Sorry.” He turned and pulled the triggers of his guns, firing his twins at Hans. The cyborg yelled out in anger as the first rounds blasted the gun from his hand. Brockly then aimed at his chest, pulling the triggers several more times, knocking Hans back to the doorway behind him.
Sam let out a quick breath of relief. All her anxiety was released with each pull of Brockly’s triggers. She took a step forward. She was going to end Hans once and for all. A quick chop of her axe to his head would remedy his existence easy enough.
She took another step forward when the wall of the building behind her erupted in an explosion of green energy. Debris blasted all about her as she flew forwards face down to the floor below. She barely got a hand under her as she smashed down to the floor. She lost sight of what happened to Brockly and Hans, the only thing she saw was the plate metal beneath her. Her nose cracked against the floor. She would’ve been knocked out cold if she didn’t stop herself from a full crash to the floor. Pain swept up her nose and into her skull as she turned to her side.
The room was covered in what used to be the wall. Green fire started to kick up and burn the remaining walls around the gaping hole. Brockly was blasted down the stairwell while Hans was nowhere to be seen.
Sam stood and looked around the wreckage for the cyborg. Smoke started to build up around the room. Sam knew she didn’t have long before the building took to the flames. Memories of her first experience with the unknown flooded her mind. It was a horrible scene, seeing all her crew killed by the spirit.
Sam stepped over a pile of sheet metal and looked out of the door that was behind Hans. There was a catwalk, now busted in half, suspended over the large floor of the factory. Mindless workers kept to their tasks as the building was being assaulted. They knew nothing of the danger around them.
A metal hand came from over the lip of the broken catwalk and clanged against the grate metal floor. Hans lifted his shoulder up and grabbed the floor with his human hand. Blood covered his fleshy hand as he looked up at Sam doorway.
She stepped forward and raised her axe in the air.
“Do it! Kill me!” Hans smiled as blood dripped from his scalp. “I’ve seen the future. I lived it. You think any of this stops? It keeps going on and on until the world is dead. It’s a bleak world of death and no one is around to save the day. This is all pointless! But I could save the world, I can save it all!”
Sam gripped her axe tighter and dropped it down with ease. Hans looked away as the axe swing came towards him. The head of the axe chopped down into metal, sparking as Hans’ metal hand was severed in two. He swung to the side as his weight shifted into his human hand.
“Death is too good for you.” Sam stood straight, “You will live out your days knowing I stopped you. Every time you try to rebuild, I will stop you again and again. The future may be bleak, but it’s certain for you Hans.” Sam turned and walked back into the smoking room. Her eyes met the workers down below on the factory floor. Killing Hans wouldn’t save them. She had enough killing. She had taken so many lives this trip. There is a time when enough was enough for her.
“Come back! Finish the job, you cunt!” Hans struggled to pull himself up with one hand. “I will find you, and I will kill you!”
The building shook once more and Hans grip started to slip away. Blood greased the metal beneath his hand. A deafening boom filled the air as fire erupted from beneath Hans. The inferno blasted upwards, blanketing the cyborg in a baptism of fire. He yelled out as the fire continued to burn away his flesh, until his hand melted away and he disappeared into the fire.
Sam held her hand over her face as a wave of heat washed over her. The building shook again as the roof blasted apart, unable to stand up to the power of the explosion. She fell back down as a large piece of the building collapsed, dragging down the catwalk with it.
This was her cue to get out of the building. Soon it would be covered with fire and burnt to a crisp. She lifted her head and a stack of papers caught her eye. The model of robotic hands was detailed throughout the papers. Sam grabbed them and shoved the papers into one of her pockets.
“Hans!” A shout came from the hallway nearby. Three cyborgs with shaven heads and tattoos came running into the room. They looked about the carnage and saw Sam on the ground. “Where is he?” The lead cyborg raised his pistol at her as the building creaked about.
Sam looked at the men without flinching. “He’s dead.”
The cyborgs looked at each other. The lead one lowered his gun for a moment as the news of their saviors demise hit home. “Bitch.” He brought the pistol back up and went to fire at Sam. A whiz of air filled the small room and his head instantly blew apart into shrapnel of bone and metal, splattering against the wall behind him. Another whiz of air and another one of the cyborg’s head exploded. The last cyborg turned to run, but he was quickly cut down like the others and his head turned into pulp.
Sam looked around for who had saved her. Brockly was still absent. The damage looked to be caused by a high caliber weapon, but who had saved her? She stood and quickly ran to the stairs. Brockly was being picked up by a man with a shaven head. “Red?” Sam jumped the stairs and punched the man in the arm.
Andrelle rounded the corner of the stairs and lifted Brockly’s shoulder over hers. “We can catch up later, Sam.”
Sam looked back up to the flames, “Right.” She stepped out in front the group and took lead down the flight of stairs. She darted around a few corners before landing on the main floor.
Red looked over at Brockly’s bloodied face, “You got to stop being blown up, man.”
Brockly smirked, “Can’t, it’s just what I do.”
Sam jumped the last few steps and landed on the ground floor. She looked around the factory. It was ablaze with merciless fire, soon to be burned to the ground.
“Sam!” Tentin came shambling up to the group with Keitha’s hand in his. His shirt was torn open and a large red plant was growing from his chest, entangling his torso. “It’s time to leave.” He had a pistol firmly planted in his other hand while he cautiously scanned the factory floor for enemies.
Sam stared at his chest, “What happened with you? Are you okay?” Her eyebrows furrowed as she started to think what had happened to Tentin while she was gone.
“Some druid stuff, I’ll tell you later. Now we need to get the hell out.” He turned towards the tunnel entrance they had entered from earlier. He took one step closer when the factory let out a massive groan as metal bent on metal. A massive support beam twisted loose from the ceiling and collapsed towards the factory’s floor.
The massive bar of metal crashed into the floor, shaking the whole building as it smashed clear through the ground level and disappeared into the depths below. A gaping whole appeared where the beam had fallen. The tunnel had collapsed under the weight of the beam, caving in on itself, blocking the exit Sam had planned to take out of here.
The group stood still until a voice had broken their silence. “The front door sounds good.” Keitha turned to her newly found friends, as well as a new one with the shaven head. “Lead the way Sam?”
Sam nodded and turned down a hallway until she came to the large front doors of the factory, all her party on her heels. She bashed into the doors, swinging them open and entering the night outside. Her breath ran short as she looked upon the battlefield that had unfolded outside without her knowing. The others all looked upon the same sight with the same feeling.
“It’s the power I felt before.” Red stepped forward and looked around at the destroyed guard towers and rusted fencing. Dead cyborgs and dismantled robots littered the ground. Green fire sprang up randomly around the ground as rust covered antique tanks fired on the factory relentlessly.
The group armed themselves as an endless horde of decaying corpses came rushing down the factory, ripping the cyborg and robot defenders limb from limb. The horde was being blasted left and right by the defenders, but the horde’s numbers were too great. The horde finally brought down the last of the defenders and the circled the woman in white with long hair.
“Her.” Andrelle growled her words as her hatred spiked instantly. She pulled a knife from her belt and tried to walk towards the woman.
Red’s hand shot out and grabbed her arm, “No, it comes.” He pointed at the metal tank grinding with a horrible screech that sounded like the demons crying from hell. “We best stay out of this.”
The tank rolled right up to the front of the Maria. Atop the rust bucket was a greasy man with black hair and a rancid stench. The Raven smiled and tapped his cane on the tank and it rolled to a stop. He casually strolled off the front of the tank and plopped down in front of the old psychic woman.
He bared his black teeth to her as he smiled, “Looks like I win.” A low grumbling laugh escaped the hundreds of undead surrounding Maria. The Raven held out his hand and the laughing stopped instantly.
Maria stepped backwards while holding her hands up, “Please. You win. I surrender.” She looked around at all the mangled faces of warriors from the past returned before bowing down before the Raven.
“Surrender?” The Raven tilted his head to the side, “There’s no surrender here, my dear.” He stepped up to her, “The only thing I’m here for is your life.” He raised his empty hand and green sparks jumped about his rotting flesh. Purple mist started to ooze from his palm and puddle around Maria.
She looked up in horror as the mist started to lift her body from the ground. Her powers were fruitless here. She reached out with her mind, but it was petrified with fear. The psychic powers she had relied on all her life were at an end, she was at an end. Death had finally come to her. She wasn’t ready to leave this place. Her final thoughts dwelled on the fact that maybe no one was ready to give up their small amount of time in this life for the greater unknown.
The Raven opened his mouth wide as the mist began to enter his lungs. His breath sucked the life from the woman. Her skin became brittle and dry and her long, beautiful hair began to disintegrate to dust.
The Raven shut his mouth and hurled the body with the flick of his wrist. The dried up husk slammed into the burning factory with a short bang. The body burst into a cloud of dust and the woman, Maria Orsic, was destined to be forgotten to history.
Sam stepped in front of her group and gripped her axe tightly. “It’s over. Stand down, Raven.” She wrung her hands on the axe as the massive army of undead all turned their heads to look at her. Slowly, their lifeless eye sockets turned to stare her down. The Raven waded his way through the crowd of soldiers and stood before the small party in front of the burning mass of metal and malice.
Red handed Brockly over to Andrelle. He took up next to Sam.
Tentin scratched at the red tangle vine on his chest, “Hell, I’m on borrowed time anyway.” He stepped up to Sam’s other side and held his gun firm.
Keitha moved slightly behind Tentin and stared out onto the countless hordes. She swallowed the rough knot in her throat and stood her ground. The thousands of eyes stared upon them without a blink.
The Raven raised his unarmed hand into the air. The old thoughts came racing into his hollow skull. Visions of fire and blood as his armies raced across the globe, cleansing the Earth of its hate and violence. Everyone would be brought under his control as he sat atop the throne of the world. He had already started raising an army. It wouldn’t take long before all of Europe was under his spell of death and decay. His milky eyes focused on Sam, his dearest Samantha. His most prized possession in the world was his daughter. Her love melted his heart, but he couldn’t be with her. He couldn’t tell her of what he was. She wouldn’t understand.
Hope filled his heart and washed away his thoughts of genocide. He looked up to the mountains for a short while and then, with the snap of a boney finger, the army crumpled into dust. The endless swath of undead bodies vanished instantly. The metal rust buckets endured thousands of years of ageing before the parties’ eyes and turned into nothing more than a pile of red colored powder.
The Raven stepped forward again and looked Sam straight in the eyes, “I have done as you asked, Sam, now I will take my leave. You still owe me one.” The Raven smiled one last time as the ravens that had been swirling about overhead all came rushing down to his body, covering it with their own. A small gust of wind picked up as the birds departed in different directions. The Raven had vanished along with his birds.
“Sam, how do you know that thing?” Red turned to her. The creature’s power was nothing he had ever felt before, and it all vanished along with the birds.
Sam relaxed a bit. “I don’t. He knows me.” She turned to her party, “Let’s get out of here. I will tell you guys about him when we leave this tainted place.” The group picked up there pace and ran out of the complex. It was over, the night was finally over. The nagging thought of what would happen the next time Sam and the Raven met lingered in her head.
“What about Lord Blud?” Tentin spoke his thoughts out loud.
The Ginger flung backwards smashing into Die Glocke. His back gave a tasty crunch as he connected with the machine. His face contorted in grimace as he could feel his bones breaking, his ribs splintering, but he didn’t let a single breath escape him. He fell to the floor and stood instantly. The white-suited man was right in front of him. It was his turn to dish out the damage.
Lord Blud stepped backwards to place himself away from the battle. He couldn’t see the network of veins in Mr. Bartlett’s body, just a ghastly image. The man was a contorted image of a human being, his figure black. Only his eye stood out to Lord Blud, it’s opening like a black hole, sucking in all the light around it. The only thing he could do was stay as close to the Ginger as he could and lend his henchman the ability to heal his injuries. “The machine will never fall into your hands, Bartlett! You can’t kill us. Leave this place now.” Lord Blud’s head darted side to side as he heard the footsteps of Bartlett’s shoes approaching. He tried to feel his way around the vault with his cane.
“I can take what I want, Lord Blud. Neither you, or your friend can stop me now.” Bartlett turned to the rushing body mass of the Ginger. He side stepped the large man with an inhuman swiftness. He slapped his cane down hard on the Ginger’s back causing the man to crumple to the floor with another crunch of bone and meat colliding against the concrete floor. “This machine will stop those vile others to keep from sealing me in a cave for countless years. I will have my revenge on them. That you can count on.”
The Ginger stood again, his chest concaved slightly. He grunted as his chest expanded and reset into place. The healing powers of Lord Blud continued to keep the Ginger in the fight. He swung his massive hammer forward while gritting his teeth. The hit wouldn’t connect against the white suit monster, but he had to try something.
Mr. Bartlett stood his ground as the hammer flew towards him. The blow would crush any normal man in one hit, most likely killing them on impact. Mr. Bartlett smiled and vanished in a cloud of black smoke.
The Ginger pulled his swing slightly, already too far into it to stop. He looked around for the monster but couldn’t spot him anywhere. “Coward.” He whispered under his breath.
Mr. Bartlett materialized behind the giant man. “Coward huh?” He pulled the sheath from his can sword and slashed it at the giants back over and over. The cuts bit deep and drew spews of blood from the Ginger’s back. Bartlett let out a scoff as he kicked the behemoth aside, smashing the Ginger into a metal table. Paper took flight while glass shattered as the man crashed down. Mr. Bartlett turned to face Lord Blud, “I’m wondering what you said to her to make her help you. Was it a promise to save me? Or something more simple. The girl would do anything to save the soul trapped beneath me.”
Lord Blud focused on the blood that had spilled on the ground. He started to pool the liquid together. “I promised her information on you.”
Mr. Bartlett laughed, “Just information? I figured she would have settled for more than just that. It’s sad really. She has such potential. Maybe I can use her for my own plans. All I have to do is play a little pretend.”
“You’re a monster.” Lord Blud spat in Bartlett’s direction. “She loves that man.” He could use Sam to buy him some time, and maybe, use the blood to kill the man. It was worth a shot. “Why do you ask about her, hmm? I think there is a part of you that cares for her. It is trying to break loose, no?” Lord Blud took a step forward.
Bartlett’s face turned sour as Lord Blud spoke, “Quiet!” Mr. Bartlett stepped forward, his sword raised.
Lord Blud coagulated the blood into a long spike and aimed it at Bartlett’s back. “It’s true, isn’t it?” He let the spike fly. A massive boom sounded out around the room as the ground shook violently. Lights flickered abruptly and computers toppled to the floor. Lord Blud focused down on the black figure.
“I commend you on your imagination, but your application is poor.” Mr. Bartlett aimed his sword at Lord Blud’s neck.
Lord Blud let out a cough as he looked down at his stomach. A blood spike was lodged inside of him. He looked back at the black figure and started to sweat. Was nothing enough to kill him? There must be some way to defeat him. If nothing he tried worked, then what would?
Mr. Bartlet lunged at Lord Blud’s throat. He was fast and efficient, like a vipers bite.
Lord Blud shifted the blood spike into a liquid that crawled up his skin and solidified around his neck. The shift was almost instant as the cane sword stabbed into the thick clotted blood.
Mr. Bartlett pushed harder as his weapon stuck into the blood. “Bloody hell.” He let out a deep breath as he was soon lifted off the ground, his arms pressed against his side. The Ginger breathed down the back of his neck as he squeezed tighter around Bartlett.
Another boom sounded out and shook the building as a hole opened overhead. A massive metal beam plummeted down towards Die Gloke. It smashed down on the bell shaped machine, crushing it with ease. Sparks spurted out of the machine and a small explosion broke loose as the beam continued its gravitational onslaught.
“No!” Both Lord Blud and Bartlett shouted out as the machine was ground into a pulp.
Mr. Bartlett swung back his head in the confusion and slammed against the Ginger’s nose.
The Ginger let loose his prey and grabbed his nose as blood poured from his nostrils.
Bartlett disappeared in the smoke once again before reappearing up on the catwalk above. He sheathed his sword, “It looks like our prize is no longer valid to fight for. I bid you adieu and wait for our next meeting, Lord Blud.” Bartlett nodded and left through the blast door above. Hatred filled him as he left the factory behind. Fire blazed all about as he moved onward, never looking back. He caught a feeling a something, something special in the mountains. Something he hadn’t felt for a long time. He smiled, “An old friend has come to say hi.”
Lord Blud stabilized the Ginger as his nose began to heal up. He looked over to Hans’ machine. It was nothing more than a heap of scrap metal now. He could hear the sparking of electricity. “Come!” He pulled the Ginger up, “Get us out of this mess.” Heat started to pour in from above. He could hear the fire raging above them in the factory.
The Ginger picked up the older man and rushed up the catwalk stairs. This place would soon be nothing more than ash, and they had to get out as soon as possible. He rushed upwards and soon came to the ground floor. The tunnel entrance was collapsed. He looked around at the fire blocking any means of escape. He looked to the wall next to him. It would have to do.
Another explosion let out behind him as soon chemicals caught fire. The Ginger ran as hard as he could at the wall. He let out a battle cry as he smashed into the wall with all his force. He covered Lord Blud as best he could and crashed through the wall, being followed by a plume of smoke into the outside world. He didn’t stop running until he was well out of the factory and onto the dirt road. All around him was torn up ground, burn pockets of dirt and grass, and rubble from the guard towers scattered around the outside of the factory fences.
“Ginger! Over here!” The high pitched yell of Sam caught the man’s attention.
He lumbered over to the group and let out a sigh seeing that Sam was unharmed. The rest of there were all in one piece, more or less.
“Glad to see you are all alive.” Lord Blud chimed out with a bittersweet smile on his face.
Another blast rocked the factory before one of its walls caved in and collapsed on the flames.
“I think we should leave this place before it attracts any more attention.” Lord Blud slid out of the Ginger’s arms.
There was an agreement chimed out amongst the group as they left the ghoulish mess behind them.
Sam stopped for a second and looked back at the inferno. She knew that no one would care about what happened here tonight. It would be a forgotten war, fought and won, then forgotten. She wondered if all the violence was worth it. All those lives lost to the fire. The innocents that had their very minds penetrated and perverted into slaves of Hans and his psychic mistress. Would this mess ever end? She hadn’t had contact with the Boss for a year now. He had warned her of this.
She sighed and turned after her group. What was going to happen next? How many more lives before everything got better?
The party finally reached the vehicles they came in on. In seconds, they loaded up and took off into the night, leaving their worries behind them.
His barrel stuck out of the long grass just enough to provide a good shot. He had just taken out three cyborg guards and just in time too. He was tied up from his current affairs and almost missed this fight altogether. It was a shame he couldn’t arrive earlier.
He looked down at the girl on the ground. She was a woman now, but still a girl to him. She would always be his girl.
She got up and disappeared into the factory. He let out a sigh and leaned back from his gun. He couldn’t help her out now. It was up to her now. The factory was collapsing down on itself now. A massive beam let loose down on the factory and he shook his head. Such destruction was dirty to the eyes.
The girl soon appeared at the front of the factory with several of her friends. He leaned back into his rifle and looked into his scope. He could see a massive army of undead in front of the factory. A woman they surrounded was soon killed and the man who had done so stepped towards Sam and her group. He trained his sights on the head of the man. His face was disfigured, missing parts that should be there on a normal man. He let out a quick scoff of disgust, “Tss.”
The man soon looked up at him directly. His milky white eyes were trained on him now. There was no way the man could see him, but the decomposed man snapped his fingers and the undead army had vanished. The undead man looked back at the group before disappearing all together in a swarm of birds.
The sniper leaned back again. What an interesting night this was.
“Glad to see you could make it, Atlas.”
The man turned around to see a white-suited gentlemen with a cane in hand, standing behind him.
“Mr. Bartlett. I didn’t expect to see you here. Then again, you seem to be anywhere there is trouble.”
“I am just as surprised to see you here. Watching over your daughter I presume? She can handle herself, you know?” Mr. Bartlett looked down on the group of ant sized people escaping the factory.
“Sam can handle herself, I know, but I can visit my daughter from time to time, it’s part of being a father.”
Mr. Bartlett laughed out into the night.
The Raven sat silent behind a tree. His one milky eye peered out on the two men chatting. He no longer cared what they said. Bartlett had lied to him. Sam wasn’t his daughter reincarnated. She wasn’t his Samantha. His fists clenched until his bone stuck through his spotty palms.
He lied.