Chapter 423
The smoke was too thick to see through, and she choked her way through it. She stumbled over rubble to come to a clear spot, and then even her coughs choked off as she stared in horror. Verchiel said they'd been through this before, but he was wrong. It hadn't been anything like this. She was in what had once been the fountain room, but only rubble and gurgling water remained of the fountain. Two of the walls were completely gone. Through one she could see the neighboring rooms, through the other the foundation and then up and over to the street and the world beyond. Heavy black smoke billowed through the fractures up into the starry sky and street lights shed the only illumination.
The curving stairs were ruins and she could dimly see a pile of rubble where the guard's station had been on the level above. She could only imagine what was left of the rest of the building; it probably wasn't much.
Vampires were everywhere. Katelina recognized the symbol of the Children of Shadows. She also picked out the robed Algojo. They moved with deadly precision, hacking and slashing, but not all were a match for their attackers.
The Scharfrichter were dotted here and there among the madness. Wolfe fought with his many bladed weapon. Sadihra stood on a large chunk of wall and manipulated pieces of glass, rock, and wood with a flick of her hands. Hethin, the white haired Scharfrichter, stood before her makeshift platform, fighting off anyone that got too close.
Between them moved guards in their crimson uniforms, like little splashes of blood. Though she searched, she couldn't find any of the Black Vigil, except Ume, who hacked at her enemy with her ornate sickle.
Verchiel fought against a large vampire whose rippling muscles belonged on a body building magazine. With his small frame, the redhead looked outmatched, but his fast movements left the larger vampire swinging at empty air.
Jorick was on what was left of the floor above. He swung a long curved sword that looked like the weapons the guards used. His foe ducked and swung back, wielding a heavy mace. Jorick dodged, but the weapon impacted a chunk of rubble and shattered it into tiny fragments. Katelina choked back a cry. Vampire or not, if Jorick was struck by that weapon he'd be injured.
She shuffled backwards, unnoticed in the chaos, and tripped over something. She landed in a cloud of dust and saw a severed hand next to her. She choked back a gag and crab crawled away as fast as she could, only to see a boot with a stump of bloody leg sticking out the top. She threw herself back from that and got to her feet in time to avoid what looked like a dismembered arm with a piece of bone jutting out. Vampires had been caught in these explosions and, just as she'd thought, they were no match for them.
A vampire in black dropped down in front of her, brandishing a scimitar. Katelina dove into her pockets, but she had nothing except her camera and the ziplock baggy that had chapstick, a worn metal cross, a toothbrush, compact, and a bottle of nail polish in it. Unless she wanted to jab the tiny brush in his eyes she was in trouble.
Oh God, what am I going to do?
As if in answer, Micah jumped down from the ragged floor above, caught the vampire in a headlock, and twisted until his neck cracked. He grabbed the scimitar as it fell and rammed it through the vampire's chest, then kicked the dead body aside.
He raised the weapon, as if to strike her, then stopped and laughed. "What the hell you doin', Lunch? Couldn't miss the chance to rack up your kill count? Here, you're gonna need this." He shoved the sword at her, hilt first, and she took it dazedly.
"I'm already two up on you," he said. "So you better fucking get going if you wanna keep up."
Before she could reply he sprang upwards, grabbed the ragged edge of the floor above, and swung himself up, like an orangutan.
There was a cry behind her and she turned in time to see one of the Children rushing toward her. She knew nothing about swords except what she'd done with sticks as a play acting child, but she shouted a prayer and swung. Her blow glanced off of his axe. He swung and she dodged. With nothing else to do, she lunged at his legs and knocked him to the ground. She didn't know if scimitars were good for stabbing, but she rammed it into his chest with all of her strength. To her surprise she punched clear through him, into the rubble.
He lay still and she tried to pull the sword out. It was wedged, and she had to put her foot on his chest and pull backwards. His body came up, then flopped back, splashing bright blood on the dusty stones.
She wiped the blade on the dead vampire's shirt, and then fell back amongst the rubble. Her heart pounded in her ears, and her palms were slick with sweat. What in the hell was she doing?
Her eyes sought Jorick and the comfort he offered. She found him, still fighting on the floor above. He had a gash across one cheek and his left arm hung at an odd angle but, as she watched, he ran his enemy through and kicked their limp body over the edge of the floor.
His eyes landed on her and he blanched. They stood, staring at one another for a moment, and then he turned away to meet an attacker with a clang. She looked for a way up to him, but a vampire dropped in front of her, fangs bared and gun pointed straight at her.
Gun? Shit!
She dropped and the bullet sped past, leaving a burning trail across her shoulder. She cried out, and checked to make sure she was still all there. Jorick roared on the ledge above, and she saw him readying to jump down to her. Before he could, Verchiel sped past, slicing through the vampire's torso. Katelina turned away as blood splattered her. Verchiel sailed on, calling, "You're welcome!"
"Katelina, finish him then go below!" Jorick shouted, and turned back to his fight.
She stabbed the sword through the vampire's chest, and pulled it free again. Another explosion rocked the building, this one deeper, and she realized that below wasn't any safer. As Verchiel had said, the only safe place was another city.
Still, there was no reason to stand in the middle of the melee. She hurried toward a more strategic place. As she picked her way through the smoke she saw Oren and Torina fighting together. They shared a single weapon, tossing it back and forth between them like a well-practiced circus act. It reminded Katelina of the way Sushel and Quenby had fought.
The building shook again and jerked her from her thoughts. Part of the ceiling crashed down where she had been standing a few moments ago. An arm stuck out of the heap and she shivered; that could've been her.
The battle was winding down. The dead lay scattered among the debris, and Katelina felt relief steal over her. This hadn't been as terrible as she'd imagined. Maybe they'd all live through it.
Then the second wave rolled through what used to be the north wall. They came slashing and snarling like a black surge of death, Ronnell at the head, wearing the ridiculous bladed glove.
Oh God, we're going to die.
