“Friends forever!” said Smithy with a great beaming smile. “Hey, heads up!”
A group of demons emerged from a block of flats. They were covered in blood, no doubt from having killed a group of soldiers camped on the upper floors. Mass peered upwards and saw the torn body of a woman hanging half out of a broken window on the fourth floor.
Addy fired and struck the first demon. Smithy let loose with his handguns and hit the next. Mass obliterated the third with his Benelli. All three demons were burnt men. The number of primates seemed to be decreasing, which was a good thing. The burnt men were slower, weaker, and much easier to deal with in small groups than the frenzied primates. It gave Mass hope that perhaps they were making a dent in their enemy’s numbers. Their elite troops were running thin.
Mass moved his team deeper into the city, trying to keep to alleyways and overhangs whenever possible. The quieter they could be, the fewer demons that would notice them. Ammunition didn’t grow on trees, although Smithy acted like it did. So far, he had performed a majority of the killing. There were Vampires on the team who hadn’t even fired their weapons yet.
“We’re almost there,” said Addy several minutes later. “Let’s keep our heads down.”
Mass nodded. “I hear machine guns. They’re still fighting at the fort. Come on.”
They hurried through the ruins, mindful of every corner or potential hiding place for a demon, but they found the way ahead clear except for demon corpses littering the road.
“I think I see the fort,” said Smithy, pointing a handgun. “Is that it?”
Mass peered ahead and saw the red-brick fortification cutting into the hillside in a harsh V-shape. “Yeah, that’s it. Reckon we should knock on the front door?”
“You guys have never met, right?” said Smithy. “I mean, Thomas has never seen you before? Why don’t you just pretend to be someone else until he lets us inside?”
It wasn’t the worst idea, but it was still too risky. “Even if he doesn’t recognise me, others with him will. If we lie, he’ll have even more reason to shoot at us. Our best bet is to be honest. From what I’ve heard about General Thomas, he’s a politician. He won’t murder us in front of a thousand men if he doesn’t have a good reason.” Mass took a few deep breaths, giving it some final thought. “Okay, we go in peace and play dumb. He won’t shoot us with our hands in the air.”
“You hope,” interjected Addy. She held up a radio and waggled it. “What about Cullen’s team?”
“Tell him to set up nearby and stay concealed. We might need backup if things go south.”
Addy made the call.
Smithy twirled his handguns like an old-fashioned gunslinger. “Ready, boss?”
Mass nodded. “Follow me.”
The team spread out in a line and headed across a main road choked with wreckage. They quickly stepped onto an overgrown verge that led up to a steep embankment. Up close, the looming fort was massive: three storeys high and stretching off to the east and west. Muzzles flashed from a dozen places inside, lighting up the shadows inside the many windows. Machine-gun fire chattered nearby.
“What are they firing at?” Smithy aimed his handguns but found no enemies. “The demons here are all dead.”
“The demons must have got inside,” said Mass, deciding that was the only explanation. “We need to go and help. Come on.”
They hurried up the hill, making use of the paved road that led to a small car park in front of the fort. Several cars were parked there, as well as a large green double-decker bus. The bus was full of petrol and supplies, still roadworthy and well maintained. Mass knew because he had parked it there himself in the early days of the war. It was an escape vehicle for those camped out at the fort. It didn’t look like anybody had made use of it though.
The fort’s front entrance was managed by a turnstile set into an archway. Mass marched up to it and grabbed the bars. They were locked in place. “Damn it.”
“Should we try the back door?” asked Smithy.
Mass cupped his mouth with his hands. “Hey! Hey, anyone around?”
No answer at first, but then: “How’s it going, geezer?”
Mass stepped back. “Damien? What…? How did you get inside there?”
“I have my ways, innit? Heard General Thomas was around, so thought I’d see what the bloke was all about.”
Smithy shook his head and grinned. “What did you do, man? Just stroll through the city like there isn’t a war going on right now?”
Damien shrugged from the other side of the bars. “The demons don’t pay me much attention. Guess I’m too much like them. Dead, remember?”
“You’re serious about that shit?” Smithy tittered nervously, looking between Mass and Addy as if to check to see if their reaction matched his. “Did you come out the gates with the rest of them?”
“No. I wasn’t in Hell, but I am dead. If it lends me an advantage, I’m all for it. You guys want to come in?”
Mass nodded. “Yeah. Do you know what’s happening inside?”
“Demons got in around the back, but not enough to worry about yet. Won’t be long, though, before this place is overrun. Demons don’t stop when there’s good eatin’ to be had.”
Smithy winced. “Dude.”
Damien chuckled and moved out of sight. Nobody knew what he was doing until a metallic clunk led to the turnstile hopping in its grooves. Mass tried the metal bars again and the whole thing swivelled.
They all pushed their way inside.
Damien was leaning up against the wall to their right. He pointed up at one of the long, narrow buildings that ringed the central courtyard. “Thomas is up there with a shitload of
