Siege At Freaktown Ch. 16

The onslaught continued throughout the evening. The growing flames lit up the night sky and clouds of black smoke blocked the full moon's view of the town. The exchanging of fire went on relentlessly with Bennett and his people getting the upper hand. Lately, they've taken a notice of his recent behavior such as enjoying the fires all around him, and killing the citizens without mercy.

His hatred for the freaks may have descended into madness and obsession. One citizen laid on the ground wounded, choking on his own blood. Bennett put him out of his misery but not enough to satisfy his blood lust. Despite killing him he reloaded and fired upon the corpse, emptying his weapon.

"Lloyd!" Shouted one man, putting a reassuring hand on his shoulder. "Lloyd, get a hold of yourself."

"Get your fucking hands off me," said Lloyd. "Do your fucking job."

"What fucking job is that?"

"What did you say?"

"You heard me. What the hell are you doing? Our plan was to drive these folks out of here and now you want the town to burn? I thought we were reserving this for humans?"

"We are, and that hasn't changed."

"You've changed. How are we supposed to live in this town if there won't be anything left to live on?"

Bennett did not enjoy the fact one of his own men was challenging his authority. He wasn't about to let anyone intimidate him now after coming this far.

"It'll be rebuilt," he answered him. "Once these freaks are gone, it'll all be good as new. Trust me, John."

"Good as new?"

"Out with the old and in with the new. Get with the program."

"I didn't sign up for this bullshit. You're killing us out here. Our people are getting sick from smoke inhalation, bleeding their asses off, and not getting the proper care in the hospitals we've taken over. I'm pretty sure I'm not the only one who feels the same way."

Those listening in have stood in silence, not even attempting to stand up against Bennett as he has.

"If that's how you feel," said Bennett, "then go the fuck home. You want to run away like a bitch? Go ahead and leave. You won't be missed."

"It's like that?"

"Yeah, it's like that."

"Fuck you; I'm out."

John turned, and walked away, giving Bennett the opportunity to shoot him in the back, ending his life in an instant. The rest of his crew were shocked at his behavior and realized crossing him would be a fatal mistake.

"Anyone else want to leave?" He asked. "Anybody else wants to argue with me, then by all means let him speak now."

Not one word was uttered by his people. Fearing that someone else would be next, they all obeyed him without question. It would have been a crime to turn on their own leader after what they have accomplished. They needed to finish the mission until Bennett was completely satisfied.

"No?" He asked, looking at each face. "Alright then, let us continue."

One young man remained where he was, looking straight at the corpse before him. He could not believe a man like Bennett would go this far just to get what he wanted, even if it meant killing his own people with his own hands.

At the warehouse, the wounded and sick were tended to. Rita and Lita did their best keeping the patients calm and happy once they told their jokes that were saved for the next stage act. Seta, Tek, and the other officers were filled in on the plan to take control of the terminal.

After the discussion came to a close, everyone gathered their weapons and headed out. Helena followed them but was surprisingly stopped by Carlos who had something else in mind for her.

"I need you to stay here," he said.

"Are you kidding me?" She said. "I'm going with you."

"Not this time. You're needed here."

"I'm needed out there."

"I know you want to come with me, but we need to protect these people, too, and who better to do that than you?"

"Flattery will get you nowhere."

"Yeah, I'm bad at flattery."

Rita and Lita checked out their patients, giving them smiles everywhere they went. Ahead of her were three lone figures in ponchos, sitting on the floor with one coughing constantly.

"I want this to be over with," said Helena.

"So do I," said Carlos. "Let's put it this way, we're spending a lot more time together than before. That's what you wanted, right?"

"Yeah, it's what I wanted, but someplace more clean and romantic."

The three figures were vampires keeping to themselves, but what puzzled Rita and Lita was the one continuously coughing. As far as they knew vampires never coughed or succumbed to any type of sickness..

"You need me out there," said Helena, "and you know it."

"I'm not gonna argue with you," said Carlos. "I've already made my decision. Now, you have your orders."

"My orders? You're treating me like a soldier now?"

"We're all soldiers, and as far as anyone is concerned, I'm their commanding officer, and yours, too."

The three vampires rose from the floor, but Rita and Lita noticed something odd about them that seemed wrong.

"You're having fun being in charge, aren't you?" Helena asked.

"I'm not having any fun." Said Carlos. "It's no fun and games when it comes to war. If you want to discuss this further, then wait until I come back."

"Like before at your place? You said you'd be coming back when you went out looking for the sergeant, and then I risked my life in the blazing sun, rescuing your ass. Did you forget that?"

"No, I haven't forgotten, so, why bring that up now?"

"Because I almost lost you."

The two of them rarely argued, but the timing couldn't have been more wrong. Carlos needed to focus more on his mission than go through a lover's quarrel with the love of his life.

"Hel," he said, "I really don't want to do this right now. If you don't want the job watching over these people, I'll appoint someone else."

The three vampires shoved Rita and Lita aside and removed their ponchos. Underneath, they concealed weapons the entire time without anyone suspecting a thing.

"Kill them all!" Yelled one of them.

"Get down!" No Face yelled.

Machine guns fired simultaneously, striking down anything that moved. Many in the line of fire were hit protecting those who were sick, while others died using their bodies as shields for the children. Those who ducked on the floor were also struck down without mercy.

"Everybody stay down!" No Face shouted, firing back at the three assailants.

Not everyone did what they were told. Those trying to run away were immediately struck down. Bodies hit the floor by the dozens and the ground filled up with puddles of blood. While crawling for cover, Gemini fired back hitting one of the assailants in the leg, giving No Face the chance to finish him off. One hit to the chest sent the shooter to the ground, leaving the old vet wondering why the vampire went down so easily.

"What the hell?" He said.

Despite being outnumbered, the two remaining vampires continued filling up bodies with hot lead. B-Man, in his valiant effort, was struck down and killed instantly. Helena was curious over the vampires use of hardware and their motivation in causing all this anguish. She did take notice of the one vampire that was easily killed by No Face.

In her quickness, Helena shoved one against the wall, cracking his skull and killing him instantly. The next one, the lone female in the group, grabbed hold of the weapon and smashed it over her skull. Her eyes rolled back and ears bled before collapsing to the floor. The firefight had ended but the insurmountable damage had been done.

"They're vampires," said Tek, holding on to his blown off ear. "Why were they attacking us?"

"They're not vampires," said Helena, approaching the bodies.

"What?"

"Vampires turn to ash after they die."

Helena opened the mouth of the dead female, looking closely at her teeth. Out of curiosity, she checked on the remaining two who also had the same work done.

"They're not fangs," she said. "They filed their teeth to look like the real thing."

"I noticed something," said Rita, "there was some design on the neck."

"She sounded like she had a cold," said Lita, "and I know vampires don't get sick."

"Not true," said Helena, "silver and contaminated blood make vampires sick."

Helena brushed the dead female's hair aside, seeing the tattoo on the side of the neck. The design she recognized very well, belonging to those of the Soldiers of Human Liberty.

"Oh, shit," said Tek, "how the hell did they get inside?"

"They must have blended in with the crowd," said Helena, "and just walked right in. We need to make sure everyone is who they are. Check for any of those devices behind the ears or any kind of disguise."

"I'm on it."

Many were dead and some wounded including children. Besides Tek's injury, Seta suffered a graze on her cheek, and both were glad to see each other still alive and well. What worried Helena the most was Carlos' safety. He was nowhere to be seen nor did she hear his voice calling out to her.

"Medic! Medic!" No Face shouted, grabbing her immediate attention.

What she saw was her worst nightmare coming to life. No Face and Furball carried a wounded Carlos towards one available cot, once occupied by a patient protecting a sick child from being shot. Rita and Lita rushed over to check on his condition, seeing how bad a shape Carlos was in.

"Carly?" Said Helena. "Carly!"

"We need to stop the bleeding," said Lita.

"Oh, my God, Carly."

All that was available were towels, cotton balls, and tape. They were used to cover his wounds but not enough to slow the bleeding down and Carlos' life hung in the balance.

"Carly," said Helena, bursting into tears.

"Hel?" Said Carlos. "Hel, is that you?"

"I'm right here."

Rita and Lita approached Helena giving her the grim news she was not prepared for.

She didn't want to believe what they said and thought their diagnosis was completely wrong.

"There's nothing more we can do," said Rita.

"Please, don't tell me that," said Helena.

"He needs to be in a hospital," said Lita.

"You know that's impossible."

"I'm sorry."

Helena could do nothing but sit by and keep him company. She held his hand as tight as she did, hoping it would keep his eyes open. The only thing that kept his eyes open was the severe pain inflicted upon him.

During that time, Furball looked on in confusion over what Carlos had done for him during the attack. He couldn't get over the fact of his untimely bravery.

"I-I don't understand," he said, "why would he do that? I said all those things about him and he took a bullet for me. He saved my life. Why?"

"It's called being human, son," said No Face, "it's the one thing we're sorely lacking."

Once the shooting started, Carlos took Furball to the floor before taking the hits that were meant for him. Instead of being grateful, the Catman still had no understanding as to why a mere human, would put himself in harm's way for him.

Bennett's people were in full control of the terminal, bringing in more vehicles and more weaponry by ferries, increasing their numbers in midtown. The rest did their part in tossing the bodies of the dead into the river, clearing a path for their comrades ready to fight and die for their leader.

No one had dared crossed him after word got out of him killing one of his own. Their job was to follow his orders without question and to do whatever it took to complete the mission.

Rumors circulated on the individual Bennett killed. Some say he was a freak sympathizer the entire time; others believed jealousy played a part due to Bennett's success. Everyone believed whatever facts came to them, providing more motivation towards Bennett's people.