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“Obrzydliwe…”Flies buzzed all around as we slowly stepped between the clumps of flesh and clothes, being mindful not to disturb the ones who had passed on. Bodies littered the ground; Polish, Russes, Prussians, some soldiers, others peasants. I stopped before the body of a gutted horse, its rider stuck underneath it. Carefully, I reached down and gently lifted his head with the end of my halberd, looking at his face. Like the others we had found so far, its eyes were black, sunken in, and its teeth were rotted. I gently dropped it back down and went on to the next.The smell was awful, pure death and decay. When we were coming back, we could already smell it a mile out. Some men threw up just from the smell alone, nevermind the bodies. We wrapped cloth around our face and stuffed herbs and plants into it to negate the stench. Even then, it lingered.“Ktoś żyje?” A polish poleman asked hesitantly, only to shrink into himself and mutter apologies when a Rus turned and punched his arm, whispering and telling him to shut up in their native tongue.How we had survived this massacre, I’ll never know. They came out of nowhere, from all sides. Some of us, me included, barely managed to slip out and make it to the rendezvous. We got reinforcements, and came back…..to this. At least 200 bodies, some our own, others being the revenants. We scoured the bodies, checking everyone for signs of life. I hoped that some of my fellow Prussians survived, but so far, we found none. Every corpse was either too torn apart to be alive, or were just one of the Revenants.One of the Russes looked in a destroyed carriage, carefully checking the bodies, when he stopped at one.“Вау, Живой! У нас есть живой!” His hushed shout caught my attention as he pulled a body out from under the collapsed carriage. I couldn’t understand what he was saying, but he was waving for someone to come over, so I went. Being careful not to step on the wrong body, I got over to him as quickly as he could, getting to him as he laid the body down and checked it. The body wore a Prussian Uniform, but I still was careful.“Watch it…” I muttered to the Rus’ as he felt the man's wrist, pressing his ear against the body’s chest. His chest was slowly rising and falling, but I wasn’t going to take any chances. I kept the spearhead of my halberd trained on the body's head as the Rus’ carefully opened his mouth to check his teeth. They weren’t clean, but they weren’t rotten. No visible bite marks from what I could tell, no visible wounds as well besides some battle scars. Okay, he might actually be alive, I’ll take this chance. I turned to look back at a fellow Prussian.“Hey get some bandages over here, we might have a live one…” I whispered quickly. He made his way over and gently sat down, wrapping his wounds as best he could. I gestured for the Rus’ to go search for any others, he nodded and carefully began searching the other bodies.I glanced back over the sea of dead, briefly locking eyes with an overturned corpse, a Polish from what I could tell. His eyes were wide open, face stuck in a permanent horrified stretch, eyes dead. His guts laid across his stomach, spilling onto the ground beneath him as he laid on top of his fallen comrades.
He looked young, probably 15 at most. I know one of the legions that joined up with us had forced a few Polish villages to give men for the cause. Some of my fellow men wanted to say something, but we needed the numbers. I sat there, staring at his face for an uncomfortable amount of time.Feeling guilty, I looked away, back down at the Prussian beneath me. My fellow Prussian had finished bandaging the wounds, and picked him up under his arms.“A little help?” He asked quietly. Clearly my head of guilty consciousness, I cautiously put my halberd on my back and grabbed the legs, picking them up and helping carry. We carried his body away from the corpses, and set him down on the grass against a tree. I would’ve preferred to set him down on something nicer, but it’s all we could do at the moment.
Taking another glance back at the men scouring the bodies, I leaned against the tree as well. Everyone was beginning to speak up, as so far no Revenant had stood up. It was safe…..I hope.“Think he’ll be alright, Hertwig?” I asked my fellow Prussian as he opened his bottle and took a swig. He glanced at me.“Hm?......Oh, him? No visible signs of infection, no signs of him becoming a Revenant…….he might survive, I hope.” Hertwig muttered as he swallowed and closed his bottle. I gave a calm nod and looked back at the others.Hertwig was………probably the closest thing I had to a friend out here. Granted, I did get along with the others, but Hertwig was about the only one I could talk with consistently. He wasn’t funny by any means, actually somewhat quiet, but he was down to earth and rarely sugar coated things. He was also good at reading maps.Shifting slightly, I got on my knee and began fiddling with my pack, pulling out a map and unraveling it on a relatively flat stone. Tracing with my finger, I slowly dotted the path we traveled along. From Venice, through Austria, to here, somewhere in Saxony. We were………about 200, maybe 250 miles from Berlin, about as accurate as this map gives. Thank god we didn’t decide to wait until winter.“Where are we exactly?” I calmly asked. I could never read maps well, and only knew the general area due to Hertwig’s wonderful attempts at educating me. Hertwig checked the man one more time, before scooting over and looking down at the map. He only needed to glance at it for one second.“Here.” He said, tapping a mark along the Brandenburg-Saxony border. I blinked, then looked up at him.“Are you sure? That’s only 100 miles from Berlin, no way we’re that close.” I said, skeptical. It felt like we were at least 400 miles away just 1 week ago.“We crossed 200 miles in 2 weeks as we marched, it’s possible.” Hertwig said, shrugging as he went back to tending to the Prussian. Guess time flies by. I nodded, marking it on the map, before looking at other parts of it. My pack was still open, so I reached into it. Taking a handful of berries, I popped them into my mouth, the sweet taste exploding wonderfully in my mouth.Bavaria, as far as we know, was getting torn apart by the Revenants. It was still holding well, but most of North and Eastern Bavaria was practically gone. Most of the Germanic states were either gone or asking for assistance from Brandenburg and Bavaria. We were originally ordered to leave the Italian states and regroup in Bavaria, but we got last minute orders to head up and meet with the remnants of the order of Saint John and the Teutonics. Such a fate we avoided, I guess. Then we were ordered to retreat into Österreich, but that didn't go well.Hessa-Hanna and Hessa-Cassel were actually holding well as far as I know. They’ve reportedly begun sending reinforcements to Bavaria and the Kingdom of the Franks, though I hope they don’t leave their own territory exposed. Last thing we need is for them to fall, and for more Revenants to pop up-“Hej! Mam tu żywego!” I looked up at a Polish Footman who had shouted. He pulled a Rus from under a body, throwing his arm over his shoulder to help him out. The guy looked pale, his eyes darting around at the bodies before him, and he was missing a finger. Hertwig stood up and waved him over.“Over here! Bring him here!” He said. The Footman made his way over as Hertwig came to help support the man.“Erwin, grab the red herbs.” Hertwig asked.“Got it.” Grabbing his pack, I shifted through it and grabbed them. Hertwig and the Polish footman laid him down.‘Shh, you’ll be alright, just stay calm.” He said as the Polish Footman left to go look for others. Handing him the herbs, I watched as he gently ground them into his water, then helped the guy drink it. 2 men were found, and I could see more getting pulled from the pile.Maybe we’ll make it to Berlin after all…
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
“They’re all buried?”
“Yes.”
“You made sure they all were fully dead?”
“Erwin, the Polish triple checked the corpses before burial, and I also looked over them. Their souls are laid to rest, breathe easy.”
“...And the Priest?”
“Yes, he’s going to bless them.”
Sighing, I nodded, before looking back over the mass grave before me. Nearly 300 crosses on a small hill, each having a Corpse buried beneath. We finally got the last one buried about an hour ago; The Polish buried on the right, the Russes’ buried on the left, and our dearest Prussians buried on top of the hill. Sure, most of these bodies were those who had turned, but the heavenly father does forgive all. The least we can do is bury them, so that their souls can rest.
I watched as the priest with us blessed the hill, praying in his native tongue. I didn’t understand a single word he said, but we all knew what he was saying. Praying for salvation, peace, all of it. It was…oddly comforting, even if I didn’t know a single word of Polish.
I glanced at the treeline, slowly scanning it. So far, no sign of the Revenants. The scouts would’ve absolutely seen any and reported it, but I couldn’t help myself. Last thing we needed was for one to somehow slip by. Seems the others were thinking the same thing, seeing as a few of them would also scan out surroundings. Glancing back at the hill, I watched as the sun slowly hid dead center in the sky, casting beautiful rays down on the priest. Seems god shined on him, aye?
After a few minutes, the father finished his prayers and tucked his bible away, walking back down the hill to join with the rest of the Company. With that, the 20 or so men that listened followed suit. I stretched and descended down the hill with them. I could see Hertwig already looking at the map, so I gave him a pat on the shoulder.
“Mark this place on the map.” I muttered.
“Already did.” He said.
“Oh…..Okay.” Murmuring, I just glanced down at the map. Hertwig had been tracking the Revenants spread throughout Europa to the best of his abilities, mainly just from what stragglers and travelers had told us…….It looked bad, I really hope it isn’t as bad as the map says. Most of the Holy Roman Empire was affected, though there were still safe spots. The
Kingdom of the Franks
was mostly fine, though Brittany was mostly overrun and small outbreaks were occurring. Glancing towards the east side, I squinted.
“How come Eastern Europa isn’t affected as badly?”
“Hm? Oh, from what I’ve gathered, the Revenants aren’t as bad there. They don’t do as good in the cold. Still bad, but the only threat the undead pose to the Kievan Rus are the occasional herds that threaten Moskov.” Hertwig explained, carefully drawing a streak across Saxony to signify the Revenants spread. I huffed.
“How convenient…” Upon hearing this, he gave me a light glare.
“Erwin…”
“What?”
“I know you have your…….
issues
with them, but stop attributing the actions of one to the actions of them all.” He said, trying to explain to me why I should just act like they were all fine and dandy.
“It’s their fault we- Ow hey!” Hertwig reached up and grabbed my hair, yanking me down to sit.
“Stop it, you really need to snap out of this……whatever.” He said, gesturing to me as if something was wrong.
“Okay Okay! Let go!” I spat. Eventually, he did, and I stood back up, rubbing my head. Herwig still gave me a knowing glare, before going back to the map. Asshole, he was acting like I was biased.
“You need to get over this. I get your still angry at them, but stop blaming the ones here for it. They were left behind, just as we were.” He said, his voice calm, yet firm. I sighed, my expression softening ever so slightly.
“........They left us….”
“The
Österreicher
didn’t. Neither the Polish, nor the Russes’, they didn’t leave us………They are in the same position as we are.” Hertwig said calmly, his voice the understanding tone as it always was. How he was able to be supportive, yet so calm in a time like this, I don’t know.
Sighing, I relented. Closing my eyes slightly, my thoughts drifted back to that
day
.The marching, the scout, the realization……..the hopelessness…
3 weeks prior…
I stared out past the mountains, watching as the sun slowly rose up on the horizon. The rays shone on the river, creating a beautiful glow that seemed to halt the cold air for just a moment. I didn’t dare close my eyes from the beautiful sight before me.
But peace didn't last, and so I turned back to my surroundings. I scanned the treeline past the men, slowly marching as we walked alongside the river. The Bridge was still a good 13 miles ahead, we’d be able to make it before sundown, if my math is right.
Then again, we weren’t even supposed to be retreating, we were supposed to be holding our ground. The
Österreicher
had been mostly decimated, and we were their rearguard. They brought most of the Polish with them as well, so we were down at least 350 men. They promised that reinforcements would be brought back, we just had to hold for a little while while they retreated.
“They’ll be back, the Polish keep their word.” Hertwig's voice brought me from my stupor. I looked down at him from my rock, his face staring at me with that ever calm and patient look. Sighing, I shifted my gaze back to the sunset.
“It’s been a week….they should be back by now.” I mumbled.
“Give it time, it's a long distance. We’ll most likely meet their reinforcements before we make it to the bridge.”
“We retreated-”
“After we held it long enough for their retreat. They won’t condemn us for backing off when we were already low on supplies. You worry too much Erwin, we’ll be safe soon.” Hertwig reasoned. His reasoning worked, and I shut up. I looked back at him, before standing back up and stretching. I didn’t get a chance for my bones to pop when a shout caught my attention.
“Сэр Хервиг! Австрийцы! Они...Они....” A Russes’ Footman closer to the river ran up to us, taking a moment to catch his breath and leaning on the rock. A few of the men glanced at him, before continuing to march. Hertwig gently put his hand on his shoulder.
“Дыши, сынок. Где тот поляк, которого мы с вами послали?” Hertwig said, his expression ever calm. I huffed and just looked back at the sunrise. I always felt like the odd one out whenever he spoke to the Polish or Russes’.
The Russes’ spoke his native tongue, and Hertwig nodded, before asking something else. The Russes’ replied…and his face dropped. I only noticed because I heard him drop his sack. Looking back, I noted his pale expression.
“What?” I asked, only to have Hertwig hold up his hand. Some of the marching Footmen who spoke Rus paused and looked.
“.....Скажи это еще раз…” Hertwig asked the Russes’ calmly, despite his quickly deteriorating expression.
“...Австрийцы...Т-Они маршируют назад, бегут к нам, в панике! Королевская гвардия пошла вперед и взорвала за собой мосты!” The Russes’ quickly rambled out, breathing heavily. Those who could speak Rus stopped and looked, causing those behind to stop as well. Hertwig took a deep breath, but I could see his fingers twitching.
“What? What is it?” I asked, giving them my complete attention. I didn’t like that, it’s a look he never had. He turned to look at me……His expression was one of….fear, something I never see from him….
“.......The
Österreicher
Royal Guard……..they…..they blew the bridges.”
..................What......
We fought for them and
they left us?! No way, I refuse to believe it.
We marched for another hour, and linked up with the
Österreicher Army
that was retreating, and they confirmed…..I rode up to see for myself……….The Bridge was gone……We had neither the resources nor the time to rebuild it…..We were trapped.........I just screamed, screamed at the sky, screamed at god, just screamed. I screamed until my voice went hoarse.
Every other bridge was either destroyed or Quarantined. Our only choice was to move North, and so we did.
We just kept moving till we got to Tyrol, where we were able to breathe and figure out what the hell to do. Then the finger pointing started. The few Bavarians with us blamed the
Österreicher
, though they themselves didn’t even know what was going on. Then the Polish were blamed, then the Russes’, then us…
We nearly forced the others to leave before Hertwig calmed everyone down. We were all on edge, but he stopped it from blowing over. He pulled out his map, took a few moments to calculate, then came up with the plan of linking up with Berlin. The Teutonic Knights were still there, so we marched…….We eventually came across remnants of the Russes’ Army and more Polish stragglers, they filled in the lost ranks……..we lost men along the way, so many men.
The last
Österreicher
died a few days ago when we were ambushed. I led a party of about 100 to a nearby town we saw. We were going to trade whatever we could for food, then continue our track…..But from what our scouts had told us afterwards, the town had been utterly abandoned and desecrated.
Their villagers rose back up, and they surrounded us. I don’t know how me and the lucky few survived, but we went back to the others who were resting and told them what had happened. By the time we got back, besides the few we pulled from the bodies, all were dead…
Present…
“Erwin…Don’t blame them for our situation.” Hertwig's words roused me from my thoughts. I looked back at him as he packed his stuff.
“.......We’re moving already? It’s been a day….”
“Better we get to Berlin sooner than later……If it makes you feel any better, I doubt the rest of the men are ready, so we’ll probably rest for another day.” He reassured, giving me a light smile. Nodding, I looked around for a spot to pitch a sleeping tent…..At least I would’ve. A Polish Lancer came up to us.
“Hej, Hertwigu! Erwinie!” He said. I could at least make out our names. Hertwig turned to him.
“Tak, Lancerze?” He said in perfect Polish.
“Wszyscy mężczyźni są gotowi do ruchu. Czekamy tylko na was dwoje!” The Lancer responded. Hertwig gave a light smile.
“Rozumiem, za chwilę będziemy gotowi.” Hertwig replied back. The Lancer nodded and left, going back towards the others. Once he was gone, Hertwig stood up, stretched, and looked at me.
“Nevermind, we’re moving now.”
“Great..." I murmured, standing up and grabbing my pack. I briefly glanced at the carriage full of wounded, before sighing and beginning the march again.
5 hours later, 10:09 PM
“Alright men, we’ll stop here.” Hertwig said as he got on top of a rock, staring into the dark treeline. He translated to the Russes’ and Polish, so everyone slowed down and began to set up camp. I followed suit, setting my pack down and heading over to one of the carriages. I helped a fellow Prussian and a few other men pull a large tent from the back of it, carrying it to a somewhat open area and setting it down. The others got to work pitching it, and I went back to Hertwig.
“Hey, where are we?” I asked. He glanced back at me, then rolled his eyes slightly as he set his bag down to grab the map. I really need to learn how to read maps. Laying it as flat as he could, his finger carefully traced a path along it, before stopping.
“Here.” He said, tapping a spot.
“We’re in Brandenburg already?”
“Yes.” He said, as if it was common knowledge. I took another look at the map.
“.......We’re only a few miles from Berlin, we could make it there by morning.” I stated.
“We’re 11 miles exactly, and from what I could tell, there will be a storm by tonight. I’d rather make the trek in the daytime. Besides, we don’t want to be caught in the cold by the Revenants.” Hertwig explained, which caused me to grit my teeth and sigh.
“Of course….”I muttered, looking at the sky as the sun slowly set. I could see faint dark clouds in the distance…….Great. I groaned in annoyance, and he gently nudged me.
“Lighten up, we’ll be in Berlin tomorrow, where we can rest. Besides, Better safe then Sorry. Now go help the others with the tents.” He said, brushing me off. Giving a calm nod, he turned back and went to the others. They managed to get the thing upright, and were hammering in the supports. I walked over to it, grabbed a hammer, and began pushing one of the supports into the ground.
‘Just one more day……one more day, then we’ll rest…’
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
Leather and metal boots connected with the wet stone path as we marched through the water and mud. 200 men marched in unison, with not so much as a whisper shared between us. The only sounds around us were the occasional bird singing, or the rustling of leaves from a nearby deer. That, and of course, the pouring rain around them. It was cold, colder than they would’ve liked, but we sucked it up and kept moving.
The rain pelted our clothes and equipment hard, each drop feeling like a needle pricking us. We’d occasionally stop under a tree and wring them as best as we could, but we just kept marching otherwise. The rain above had caused the cobblestone to sink into the mud a little, and a man would slip every 10 minutes. One Poles hammer broke after the water degraded his handle and it broke off.
I glanced up at the sky as best as I could, trying to see the time through the storm clouds. Unfortunately, I couldn’t tell on account of me having to constantly close my eyes from the water. Mumbling, I briefly moved to the side and sat on a rock. I pulled my boot off and looked at my foot. It was fine, but wrinkled to hell. If we didn’t find shelter and someplace dry soon, me and the rest of the men here would probably lose our feet.
“Hertwig, how close are we?” I asked, looking up for him. He was already ahead, but he did answer.
“We should be there within the hour….I hope” He said, not at all calming my nerves.
When we began our march in the morning, we used a path that Hertwig had traveled before. Except….the bridge we would’ve used to get to Berlin was collapsed. We walked over the hill, and there it was, broken into the river with no way across. I’ll admit, I almost lost hope, but Hertwig calmed me. So, with the bridge gone, he led us to a shortcut……That extended the length of our walk by at least 6 hours. It had been raining since last night, and it still hadn’t let up. Our tents were destroyed by the rain and storm, so we abandoned them. What else were we going to do?
“You hope? You said we’d get there by noon, it’s well into the afternoon.” I said, huffing in tiredness and slight worry.
“I apologize Erwin, but I wasn’t expecting the bridge we would’ve used to be desecrated. This is the next best route I know of.” Hertwig said. Shaking my head in annoyance, I put my boot back on, and got back into formation with the others.
“Great….We might be stuck out in the rain for the night…”
“Oh hush, it’s better than being stuck between the Revenants and the Hapsburg river. If you want, we could turn back and go to Italy?” Hertwig countered. Glaring at him, I just kept silent and kept walking. We hadn’t encountered a Revenant yet today, which was a good sign, to say the least. The Teutonic Knights probably cleared every Revenant menace in a 20 mile radius in order to keep Berlin safe. The thought of Berlin as a shelter did somewhat lighten the mood for me. If it meant we’d be at salvation, I could walk for a few more hours. I wiped some of the rain from my face and reached into the small sack I was carrying. Pulling out my water jar, I opened it and held it to the sky, allowing the rain to pour into it and fill it up. I only needed to hold it for a few minutes before it was halfway full. Others around me were doing the same, drinking from their jars after filling them with rain water. Clean water was getting harder to come by, because of corpses dying in the river up stream. A couple weeks ago a Rus got sick and passed after taking water from a stream. When we looked, we found the body of an animal upstream that was stuck in the water. We’ve avoided drinking from streams ever since.
Taking a nice drink, I looked off into the woods, staring at the darkness. I don’t know why I looked, if there was a revenant, someone undoubtedly would’ve spotted them and yelled. I couldn’t help it though, the Revenants had slipped past people before. I’ve heard of entire camps diminished to a few survivors because of a Revenant that slipped by the ones on guard duty. I didn’t want to lose more men, not now.
As I walked, I looked down and noticed soft hoof prints in the mud off the side of the road. I’d sent 4 Jaegers on horses ahead to scout the area and get a better lay of the land. It had been at least an hour, those must’ve been their prints. They should be back soon, I’d hope. If not, then maybe they’d gotten to Berlin already.
I shifted slightly as I walked, itching the underside of my chin as my helmet prevented my hair from getting soaked. Damn mosquitos keep biting at us, it was getting seriously annoying. I swatted one away, killing it in the process. Weirdly, the higher we went, the more mosquitos there were, ugh.
“Hertwig, you could’ve led us anywhere, but you took us through a bug infested hellhole?” I muttered. Unfortunately, he heard.
“I was hoping the Mosquitoes would get you to shut up.” He said, unapologetically and sarcastically.
“Well they’re doing the opposite-”
“Building sighted, in the Distance!” A Prussian man near the front shouted, interrupting me. Pausing briefly, I pushed past the others and ran to the top of the hill…….Please…..Yes yes yes, YES! Off in the distance, maybe an hour's walk, was the top of a tower, poking over the tree line.
“Hertwig! Is that-”
“It's St Mary’s church……..It’s Berlin…..We’re at Berlin…….We’re at Berlin!” He yelled to the others. I just stared at it as a smile slowly overcame my face. My fellow Prussians began to cheer, and when someone translated, the Polish and Russians began to cheer as well……Holy shit……we really made it?.....We made it! I laughed a little……then laughed some more. Finally, at last, at long long last, Salvation! I looked at Hertwig, and nodded.
“Thank you.” I told him. He just gave me a look.
“Don’t thank me yet, thank me once we’re feasting in a dining hall surrounded by the walls of the city.” He said. I chuckled- no, I laughed harder, before looking back at the bell tower. We’re safe, finally.
It took another hour, but we finally managed to make it to the walls of the city. I could see the gate, probably another 100 feet away. No matter, we were free, at long last. We marched a bit longer, before stopping at the closed gate. Nobody greeted us at the entrance, though that was unsurprising. The Teutonics likely kept it locked to let nothing through, they wouldn’t exactly be rolling out the red carpet. I turned to look at the others.
“No matter, we may have to wait a few minutes before they open the door. Rather have them be cautious at first then to assume we’re Revenants.” I said. Though some of them groaned, most understood and kept silent. So I looked back at the door, knocked as loud as I could, and waited……and waited…….and waited……………….It had been about 10 minutes, could someone answer already? Sighing, I knocked again……….then again……nobody at the walls either. I could see from the marks on the gate that the Reventants had clearly attempted to breach before, but it clearly failed, seeing as the gate was still locked. I glanced back at Hertwig.
“You sure you lead us to Berlin and not some random town?”
“I’d recognize that church anywhere…This is Berlin.” He said. Raising an eyebrow, I looked back up at the wall.
“...Hello?” I said, raising my voice. Surely, someone would’ve heard me then……….and then I waited again. Where were they?
“ Может быть, они дальше внутри? ” A Russes randomly piped up.
“What?” I asked.I still didn’t know Rus.
“ Не каждый город непобедим. Может быть, внешняя стена изначально была прорвана, поэтому они отступили к более защищенной внутренней стене? ” He said. I still didn’t understand a word he was saying. I looked at Hertwig, and he translated.
“He said that fortifications are not invincible. Maybe the outerwall was initially breached, so they went to the more defensible inner wall.” Hertwig translated. I paused……that did make sense, huh, smart thinking. Well, we didn’t see any breaches on our way here, so maybe some happened to get past the gate before it closed. I just sighed and rubbed my head. I was soo tired.
“Someone get a siege ladder, I’ll climb up and check.” I muttered.
“We don’t have one…” A fellow Prussian responded.
“Then cut down one of those trees and make one.” Hertwig added. The Prussian nodded, got a few others, and walked to the nearby trees. Credit where credits due, they got it completed within about 20 minutes, in the rain no less. Speaking of which, it was pouring down harder.
The ladder was brought over, and around 10-20 men lifted it and placed it, leaning against the wall. I stretched, walked over, and paused. I stared for a moment, before looking back.
“You 3, follow me.” I said, pointing at 3 random Prussians. They raised their eyes, but just nodded….well besides one.
“Umm, why?” He asked hesitantly. He was a bit younger, so I forgave the hesitance.
“In case he’s right and there happens to be a Revenant up here, now come on.” I said.
Ignoring the slight ache in my bones from the non stop walking, I stepped onto the ladder and began climbing. The others finally began climbing as I neared the top. Pausing for a split second, I grabbed the small dagger from my pocket and peaked over……No one, besides some weaponry still holstered on the racks and some dried…blood? No one, absolutely no one. I finally got off and stood up, looking around.
The ‘dried’ blood was somewhat dry, but the water was causing some of it to flow again, ugh. The other 3 finally got up top, being careful not to slip from the rain water. I itched the back of my neck nervously, before glancing at the gate crank.
“Nobody down below…” One of the Prussians muttered as he looked over the edge into the streets. I looked over as well……There were crates toppled, fresh fruit now rotten as it laid spilled out, even an overturned carriage….Okay, so maybe the Russes’ was initially right, maybe this first wall got breached. I looked back at the gate controls, before walking over and pulling…..to no avail. Slightly annoyed at my realization that I’m not overly strong, I looked back at the others.
“A little help?” I asked. They paused, but nodded, and walked over to help. After counting down by 3, we pushed.
I let the gate close behind the men when they finally filed in, watching it shut with a surprisingly quiet click. We were here, in……..Salvation…….With that, I turned back to the street. The men were already a bit down the road, so I followed. We all looked around, peaking into alleyways, looking inside crates, and opening carriages……..Nobody.
Then we smelled it.
That all familiar smell.
We covered our mouths, one man began quickly stuffing some herbs in his cloth as he wrapped it around his mouth. That damn smell, the smell of decay, of beelzebub, of flies. We mostly stopped, but I was the idiot that walked forward.
Peaking into an alleyway, I gagged at the pile before me. Soldiers, men, women, civilians, even a few animals, all piled up in this small corridor between buildings, burnt to a crisp. I carefully walked back out, and looked at the others.
“Looks like…….Normal burning burials. So the Revenants did get past the first wall at some point….The others are probably further in the city.” I muttered. Someone once again translated for those who couldn’t understand, and we kept going. The rain came down harder.
A noise caught our attention, like something was moving. Cautiously, I peaked around the street.……4 horses, live and well….just tied up…….. I slowly approached them, and gently lifted one of the clothes on its back to the side…..These are the same horses that the scouts used…So they did make it here…and didn’t come back. I don’t know why, but my gut told me that we needed to go, or at least find somewhere to hunker down. I turned back to Hertwig.
“We need to leave…”
“Why? We just got here, the others are probably further-”
“We would’ve seen one, we need to go-”
“No, we don’t-”
The sound of glass shattering startled us out of our conversation argument. It had been so deathly quiet, so calm, that the mere breakage of glass caught us off guard. Pretty much everyone spun around to stare in the direction of the noise……It came from inside a small building, what looked like a market. The darkness from inside only drowned out by the rain pouring down.
“Someone’s in there.” Hertwig muttered, taking a step forward. A fellow Prussian grabbed his arm before I could.
“Are you crazy?! Who knows what’s in there!” He harshly whispered. For once, I disagreed with Hertwig, cause yeah, who knows what the hell was in there?!
“What if it’s someone alive-”
“No, that is suicide. We will tie you to one of the carriages if you try to go in.” I told him. He glared at me.
“And if it’s someone alive?”
“Well we can’t take that risk, can we?” I said, before gesturing to the others to keep walking.
“What if it was your son or daughter?” I paused as he said that……..That……Periwinkle!.........I wanted to turn around and slap him…..But evidently, I can’t say no, can I? Muttering to myself in annoyance, I pulled my halberd off my back and gestured for a fellow Prussian to follow me. Ever loyal, he nodded and grabbed the small war hammer from his holster.
“If you guys hear anything, make a break for that church and bunker down.” I said, before taking a deep breath and walking into the dark abyss.
Being careful not to step on any shards of glass, I watched as Erwin slowly walked through the dark room, peeking down a hallway before slowly entering it. I was surprised when my commanding Banneret selected me of all things to come with, but I was nonetheless eager to prove myself, who wouldn’t? Anyway, I slowly looked around me, trying to figure out what in the Devil made that noise. So far, nothing I could see would’ve done it.
I shifted slightly as I followed him quietly, making sure to watch behind us. We quietly entered another room, glancing around for whatever made that noise. Nothing that could’ve made the noise in here. We silently crept to room after room, until reaching the last one. We entered, looking around, and found nothing. Just a broken vase, a closed window, and a bed. We found what broke, but we found nothing that would’ve caused it, aside from the woman crouched in the corner, of course……………..What?
I paused, and slowly looked back to the corner I had just passed by…...I carefully reached up and tapped Erwins shoulder. I must’ve startled him, because he spun around as quiet as he could, clearly wanting to tell me off……..and then he saw it too. She was just….crouched there, but it was too dark to tell what she was doing, and the rain outside was too loud to hear what she was doing. Hell, I only recognized she was a woman because of the painfully tight dress she wore. Cautiously, Erwin shifted to lift up the curtains, allowing light to seep in at an angle that would allow us to see what she was doing.
He really shouldn’t have.
“Kannibale….” I whispered quietly to him…..She wasn’t just crouched in the corner now, no. Upon shining the light, she stood up….which gave us a good look at what we were seeing.
Her eyes were sunken in and black, lifeless. Her skin was pale, veins slightly noticeable. That ever desperate expression I’ve come to despise painted across her- no, its face. Its lower jaw was……hanging off, not slack jawed, no, it was hanging by a thin piece of skin and bone. Its teeth, while there, were crooked…..and It just stared at us. Aside from its body gently shifting as it breathed, it didn't move. It didn’t bolt, it didn’t scream, it just……stared.
The Kannibals always did this at first, she must’ve passed within the last hour. Whenever they encountered their first living being, they always…..stared, like a predator that was seeing something new for the first time. Its head even tilted ever so slightly, as if watching us, wondering who we were, and why we looked like it, but not exactly like it.
I went to make a move, and slowly moved back to an angle where I could get a good hit in, but Erwin had other plans. He moved his Halberd towards its direction, the pointed end aimed directly at its stomach....Too fast...
Too fast, he’s moving too fast!
Before I could warn him, It broke from its curiosity, and lunged. I practically rolled out of the way as the Kannibal connected with his weapon. It impaled itself on the spearhead of his halberd, the tip ripping out the other side as it just kept moving. These things were always unnaturally strong when first waking up, so Erwin's face turned to horror as it began pushing its way through the blade. I know he fought them before, but I’m guessing he had never fought one that had just passed. It reached for him, its hands dangerously close to his hands.
I prevented it from getting worse.
My hammer crashed against its head, throwing it off balance and to the side. The force caused the halberd to rip its dress to the side as it went, along with whatever contents in its stomach. The sounds of flesh splattered against the floor as its entrails came spilling out would’ve made me gag, but I wasn’t about to get distracted.
Not wanting to wait for it to get back up, I quickly made my way scrambled over and drove the pointed end of my hammer into its skull. Instantly, she stopped moving and slagged, falling to the ground with a splat as she landed. I yanked the end out, effectively tearing half her scalp off in the process. Erwin had already run out the door by the time I turned back around to follow. I shook the hanging flesh off as we went straight back outside to the others.
“What happened?!”
“ Kannibal .” The Prussian next to me said, breathing heavily as the rain already began washing away the blood from his hammer. I nodded, trying not to panic from what the HELL I just saw.
What the hell what the hell what the hell what the hell WHAT THE HELL WHAT THE HELL!
These things were always predictable, always…..but…..but what the HELL WAS THAT?!
Hertwig quickly came over and grabbed me.
“Erwin, take a deep breath!.......” He said, looking at me. It took a moment, but my breathing began to slow down. After about a minute, my breathing managed to calm down to normal.
“Good…….okay……tell me what happened?” Hertwig asked again, calmly……I….I couldn’t speak, that lady……I couldn’t get her out of my head. Luckily, that Prussian spoke up.
“ Kannibal , sir….It umm….caught him off guard. I killed it before it could do anything.” The Prussian explained, thankfully saving me from…….explaining what the hell just happened. Hertwig just sighed.
“Okay…….the umm, Teutonics might be deeper in the town, if we keep-”
“Sir……Umm, the Kannibal that lunged at him was wearing a more……formal dress, she was a noblewoman of some kind…….I hate to be the bearer of bad news…..but I doubt they’re still here.” The Prussian said. Hertwig paused, and looked off to the side, as if trying to think. The others listening in translated for the Polish and Russes, and so they all just….looked lost.
“...How can we be sure? Maybe they.”
“DAMMIT!” I shouted up into the air. This was supposed to be salvation, or safely, or, shit, just somewhere to rest! AND WE CAME HERE TO THIS?! DAMMIT LORD, GIVE US A BREAK!
Hertwig went silent as I slowly calmed down, the rain coming down harder and harder. After a minute, he began talking.
“.....I…..I think Brandenburg an der Havel is still active, if we want to try and make the journey there….” Hertwig muttered, trying to be encouraging. I just shook my head no.
“........Lets just bunker down in the church, wait for the storm to end, then head east. Hopefully we’ll find the Teutonics.” I mumbled. Hertwig didn’t argue, I could just feel him nod. I looked up at the sky, the rain pouring down harder, then at the church. I scoffed, and looked back at the sky.
Some irony aye? We came for salvation here in Berlin, and instead found death, yet the only place we can take shelter is an abandoned church that has lights moving isnide it? That’s some logic there lord…………Lights……….Moving lights……My head snapped back to look at it. It was faint, but there were shimmering lights in the windows.
Someone’s at the church.
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
I stood up straight, my back aching from the sudden movement. I held my hand above my eyes, keeping the rain from my eyes as I stared at the imposing church bell tower. Maybe it was just the light, reflecting off the glass somehow, maybe it was-……More movement……….. “Someone's Alive……” Hertwig blinked, before raising his eyebrow at me. “What?” “The tower…..Someone’s at the church.” Before he could ask or check for himself, I bolted, running straight towards the church with energy that my body didn’t have. I didn’t care that I could’ve died in the building, that the Revenants were acting differently , I just know I saw someone there. I slipped on the wet stone, my hands aching as they took the brunt before I scampered back up and ran. As I ran, I just stared at the church, the rain pelting all around as thunder and fog shrouded it as best it could. I know I saw someone in there, else I’m insane……I know I’m not insane. I know I’m not insane. Most of the Army had already made it there, and were trying to get the door open. To no avail, seeing as the door wouldn’t budge. One particularly strong Russes’ tried slamming into the door, only to spit curses in his native tongue as he shook his now bruised arm. “Move!” I shouted, startling the men from the tone. They stepped aside as I moved forward and knocked as loudly as I could. “Hello?! We’re members of the 3rd Feudal Army from the County of Württemberg , as well as members of the Moskov Feudal Army! We seek shelter!” I yelled loudly, my voice muffled by the rain pelting the roof of the church. ……Silence……I knocked again. Hertwig finally caught up with the others, breathing a bit. “Members of the Teutonic Knights, we know you’re in there!” I said, louder this time……I pressed my ear up against the door, listening……..A few seconds of silence, and Hertwig went to grab my arm. I held up my hand as I listened……I heard something move, followed by quiet chattering….then a click. I stood back as the door opened up……Not to a Teutonic knight, but a common footman? He wasted no time fortunately. “Pospiesz się i wejdź do środka, już teraz!” He said in Polish, frantically waving us in. We wasted no time in rushing inside, the Footman waiting until all had got inside before taking one last look, and shutting the door. I took a deep breath as the warmth of the room engulfed me, my exhaustion finally catching up as I slumped against one of the chairs. Others did the same, taking long, deep breaths as they sat down or outright fell asleep on whatever they found comfortable. Unfortunately, I couldn’t close my eyes before the voices started. “Co wy, idioci, myśleliście?! Masz szczęście, że Kanibale cię nie usłyszeli!” The Footman harshly whispered. I didn’t bother listening as Hertwig responded, instead lazily looking over the room as I took deep breaths…….Baring the men we brought in, I could count…..7 Footmen here, 1 doctor, and 2 knights…… Where were the Teutonics? “Hey……Hey!” I said, raising my voice. The doctor stopped and looked at me. “Where is the Teutonic Order, and who the hell are you?” I asked, shifted to face him. The polish paused, and tilted his head. Right, polish……I looked at Hertwig, expecting him to translate. He sighed, and opened his mouth to- “Bailiwick of Brandenburg, or the Order of Saint John…..At your service.” One of the new guys spoke, standing up and glancing at all of us…….Bailiwick of Brandenburg? So not the Teutonics, great. “That doesn’t completely answer my question-” “They’re not here, not in Berlin at least. The Teutonics went west to save Brandenburg An Der Havel .” He interrupted, explaining. I glanced at the others, who all (baring the Polish and Russes’) froze and began murmuring between themselves. Taking a deep breath and mustering any strength I can, I looked back at him whilst standing up. “Why don’t they just come back-” “Tsk, you guys showed up at the wrong time. Hope you weren’t looking for safety.” He interrupted again, shaking his head. He stepped back onto the podium and stretched his arms out to the side. “Welcome to Berlin.” I stared at him…..Berlin….our ‘safehaven’ and salvation.....huh…wow…I just sat back down, and leaned back on the chair. Why can’t things be simple?“The Teutonics moved east and linked up with us near Saxony, where we carved a path to Berlin. The city was under siege, and we cleared it, then fortified. We were holding well, until a courier showed up out of nowhere and told us that Brandenburg An Der Havel was close to falling. So, the Teutonics went out to save it, and left us here as a form of guard. Couldn’t have had worse timing though, as refugees began pouring into the city-” I tuned out the footman as he explained, preferring to stare out the window and watch the rain pelt the ground and cobblestone. My hand gently tapped against the wood, watching a specific raindrop race to the bottom and win.No movement outside, not a single Revenant besides the one woman in the building an hour ago. I felt Hertwig tap my shoulder, and looked back to see him giving a look. He gestured for me to listen, so I just glared and tuned back in. Hertwig had placed his map on the table by then. “-months ago, we had 400, 1 month ago, we had 40, 6 days ago, we had 20. Now we’re down to 7 men. We’ve just been hiding in this church.” He finished, sighing as he poured some water from a flask into a few jars, handing them to us. He took a swig and sat down, before giving a strangely sweet smile. “So, that’s our story….what’s yours?” Hertwig wasted no time in explaining. “The Österreich had us clear the Italian states, then we were supposed to move and assist Bavaria, but those orders were cancelled.” Hertwig said, tapping a Bavaria on the map laid out in front of him. The Footman bit the inside of his cheek. “Lucky fate you avoided, lost a lot of good men in Bavaria. From what I know, Bavaria’s armies retreated into the Hessian states, and the Blighters have been ravaging it ever since.” “Blighters?” “...Oh, right. That’s what we called them back in Bavaria….I uh, lived and worked there as a Mercenary before I was sent east and joined the Bailiwick.” He explained, rubbing his nose and wiping any snot away. I nodded, before huffing and glancing around. “How did it get this bad?....In Berlin, here?” A Prussian officer asked. The Footman sighed, before tapping the floor with his foot. “Catacombs…Anyone we found infected, we killed and threw them into the catacombs……mostly…..turns out they still came back. Much to my surprise, we actually had it under control for about a month, until…..” He paused, contemplating something before answering. “A little girl had her brother thrown down there after he was bit, so she sat by the entrance and watched. Eventually, he got back up, and being a kid, she assumed he was okay…….She’s fine as far as I know, if you're wondering. An adult got her away before she could get bit……but she had already opened the door…..and you can’t stop that flood once it gets going.” He muttered. I glanced at Hertwig, who was staring solemnly at him. “......And?” I asked hesitantly. “One of our guys managed to get a barrel to the entrance and detonate it, destroying it and trapping them down there…..but by then way too many had already poured out, and they rampaged through the town……..Some managed to escape in our hasty evacuation, but most are the corpse that wander these streets.” “Corpses? We only saw one Revenant the whole time we’ve been here.” Hertwig pointed out. “You guys got lucky. A group of 4 footmen showed up and explored. They were too loud, and practically lured every one of them to the north side of the town. They were wearing your insignia……I apologize for their deaths.” The Footman explained, giving me an honest nod…..I shouldn’t have sent those 4 out to scout….dammit….I rubbed my eyes, and looked around. “...So, why Berlin? You could’ve easily marched and taken Shelter in Vienna. It was certainly closer.” The footman asked. I shifted uncomfortably, and glanced at Hertwig. “.....We…..Umm….didn’t get that lucky……” Hertwig mumbled, rubbing his wrist. The footman raised his eyebrow. “How so?” He pushed. There was a long pause before I answered for him. “......Umm, we were the rearguard for the Österreicher army. Our orders were to hold until they could return with reinforcements. Held for a week, then retreated…..The royal guard had run ahead of the Österreicher and blew the bridges behind them, leaving us trapped…..The Österreicher army died on the way here, and we’re all that’s left.” I said, hand twitching ever so slightly. Hertwig just looked away, staring at everything and anything other than the Footman in front of us. I glanced at his face. His eyes were wide, out of shock? Anger? Fear? Sadness? Remorse? I couldn’t tell, probably a mixture of them. After staring for a few moments, he cleared his throat. “.......I……heard rumors from a couple of mercenaries that a group of Royal Guards got executed in the Österreich for abandoning an army…..But I thought they were rumors…….I’m sorry…..” He said, giving us the best apologetic eyes he could give. I just nodded, while Hertwig gave him a kind smile and shook his hand. Silence befell us before a quiet hmm slipped through me. The footman gave me one look, and understood. “There’s enough spare cloth around here to use as a makeshift blanket, you’re welcome to lay down.” He said, pointing to a pile of it in the corner. The rest of my men had already found different areas to sleep in…..it was cramped, but it’d work. I gave him a nod, and went over to grab a large piece of cloth. It only took a minute for me to find a spot to lay, and so I did lay down. I shifted slightly so that I was staring out the window, and closed my eyes, everyone’s voice slowly drifting away. “I don’t think we properly introduced ourselves earlier, I’m Hertwig, and that was Erwin.” Hertwig's voice said, his voice fading away as I began to succumb to exhaustion. “Alexander, nice to meet you Hertwig.” I heard the Footman mutter, my head going fuzzy and my thoughts drifting away as I let myself relax…The Footman, Alexander, pushed the door leading to the backroom open, glancing around the barren room. The desk and chairs had been cut down to board the windows, and the bookshelf had been toppled over, laying flat on the ground.“Welcome to the backroom, where the priest before worked.” Alexander said, extending his hand and pointing around the room. “Love what you did with the place.” I muttered, grabbing a board on the window and giving it a hard tug. Barricaded shut, and very sturdy, good. “Thank you, I hope you like the decor……and this…” Squatting down and grabbing the bookshelf, Alexander grunted as he lifted it up and pushed it to the side. Beneath the large wooden bracket was a trap door, which he unlocked and opened. “Is where we’d dump any nearby bodies.” I peaked over and down the dark hole, a broken ladder leading down into it. I guess these were the catacombs? I leaned a little too forward and nearly slipped over myself. I yelped a girlish scream before Alexander grabbed my hand and yanked me back. “Pass auf, du Idiot!” He said, practically twisting my arm as he threw me back. I took a deep breath, I needed to get ahold of myself, god. I gave him a thumbs up, and stood back up, rubbing my arm. “Sorry….” I muttered, before looking back into the hole- carefully, this time. “You guys threw every body down there?” “Every single one…….Listen.” He said, gesturing to it. Carefully, I got on my knees and peaked my head over, listening…….I could hear quiet shuffling and faint groans deep down. Lots of it, more than there should’ve been, how many were down there? “I……may have understated how few got out in the evacuation before. Around 400 to 1,000 got out before the gates had to be permanently locked…..The rest were stuck here, and got torn apart. I’d say around 800 Revenants are currently up on the surface, and the rest are trapped beneath.” Alexander explained…..I paused and looked back up. “.....How big is-….Was Berlin's population?” “Nearly 10,000…..Not counting the Revenants that already rose up down there, we have at least 8,200 below us.” I took a sharp breath, slowly standing back up and rubbing my wrist. “......and with the ones that were already down there before?” “..........Maybe 22,000, at least 20,000.” He said, sighing as he leaned against the wall and looked at his hand. I stared at him, before looking back down, staring for a good few seconds, and looking back up. I looked around, my eyes settling on a lantern hanging from rope nearby. I gestured for him to grab it and the rope holding it. Alexander raised an eyebrow, but grabbed it and did so, handing it to me. Tying it to a small metal bar that was nailed into the wall, I lit the lantern and lowered down just enough to illuminate 20 feet below…….Shadow constantly danced along, footsteps echoing as at least 30 pairs of hands reached up to snatch the lantern. They piled around, trying to climb over each other as I kept the lantern barely out of their reach.I tried counting, but I stopped at 53, there were too many….Way too many down there. I lifted the lantern back up, before closing the trap door and locking it. Alexander pushed the bookshelf back on top of it, muffling the groans and growls from beneath. “Jesus…..And you guys just…..stay here with this?” I asked, looking at him as if he was slightly sick in the head. “We destroyed the ladder so they couldn’t climb up…” “I’ve seen them rip the flesh from their fingers off climbing up cliffs, nothing is stopping them from doing the same here-” “Not all can climb, and we constantly have someone watching this room. If they did try to, we would stab the first one in the head, and watch it tumble down into the others to keep it down….I think they’re just too weak to do so, they’ve been there for so long.” Alexander interrupted, reassuring me as best he could. I just gave him a look and stood back up. “2 men should’ve watched, not one-” “We only had 7 men here, I couldn’t afford to spare any before you guys showed up. They tried to climb up 4 separate times, and each time whoever was watching stopped it from happening.” He interrupted again, reaching out and grabbing the lantern, setting it back into its original position. I just nodded and glanced around the room again. “You’re sure?” “Positive.” He assured, extending a hand to help me up. I pulled myself up with it, dusting off my knees and boots before my eyes settled on another door in the corner. “That leads to the bell tower I assume?” I asked. His eyes darted to it and he paused. “Yes……..” I could see the flicker of dullness in his eyes. “Staircase up destroyed?” I suspected. “No……A man got infected when we were first fighting to lock down the church. Instead of letting us finish him off and give him a proper burial, he locked himself in the tower so he didn’t infect any of us. I don’t blame him, he was panicking.” Alexander said, his voice quieting down a bit. “We hear him clawing at the door sometimes.” I paused, glancing at it….Damn, that must’ve been the shadow I saw yesterday… “Sorry….” I told him, to which he gave me a weak smile…..Wait a minute, one guy? “.....You guys could easily lure him and kill him.” I pointed out, he just chuckled. “If we could break down the door, what good would it do? We ring that bell, it drags every Revenant to us. We don’t even know if all the exits to the catacombs are fully blocked, just the ones we know of are. What if one is open and they all pour out to us? The teutonics aren’t even back yet, we’d be slaughtered. Besides, he was a royal guardsman wearing full plate armor, we can’t deal with a brute in such a small space.” Ouch, I feel like a moron for suggesting that. “Right…..my apologies.” I said. He just waved it off slightly and rubbed his eyes. Silence befell us for a few moments, he just stared at the door as I looked out the window. The rain had finally calmed down a bit, enough to let sunlight poke through. While there was still a light dribble, it was mostly gone, which meant more light, which meant the Revenants were less likely to come out. The silence had, again, lasted only a few moments before Alexander spoke up. “So you and your mens plan was to link up here for shelter, yes?” He asked. “It was Hertwigs plan, but yes.” “Well our plan was to leave, wait for the rain to pass, then evacuate to Brandenburg An Der Havel and regroup……But, you all showed up.” He muttered, finally turning to look at me again. I looked at him as well. “Then we showed up? We aren’t special-” “No, you’re not…..But, I might have an idea.” Alexander interrupted, a smirk slowly forming on his face. I barely knew this guy for a day and I could already read him like a book. “No, hell no, we’re not fighting again-” “Ah ah ah! Let me speak, hear me out! When the Teutonics left, they told us they would come back once Brandenburg An Der Havel was stabilized and safe. If my estimates are accurate enough, they’ll be here within a few days. They told us that should the city fall or we have to retreat, we’ll lower the flag at the top of the church to signify this.” He sputtered out, staring at me. After a pause, I sighed and nodded for him to continue. “Fine…Keep going.” “Good. If they saw the flag gone, they would light a single fire outside the city walls and wait for a few days. If the flag wasn’t raised again and the bells didn’t ring, they would leave. If the flag was raised and the bells rang, they’d climb the walls and help.” He continued. “Uh-huh…” “Beforehand, we wouldn’t survive anyway. It would take at least half an hour for them to scale the wall and get to us, not to mention the extra 20 minutes just getting from their camp to the city walls. We only had 7 men, after all…..But with you and your men here, we have the numbers to at least last until they arrived……Their army is at least 15,000 men, and they’re the only order that has consistently beat the Revenants back. They could clear the city and the catacombs. Berlin would be the safe haven you hoped for.” Alexander ended, finally inhaling to get some air.I sat in silence for a minute, contemplating……If, IF he was right, we’d have to fight again….when we were barely hanging by a thread. We couldn’t, we couldn’t fight, we couldn’t even hold the line for 40 minutes. It was 200 against 800, and if he was right about a possible opening somewhere else, it would be 200 against 20,000. There was no way we could……What choice would we have?......What choice……Dammit.I ignored the look he gave me as I walked out of the back room to where the others were, scanning them before landing on Hertwig. I walked over to him within a moment's notice.“Hey!”“Hm?” Hertwig muttered, scratching his neck as he focused on stitching together cloth for a blanket. I grabbed his arm and pulled him up, dragging him to the side before he could protest.“Oi, you could’ve warned-”“Shut up.” I interrupted. He studied my face for a moment, then relaxed. He knew I wanted to say something, and so I did…His face went from confusion, to horror, to shock, to understanding, to shock again, and finally just…..contemplation. Contemplation for an uncomfortable amount of time. After 5 minutes of silence, he spoke.“He wants us to fight again?”“....Yes….”“So let's fight again.”…..What.The fuck?“Excuse me?” I asked, utterly bewildered. He wants us to fight?“If it means we’ll be safe, then we’ll fight.” Hertwig said, shrugging his shoulders. I stared at him, mouth ajar and eyes wide.“....You can’t be serious-”“Erwin, I’m serious.” He interrupted, staring at me with determination, unjust determination. I shook my head now, crossed my arms, and glared right at him.“Nope, nuh-uh, not happening. I won’t allow it, and there’s no way in hell the men would agree to it.”“Wanna bet?”“OORAH!”I stared in utter bewilderment as Hertwig finished his ‘rousing’ speech, ending in the men all cheering him on……….How?! I blinked rapidly, rubbed my eyes, closed them, counted, then reopened them. Nope, I wasn’t dreaming, these men, these poor, tired men, were willing to just…..Get back up and fight! Are you kidding me?! We came here for salvation, not to die! Before I could protest, Hertwig tapped my shoulder.“I assume you don’t want to fight-”“No, HELL no!”“Then I won’t make you….Instead.” He handed me a hammer. “You can help build the fortifications!”……I hate this, I hate all of this.I leaned against a wall in the back room, staring at the door to the belltower. Albrecht- No, it was banging at the door again. It wasn’t him, not anymore. He was getting riled up due to the noise, though I suppose I should thank the lord above that it’s him we riled up instead of the other Revenants. I thought we were going to die here, honestly.Then, Hertwig, Erwin, and their guys showed up. We might actually have a chance now. The church is fortified, our weapons are sharpened, and a few daring Polish engineers went outside and made some hasty, yet still worthwhile barricades out of the overturned carts.We couldn’t beat the entire horde on our own, but hold them until the Teutonics arrived? We could absolutely do that. Now we have to wait until we get a sign that they’ve arrived, then we ring the bell……the bell.We’re prepared to break down the door and kill its body before ringing the bell, then have 1 person ride out, open the gate, and meet them. It’s….far from perfect, but better than starving or getting torn apart. We’re ready, I’m ready, and I hope the lord is ready to bless us.Last thing to do is pick someone to go out and meet them……Erwin, yeah, no, he’s going out to meet them. Though I’m grateful for them, he is hesitant to ring the bell. Understandable, if it also wasn’t the key to our survival. We’re ringing this bell whether he likes it or not, and he’ll be the one to meet the Teutonics. Hertwig will be here to assist with any medical issues, and that’s it……We just have to wait until nightfall and wait for the signal fire.So we waited.“Alexander, signal fire beyond the city!” A footman. He ran to the window, looked out, and visibly relaxed.“The Teutonics are here. I want 7 men to get ready for the door to be opened. We’ll put down the resident in the tower, raise the flag, and ring the bell!” Alexander said, before swiftly turning to me. “And you….go meet them.” “What?” “Erwin, take a horse, and ride out to meet them. The back gate is easy to open, and you’ll be able to slip by as the horde comes to us. Got it?” Alexander said, dictating as if he’s in command. “I’m not going to-” The back door opened, and I was shoved out with my weapon. It closed shut before I could get up, leaving me stranded……..Fuuuuuuuuck. I swiftly stood back up, looking around before. My eyes landed on a horse, before hesitating……am I really about to do this after protesting? I must’ve sat there for 10 minutes before deciding. I turned back to the door, and prepared to get back inside…I wasn’t going to do- The bell rang. I jerked as the chimes caught me off guard, before slowly looking back up at the tower……the bell was moving, and the flag was slowly hoisted up……..Dammit, fuck, shit, SON OF A BITCH! With no time to do anything, I bolted to the horse, and got onto it. Taking a moment to steady myself, I pulled the reins and began galloping as fast as I could to the easternmost gate. I could already hear the mass shuffling of footsteps from the Revenants as they began towards the church. The bells masked the horses footsteps as I made my way to the gate. The moment I got to it, I practically jumped off my horse and ran up the stairs. Grabbing the crank, I pushed as hard as I could, until it finally gave and began cranking. I watched the bell tower as it kept ringing, watching the faint shadows en-mass move to the tower…..lord that was a lot. After what felt like an eternity, I got it open, and descended the tower to the horse. There, I got on, and began riding out to where the fire was coming fromI didn’t get far though.A rope yanked out in front of my horse, and I barely skidded to a stop.“Woah!” I yelped out, before several footsteps rustled around me and figures began rushing out at me.“Hold on HOLD ON!” I raised my hands as high as I could, glancing around at the surrounding footmen……..White uniforms with black crosses, it was the Teutonics.“Hold there deserter!” One spat at me….What?“No- No! I’m not a deserter, I was told to ride out to you all! Berlin’s nearly fallen, there’s only 200 men there, we need help!” I said, watching the various spears and weapons pointed at me with increasing worry. One of the more heavily armored footmen, the commanding officer from what I could tell, tilted his head.“Fallen?”“Dammit, don’t you hear the bells?!” I yelled, pointing back at the city. He looked over at it, and gave the others a look. They quickly lowered their weapons and began moving towards the town.“Ride to the camp and let them know, now!” He said, pointing in its direction. I just nodded and kept going. It took another 4 minutes of riding, but I was stopped right outside the camp.“Halt, who-”“Berlins nearly falling, dammit, tell whoever’s in charge to get this army in gear and MOVE! The easternmost gate is open, you need to hurry!” I interrupted, pointing towards Berlin. The guards paused briefly before talking.“Identify yourself-”“Erwin Luger, Banneret of the 3rd Feudal Army from the County of Württemberg, now please, hurry!” I said as quickly as I could. They looked at each other, but nodded, and quickly made their way into the camp. Within minutes, the massive army began making their way to the city, torches lit as they marched in unison……Thank god and the Teutonics……
3 weeks later...
I stared at the ceiling, laying on my back as the ran calmly pelted down outside. No floods, no showers, just a nice, light dribble. Instead of an unholy choir, the streets were filled with the quiet laughter of friends and the gentle shuffles of footsteps. 3 more days, the Teutonics say the Catacombs should be clear in just 3 more days…“Hey.” A voice startled me from my stupor, I nearly fell off my bed as I jolted up. “Jesus! Hertwig, knock!” I spat, taking a deep breath as I got into a sitting position. Of course, Hertwig was there. He just laughed and rolled his eyes obnoxiously. “You fought the Revenants and a little ‘hey’ startled you?” He asked, before shaking his head and gesturing behind him. “Come, Alexander is starting a ceremony.” I smirked, standing up. “Gladly.”“Men! Tonight, we feast! For we, along with the Teutonics and Rus, beat back this Confederation of the Dead!” Alexander raised his glass high, the others following suit and cheering. I chuckled, following suit as others began to dig into the feast before them. Alexander set his glass down as he walked past. “Got your wish Erwin, welcome to salvation.” He said.……Huh….. Salvation…. At last…