The Vakarians forces continued across the bridge and fanned out around the apartment complex. The buildings were arranged in a U-shape, with the base of the U facing the bridge and the uncovered side opening out onto the main road. The main force of the Vakarians gathered within the courtyard, while some remained stationed along the perimeter of the complex. There was a moment of silence, the atmosphere electric. I could see students in other apartments, glaring nervously at the gathered horde. I readied my shield, a simple wood and leather reconstruction used in MedRen displays, and double checked that Sue's knife was still tucked into my belt. The commanding Vakarian raised his sword, and bellowed some manner of war chant.
The battle began immediately. The gathered horde split and raced to the seven stairway towers. I noted with some relief that the commander was not in the group heading to our tower. Meanwhile, all along the perimeter, more Vakarians were breaking windows and entering the ground floor apartments. I heard the smashing of glass below us, for all the good it would do them. They still only had one access point to the upper floors. Dave and Sarah peppered the approaching aliens as they reached our tower. The stairs were just wide enough for two to approach our barricade at once. Tony and I kept our shield raised, limiting their range of attack significantly, striking back only when they presented an opportunity. Each one we killed became an obstacle for the ones approaching, who had to unceremoniously toss their fallen comrades over the handrail to make space.
We had slain about twenty with ease, before our fortune wained. While we grew tired, less focused, sloppy, their numbers were seemingly endless. Each enemy we killed only served to make way for another. It was inevitable that one of us would make a mistake sooner or later. Yet another Vakarian approached me, swinging his sword two-handed in a downward motion. I readied my shield to deflect, but I was too slow. Instead of absorbing the force of his impact, I only managed to deflect it downwards. His blade bit deep into the wooden barricade. As he struggled to free the blade for the timber support of our sofa, I brought my blade forward, thrusting into his chest. As he fell, his sword emerged from the barricade, causing it to sag alarmingly in the middle. Even our barrier wouldn't hold out much longer!
Tony noticed the damage sustained by the barrier and turned to me, looking for ideas. I shrugged and returned to my post. There was nothing we could do about it mid battle at any rate. If the Vakarians forces their way through it, we'd just have to fight man to man. Or rather, man to giant alien warrior. We were screwed.
The battle continued well into the night, where we fought by the light of flaming torches Dave had made from chair legs, old shirts and alcohol. Once again proving that if you're in a life or death situation, make sure you're with a chemist. Tony and I took turns tagging out with Sue and Dave, allowing each of us to eat, hydrate and attempt to rest. Not surprisingly however, it's hard to sleep with a horde of murderous creatures pounding on your door. After several hours of darkness, Tony and I were once again leading the defense when tragedy struck. Tony had stabbed a Vakarian in the neck, where his blade had become lodged in the bone. Without thinking, he leaned over the barrier to wrestle it free as the next alien arrived. It swung quickly, catching Tony right on the shoulder. The blade sank in deep, several inches at least. Tony roared in agony, his right arm falling limp as muscle was severed. Behind me I heard Susan gasp in shock, while Sarah began to sob uncontrollably. I tried to pull him back over the barrier. Maybe, if we could treat the wound... until I realized the extent of the damage. As the Vakarian prized his blade from Tony, the wound spewed forth crimson blood. Through the large gash I could see the white of bone before it was stained red, as well as strands of severed sinew and tendon.
With the blade removed, Tony easily came with me as I pulled, causing me to collapse backwards as his lifeless body fell on me. Susan and Dave rushed to man the defenses as I lay there, stunned. I'm the first to admit that Tony is far from the nicest guy, in fact he can be a bit of a dick. But I couldn't imagine him dead, couldn't process the lifeless body in my arms. Tony had died, believing that my plan would keep us safe. I had given him hope, which he died to preserve. But that hope was a lie, I was a child playing the hero, and now people were dying because of it.
After a while, it may have been minutes or hours, I couldn't tell anymore, the sun began to rise. A shrill cry rang out from the courtyard. Part shout, part whistle. The Vakarians stopped in their advance and returned to the courtyard abruptly. Not thinking clearly, I raced downstairs after them, Dave and Sue calling after me but remaining on the stairs. I pushed my way through the piled corpses and emerged from the building. Ahead of me, in the throng of Vakarians, stood their commander. I stared at him in vengeful fury, readying my blade. For Tony's sake, I was going to kill him, no matter the cost. He looked at me calmly, and his eyes had just a hint of respect, as if he expected us all to have perished by now. He spoke.
"You are a worthy foe. Now, we tend to the fallen and commit them to our shining Gods. We grant you time to perform your own rites. You have one Earth hour."
With that, his hand reached to a small brown device on his belt, with a golden hemisphere on it. He pressed the gold button, and instantly began to shimmer in the rays if the rising sun. After a moment, he had disinterested into nothing. The rest of his men also faded away. I turned around,looking back into our tower. Even the bodies there had vanished.
After a few moments, Susan appeared at the doorway. She smiled sweetly, but I could see the pain of loss behind her eyes too. "Is it over then? Or is that too much to ask?" she asked. In spite of everything, I chuckled.
"Afraid so. This is just a pause, to clear the dead from the battlefield."
"Well, we'd better make use of our time then. Dave can reinforce the barrier, why don't you go and wash off the blood. I'll sit with Sarah."
I looked at this woman, so resolute in the face of danger, even though she must be as upset as the rest of us. I owed it to her to keep fighting. The bones of an idea began to form in my mind.
"Sounds like a plan. But I'll go one better. When they return, we're bringing the fight to them. Nobody else dies. I have a plan, and we end this. Today!"
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