Secret War: The Annihilation Plague (Part 2)

Chapter 29

As the shield blinked away, Attelus fell to his knees. He stared at the five Plague Marines as their inscrutable lenses stared back. He'd failed in killing any of them, no matter how hard he'd tried. His power sword would slice through their bulks before he was forced to dart back and into desperate dodging and darting. He'd cut them countless times, but none of those attacks were anything but shallow, meaningless wounds. He never got the time to land a more damaging blow. Shallow, meaningless wounds that'd already long slurped closed. A good metaphor for how pointless and idiotic this endeavour was. How pointless everything was.

Attelus wanted to beg them to shoot him, to spare him from this hideous demise, but the Plague Marines just watched as the ravening hordes fell upon him. With all his will, Attelus raised his sword to slice his own throat, but then cold, clammy fingers eclipsed his wrist. He was too weak to fight back.

+I'm sorry, Attelus. That I could not do more. I'm so, so sorry,+ said Faleaseen just before he began to scream.

Soon, Attelus found he could no longer scream, and by the Emperor, he wished he still could.

Hayden Tresch sat, glaring at the wall. He had no idea how long he'd been like that, but he'd become lost in the strange, unnamable colours that would blotch and flow across his vision. It sent a pleasing shiver beneath his skin. The daemon was silent for a long time, but now Hayden could feel its presence constantly. He swore he could even hear it breathing in his ear despite the fact daemons didn't need to breathe. It should've been scary, but the breathing was comforting. At times, the memories of his many kills would float through his mind, and with it came the pleasure he'd always denied feeling. He knew the pleasure would be tenfold if he were out there killing. It made him truly wish he was free.

Hayden finally closed his eyes and breathed through his nose. He would chase perfection by setting himself challenges for every shot. He'd shoot between the 2nd and third of the right side ribs. Or through their open mouth.

Oh, how Hayden wished he was free!

The dying lights brought Hayden back to reality. His mind still swirled, and as he blinked, he looked at the door.

Then came screams and the sound of gunfire.

With screams erupting from his throat, Attelus awoke into all eclipsing pain, and he writhed on the cold stone floor.

+Attelus!+ begged a voice. +Attelus, please calm down!+

Attelus couldn't do anything but writhe more, and his screams grew into shrieks. He enclosed his head in his arms, even though he didn't believe he still had arms or a head. He rolled into a foetal ball, wept, and shook like never before. His shrieking became gasping mulling.

+I am sorry, Attelus. After such a horrific death, you would be better off to stay dead. But there is still much left to do. So much.+

Finally, Attelus opened his eyes. Through his hazy, white-ringed vision, he found night had eclipsed the cathedral and all around him, countless undead corpses covered the walls, so high there was no sign of the stained glass windows. They had been joined together in a dark green gunge. They'd already mostly decomposed. Flies encased the air above them. Their combined droning seemed to finally filter into Attelus' ears.

'F-Faleaseen? That you?'

+Yes. Are you...+

She was going to ask, "Are you alright?" But the absurdity of the question made her shut up.

'How...how long have I been...gone, for?'

+Nigh on twelve hours now. It took me a long time to rebuild your body after...after...+