Blackout Part I

Chapter 17

"Attention everyone, welcome to Berlin," I heard the voice, then the back of the chopper turned a bright cherry red. "This is your captain speaking," I wanted to shut him up, his voice was annoying me already and this had been the first he had talked since take-off. I looked over to Richard, who shook his head no. I wouldn't listen to him, I never listened to anybody. I stood up, walked to the front of the cabin, and pulled the mic from his hands. I knew that everyone could hear me, now.

"Good morning, free world," that was all it took. Everyone knew me now. "Today, we are dropping in to pay a visit to Berlin. I've got a cargo hold here full of fresh Americans, who want to say something very dear to me," I said as I patted my heart. I pulled the button on the mic, and held my hand out to the hold.

"Ich bin ein Berliner!" The whole Task Force erupted in the phrase, all at once. I smiled, knowing nobody would see me but them.

"Captin Yarbe," I said, motioning for our pilot. "Set this plane down, right there," I said, pointing on the top of a building. "We lead the way!" We landed first, my team securring the area before Richard and I were allowed out. The instant my foot touched the fine powder that rested on the building, I knew something was wrong. Richard did too.

"Is this..."

"Yeah," I said, finishing his sentence for him. I could tell my the texture of what it was. "Get everyone off the roof, now," I said so they could hear me. "Slowly, weapons tight, no mistakes."

"What is-" That was all it took, one order too late. The first hit barly missed us, but slammed against the chopper, sending in flying backwards. Then I saw the grenade, it was one of ours. The pin wasn't pulled, maybe the Delrath didn't know how to use our weapons.

"GET OFF THE ROOF, NOW!" I yelled as I pulled the pin and threw it back in the direction from which it came. Everyone pilled down the steps, as soon as they did, shots rang out. I slid down the railing like a child at play, only the broom in my hand was actually an assualt rifle, and the twigs that I had on my belt were knives, long and sharp. I killed everything I could, simple Hybrids, not stormtroopers like what I was expecting. The Hybrids fell easily, then came time time I had to reload. But who had the time for that? I wanted to dance, after all.

The building we landed on was a large hotel, and where I currently was cournered, was in the Ball Room, of all places. I threw the AK to the ground for the first time in weeks, and wrapped my hands around the blades of my knives. The first of the Hybrids saw me, weaponless and covered in blood, they thought that I had given up. I saw Richard and his team fly down the hall then, missing me by only a few feet.

"Cook!" I heard him yell as he came back. My knives were out now, one to the head of the alien to my left. Covered in blood, eyes closed to protect myself from it. Open the eyes. Both knives to the stomach of the one to my right, left knife out, right knife out. Over-head circle, bring the blade to his neck. Quick movement down the throat, block the blood, move to the next one.

Flurries to the chest. One, two, three, four, lost count, had to start over. Wipe the blood from your face, quickly now, left fist to the face. Don't stop, stab in that direction. Kick high, aim low. Knife to the stomach, out, aim higher, right knife to the throat. Drive it in deep, twist, pull out, left knife to the temple. Spin on heel, look oddly at Richard. Throw knives back in sheeth.

It was so fast, my fight. The three Delrath lay on the ground before Richard got to me, only a few feet away. How fast would I have had to been to have done that? Richard yelled to me, but I was deafened by the short battle I had; unable to hear his words I stared at him blankly.  I don't know what he was yelling to me, but whatever it was, he was sad about. Yet, I felt no pain, no pity. I saw the child then, smaller than the Delrath. He had a perfect hole in his throat from my knife. That last one...that wasn't a Delrath. I dropped my knives as he fell onto his back, shouting things at me in a languge that I couldn't understand.

I begged him to stay with me, Richard called for men to have me removed from the field of battle; the cries of a parent hurt me the most. I couldn't blame the Delrath on this, the death of a child. This was me, all me; his blood was on my hands. I held my hands in front of my face, just as I began to hear Richard's voice in my ear.

"You son of a bitch! That was a kid, a little kid! You knifed him, and now you're ignoring me? You are a worthless piece of shit, you bastard!" My hands were dripping with the blood of the dead body, I couldn't move or talk at all. Something was wrong with me. I've spilt countless amounts of Delrath blood, watched my friends die, and had been nearly killed several times. Nothing ammounted to this, nothing.

"Richard, calm yourself," I heard a female voice say. It was several seconds before I heard the cracking sound, and then the scream. I pulled myself together, drew my pistol from my side, and turned; the barrel resting over Richard's heart. The girl from the chopper was on the ground, bleeding from the nose, crying.

"You hit her?" He didn't need to respond. "Touch her again, and I swear to whatever God you worship, I'll kill you where you stand," I said as I moved the gun from his chest. "Consider yourself warned."

About that time was when I saw the first ship land. The sky turned dark as what I assumed was the mothership flew over us. No, too small, it was a cruiser of some sorts. Then I saw the name. It was the U.S.S.R Volker Hans, the slave ship that I had-by the time I noticed it, it was already over. I saw the bright flashs of light, then the smoke, then I watched it crash into the city.

I heard cheers behind me. We had struck the first blow against the Delrath, and it wouldn't be the last. I bolted outside, gathered up a squad, and went to see the ship. Maybe, just maybe, there were surviviors.