After the Pandemic: The Enemy of My Enemy (part 16 ): The Ambassador of New York I (1017 hits)
Category: Quotes & StoriesRating: 1.96 on 39 reviews (Rate this item) (V)
Submitted by The Caes (View user info) at 2005-06-29 12:41:19 EDT
http://www.ubersite.com/m/61238 -- Introduction -- Jack McCallum
http://www.ubersite.com/m/61350 -- Variant C -- Jack McCallum
http://www.ubersite.com/m/61505 -- Part 1: Brianna
http://www.ubersite.com/m/61614 -- Part 2: Khalid
http://www.ubersite.com/m/63145 -- Part 3: The Meeting
http://www.ubersite.com/m/63504 -- Part 4: The Conversation
http://www.ubersite.com/m/63663 -- Part 5: The Story of Manhattan
http://www.ubersite.com/m/64024 -- Part 6: On the Streets of Jersey
http://www.ubersite.com/m/64325 -- Part 7: Tome
http://www.ubersite.com/m/64611 -- Part 8: Faing
http://www.ubersite.com/m/65301 -- Part 9: The Gathering
http://www.ubersite.com/m/65871 -- Part 10: Men Amongst Giants
http://www.ubersite.com/m/66684 -- Part 11: The Temptress and The Aristocrat
http://www.ubersite.com/m/66752 -- Part 12: Trial by Blood
http://www.ubersite.com/m/67296 -- Part 13: Words and Swords
http://www.ubersite.com/m/67769 -- Part 14: Details and Divinity
http://www.ubersite.com/m/68760 -- Part 15: Into the Breach
Brianna remembered visiting the Empire State Building years ago, before the world ended. It was a grand beacon, standing proudly against the Manhattan skyline, a testament to human spirit and ingenuity. People flocked to it by the millions each year, drawn by its magnetic charisma in a city that had more than enough charm to spare. Look at this, it beamed. Look at what we can accomplish. And everyone looked, craning their necks to try to take in as much of the sight as they could; and in seeing they felt comfort, and awe, and inspiration.
Now, Brianna didn't like looking at it at all. It leaned over them in the distance, pushing down on them. Its grandness had turned to grotesque menace. Lit in the night sky, it stabbed at the heavens like a bloody needle, poisoning the air with something foul and invisible. Look at me, it said. Look at what you have lost, look at what you have loved, taken from you.
Brianna looked and then looked away.
It was not long before they reached the base. By now the war drums rang crisply in their skulls. The Butcher had supplied additional decorations to the exterior of the landmark with the zealous design sense of a serial killer. The broad, blocky base was painted clumsily with dried blood. It splotched over the surface in random patterns, and gave the impression that the first two floors were rusting. But as they grew closer to the building, Brianna noticed that it was...moving. The lower surface of the Empire State Building twitched like a fitful dreamer.
As she came closer, Brianna came to a nauseous revelation. The Butcher had nailed zombie corpses to the building. Pinned like vivisected frogs, they writhed pointlessly and clutched at nothing, as if searching. A soft wave of moaning circled the building. The vague, tangy odor of rot that drifted in the air was replaced with the stench of a hundred uncovered graves.
"Jesus fucking fuck." Tyler said quietly.
Brianna covered her open mouth with her hand. She couldn't speak. She had heard stories, but to actually see it, to see the corpses of men and women who had died years ago still mindlessly straining for existence, nailed there in some sort of eternal crucifixion...
Rick looked carefully at the trapped zombies, covering his nose. "They look starved. Like they've been up there a long time."
"Can't be," Tyler said, still fixed on the gruesome mural. "Island as small as Manhattan, and 5 years in the drivers seat? Butcher must have wiped out the zombies a long time ago. They have to be new. Unless..."
Tyler looked at the sidewalks. He saw lumpy wet things in the shadows, bits of cloth, and a shoe. And something that could not have been anything but a human hand. The colour drained out of his face.
"...Unless he's still feeding them."
Brianna nearly threw up. They stood there in stunned silence, until Anthony spoke up.
"This is what we're here for. These folks died a long time ago. We're taking down the monster that did this. Stop gawking, we've got a job to do. Charlie team, take up positions around the perimeter. Alpha and Bravo, move out."
"Too right," Faing grumbled, cracking his knuckles.
Anthony wished he felt as confident as he sounded. His guts were twisting around inside him, and a prickle shivered up his spine. The sooner they got this job done, the sooner he could get to the business of dealing with the nightmares this would give him.
Only a handful of guards were patrolling the area. They walked with a bored hunch, muttering to themselves through their scabrous lips. The two guards that obstructed their path were taken by surprise and quickly and quietly removed. They entered the four-story tall entrance like ants crossing a threshold made for looming giants. There were no guards inside.
Abayome stationed herself near the entrance as a sentry. With her mental gifts, she would be able to warn Khalid when the Butcher had returned, or if there were any unexpected problems. She walked into the shadows and Brianna lost sight of her immediately.
As the outdoor lights indicated, this building had power. Quickly, the invaders boarded the elevators and set out to the 86th floor observatory. The Butcher of York had done some redecorating here as well, but in sharp contrast to the exterior. Brianna had expected some sort of slaughterhouse, but instead the elevators opened up into a lavish and refined living quarter. The observatory was delicately furnished with antique furniture, books, and tapestries. It had been converted to something that reminded Brianna of Tome's library. Windows opened up to the balcony, where people used to stare out at the breathtaking Manhattan skyline. Brianna resisted the urge. She decided that she did not want to see what Manhattan had become.
Svetlana and Domokos had been sent to Central Park to confirm the location of the Butcher. There was little to do but wait. Anthony and the rest of the Lukers re-checked their equipment and weapons. Faing lumbered around like a cranky red bear. Bashir prowled the edge of the observatory, absorbing details while he absently twirled his knives around his fingers. Katsuo knelt on the floor with his palms on his thighs. He closed his eyes and meditated. Cash sat in a plush chair, his leg draped over the arm. Occasionally he would pull out one of the several handguns he had holstered on his person and spin it around his trigger finger, backwards and forwards.
Vilhelm seemed anxious. Anthony watched him pace aimlessly, smoothing back his platinum hair and adjusting his collar every five minutes. The anticipation must be getting to him. He looked almost bored when they approached the building. Even Abayome, with a heart as black as her skin, had curled her lip in disgust at the sight of the crucified munchers, but Vilhelm hardly batted an eye. Watching him now, Turner wondered if Jerry from Milwaukee had the stones for a brutal fight, like the one that was brewing. The Chief expected him to turn into a cough and run away as much as he expected him to stand his ground. He fingered his rifle, the one filled with hollow-point anti-coagulants. Once a bullet like this hits a leech, it thins its blood and turns it into an instant hemophiliac. Even after a couple of shots, the leech gets slow as its vital fluids drain out of it like water from a faucet. Turner had no idea if it would work as well on a 'classic' vampyre, but if this gutless poser runs, he would make sure to find out.
The Prince of ancient Baghdad stood on the observatory ledge, hands clasped behind his back. His hair and cloak billowed softly in the rotting breeze. His penetrating stare was fixed on Central Park, searching for sign of prey. The relentless rhythm of the drums throbbed in the darkness like an infected wound. Khalid's fingers flexed involuntarily. He wished he were hunting instead of waiting.
Finally, Svetlana's voice echoed in his head, thick as honey.
< khalid >
< report >
< he is not here >
Khalid paused for a moment, not understanding. < not there? Has he left already? >
< i do not think so. this place is crawling with these disgusting things. they're as ugly as domokos >
< what is happening there? >
< is some sort of brutish contest. there is a large dirt arena where these things fight each other. one of the hybrids faced five leeches, killed them all. someone is watching from a dais >
< it must be the butcher > Khalid reasoned.
< no. there is a massive rock throne. the observer does not sit in it. it remains empty >
Khalid frowned. Something was not right. If the Butcher was not presiding over the sport in Central Park, where was he?
< instruction? > Svetlana prompted.
The Arab's eyebrows furrowed, slanting down towards his eyes in uneasy thought. They could not afford to abort. But this development troubled him, it scratched at his guts and throat.
Without warning, voices and images ruptured through Khalid's mind like a chemical explosion. He cried out and fell to one knee, hands clutching his vibrating skull.
< KHALID dAngER TR aP eN emiES DIE blO od BUTCHER >
Images flashed through his head like an unfocused high-speed slideshow. He saw Domokos ripping and tearing through blobs of scabby flesh. He saw a chipped dagger jam itself into the formless shape of a woman who might have been Svetlana. He saw Abayome in crystal clarity, surrounded by fetid hyenas, arms reddened by blood up to her elbows, majestic features twisted in berserk battle-rage. Then he saw nothing, and was left with but a pounding head and flickering images that faded like a repressed memory.
Tyler, Rick and Anthony were at his side. "What is it? What's wrong?" the Chief asked.
Khalid looked at him, eyes wide and unfocused.
"It's a trap."
The words hit Anthony like a kick to the belly. His skin went pale. But then Khalid stood, eyes sharpened to daggers and mouth tracing a grim line, and they both knew there was only one thing left for them.
"BATTLE STATIONS! Man the elevators and stairs!!" The Chief roared. Brianna's heart jumped in her throat as her body jumped to its feet. Humans and Kin scrambled into defensible positions, leveling weapons and bolstering will.
"Steady," Turner called out. They could hear the twanging of cables as the elevators rumbled towards them. Turner motioned for the stairs. Two of his soldiers, Liz and Paul, tested the doors. Liz shook her head. Locked. Turner gave the word to blow it open at his signal. He didn't want to make any more noise than necessary right now.
The rumbling advanced on them, growing louder. Faing stood like a footballer ready for a tackle, fingers wiggling eagerly. "Come oan then," he grinned.
Turner murmured to Khalid. "When those doors open, Liz will shoot open the stairway. We're fighting our way out of here."
Khalid's expression was not optimistic. If this were a trap, they were unlikely to be able to shoot their way out. The exits would be blocked. Their only hope was that their attackers would underestimate the supernatural forces they were dealing with. "My kind and I will meet the first wave. Katsuo, you provide protection to Turner's men as they retreat. The rest of us will follow as we are able."
Vilhelm spoke quickly. "Khalid, I will protect the humans. Katsuo is too fine a combatant to be wasted on such a role."
Khalid's eyes narrowed to slits. "You will do as you're told, aristocrat." He spoke in a seething tone. "I have no time for cowardice."
Vilhelm took a step back.
Katsuo sneered disgustedly and looked away. The Japanese man held his katana in a low guard. "Control your fear," he spat to Vilhelm, still not looking at him. "This is what fate has chosen for us this day."
"Yes. Well." Vilhelm said, ruffling his feathers. "Some of us are clever enough to make our OWN fate."
Khalid smelled the tang of bloody steel and heard Katsuo grunt. He whipped about in time to see the tip of Vilhelm's rapier lancing out of Katsuo's chest, piercing his heart as the aristocrat skewered the samurai from behind.
"IBN HARAM!!" Khalid shouted. Just then, as everyone had turned to see, the elevator announced itself.
Ding.
User Reviews
Submitted by Axolotl (user info) at 2006-04-06 11:03:50 EDT (#)
Ranking: 2
that bastard
Submitted by rad1101 (user info) at 2005-10-19 04:07:03 EDT (#)
Ranking: 1
There are a solid four pages of +2 streaks with 30 or more reviews. That is stupid. I am weeding it all out by giving every one of them a +1; that way posts that have 1.99 with 200+ reviews gets best ever.
Submitted by zakalwe (user info) at 2005-08-28 12:38:55 EDT (#)
Ranking: 2
No, not Katsuo! Why?
you telegraphed the betrayal pretty well I think. I didn't like it, but that's only because I dislike seeing good characters cut down in their prime.
Submitted by Benny (user info) at 2005-07-26 23:10:19 EDT (#)
Ranking: 2
I guess I always thought Vilhelm should be kept an eye on but I didn't really think he would betray them. Marvelous stuff.
Submitted by thecaes (user info) at 2005-07-13 19:03:40 EDT (#)
Ranking: 0
Ha ha -- I thought of that...it is a somewhat faggy ending. But, elevators go "ding." What's a guy to do??
Submitted by Spam (user info) at 2005-07-13 08:19:13 EDT (#)
Ranking: 2
I HATE that ending.
Not the betrayal, or the elevator arrival, just the 'Ding'. That could possibly be the worse word ever used to end a cliffhanger chapter of such a dark tale.
Other than that, I am in agreement with Corn.
Submitted by runswithscissors (user info) at 2005-07-12 17:53:54 EDT (#)
Ranking: 2
I cannot say thank you enough for sharing this story!!!!!!
Submitted by notyou (user info) at 2005-07-07 15:49:36 EDT (#)
Ranking: 2
As for whether I knew Vilhelm von Asshole was going to turn on them...
I think I guessed it when he was pacing around nervously. But I think you made it work well since you had showed him as a coward. It could be betrayal nervousness or fear of death nervousness making him pace.
Awesome series, it's making my work days fly by. ;)
Do a little work, read another installment, repeat...
Submitted by thecaes (user info) at 2005-07-05 18:07:31 EDT (#)
Ranking: 0
Peon, she'll be around in the next post. She's guarding the tunnel exit with Ferdy.
Submitted by Professional_Peon (user info) at 2005-07-05 15:21:11 EDT (#)
Ranking: 2
Whatever happened to that kick-ass bitch named Heather?
Hmmm? HMMMMMM?
Submitted by MyNameIsTim (user info) at 2005-07-03 00:10:48 EDT (#)
Ranking: 2
very solid
Submitted by Jungle_Jimanee (user info) at 2005-07-01 09:25:36 EDT (#)
Ranking: 2
Ha, I knew Vilhelm was going to betray them.
Submitted by Viper_04 (user info) at 2005-07-01 02:29:39 EDT (#)
Ranking: 2
I hate that Vilhelm, I wanted Katsuo to be in the fight...Samurais are cool!
Damn this gets better and better...luckily i've read this and now i can read the next installment...how wonderful
Submitted by thecaes (user info) at 2005-06-30 23:11:13 EDT (#)
Ranking: 0
Corn, that was a pretty fantastic compliment...thanks!
Submitted by Axolotl (user info) at 2005-06-30 17:24:55 EDT (#)
Ranking: 2
This is the first one I've read, so I must must must must must read all the others. Publish it, make millions.
Submitted by Mop (user info) at 2005-06-30 16:45:56 EDT (#)
Ranking: 2
Finally read all of these at work today!
Submitted by corn_nugget (user info) at 2005-06-30 16:11:06 EDT (#)
Ranking: 2
Wow Caesar... about 1/8th of the way through this I forgot I was reading something you wrote, it felt as if I had opened a book by some acclaimed author.
Absolutly beautiful.
Submitted by supadupapupa (user info) at 2005-06-29 23:10:18 EDT (#)
Ranking: 2
you make it so hard...
great story, I cant wait for the next installment
Submitted by knucklesnelson (user info) at 2005-06-29 19:24:57 EDT (#)
Ranking: 2
damn these get better and better
Submitted by Grownasskid (user info) at 2005-06-29 17:22:18 EDT (#)
Ranking: 2
I really love this series, its some kickass story telling. and i didn't see the betrayal coming, but lets bear in mine, i'm dumb as a bag of hammers
Submitted by Jack_McCallum (user info) at 2005-06-29 16:46:26 EDT (#)
Ranking: 2
Okay... I get you.
I'm starting page fucking nine of my next installment. Maybe it's time for me to find a breakpoint as well.
Submitted by thecaes (user info) at 2005-06-29 15:56:29 EDT (#)
Ranking: 0
Heh, well Jack, the next part is over twice as long as this one. It's a pretty solid length of storytelling in that there's not many good places to break it up. It will be up by Friday.
Plus, I admit it, I wanted to leave it on a bit of a cliffhanger.
Submitted by Jack_McCallum (user info) at 2005-06-29 15:49:45 EDT (#)
Ranking: 2
Shitfire, boy!
Fun stuff!
(And I can see that you, like me, actually ENJOY the research you do to back up a story.)
The building was actually designed to take a plane hit. Astounding.
We must be on the same schedule. I have another Smith installment nearly done. Gonna post it today or tomorrow.
MY only complaint... what's this 'too long' shit?
Submitted by OneCheapGeek (user info) at 2005-06-29 15:28:44 EDT (#)
Ranking: 2
Whenever you think you're done with this, you need to do one more....
A Kin named Caesar goes camping in Michigan.....
Submitted by yermom (user info) at 2005-06-29 15:00:40 EDT (#)
Ranking: 2
I haven't read this installation yet, but here is a +2 in the hopes that you are working on the next one and I won't have to wait so long while you're gallavanting about the woods.
Submitted by Revolutionman (user info) at 2005-06-29 14:33:12 EDT (#)
Ranking: 2
ARRRRRRRR!
Submitted by JonnyX (user info) at 2005-06-29 13:58:10 EDT (#)
Ranking: 2
No Comment
Submitted by Yes (user info) at 2005-06-29 13:34:18 EDT (#)
Ranking: 2
that motherfucker...
Submitted by thecaes (user info) at 2005-06-29 13:32:01 EDT (#)
Ranking: 0
Submitted by LadyPlural (user info) at 2005-06-29 13:24:46 (#)
Ranking: 2
Saw that one coming a mile away.
*****************
Heh, it's a delicate balance. You want to surprise the reader, but not just by pulling something out of your ass ("Khalid is really an ALIEN!"). I like when I'm reading something and get to a plot twist that blows me away, only to realize that the signs were there all along. The trick is to not make the clues too obvious or too obscure.
Anyone else see that coming too easily? LadyPlural, did that part of the story bore you or disappoint you?
Submitted by thecaes (user info) at 2005-06-29 13:26:58 EDT (#)
Ranking: 0
Submitted by bob (user info) at 2005-06-29 13:10:34 (#)
Ranking: 2
i pretty much knew all of those facts (obviously not the lightbulbs)
I really like this part although the first two paragraphs started to annoy me.
*********************
Hey bob. I was just trying to get across the notion that the Empire State Building (and by extension, the rest of Manhattan/New York) had been corrupted -- as well as a sense of loss. I wasn't sure how someone from the New York area would take it.
Submitted by LadyPlural (user info) at 2005-06-29 13:24:46 EDT (#)
Ranking: 2
Saw that one coming a mile away.
Submitted by munkeypants (user info) at 2005-06-29 13:23:04 EDT (#)
Ranking: 2
grrr stupid fucking villhelm!
Submitted by nrduncan (user info) at 2005-06-29 13:16:32 EDT (#)
Ranking: 2
No Comment
Submitted by bob (user info) at 2005-06-29 13:10:34 EDT (#)
Ranking: 2
i pretty much knew all of those facts (obviously not the lightbulbs)
I really like this part although the first two paragraphs started to annoy me.
especially the "stabbed the heaven".
but the rest was really good.
Submitted by Kre8rix (user info) at 2005-06-29 13:07:14 EDT (#)
Ranking: 2
Jesus Fuckin Christ on a bike I hate that Vilhelm pussy.
I mean uuhh...yeah
I suppose that it's not a bad thing that I get this engrossed in this story right?
(traitorous bastard)
I mean...great job.
Submitted by JMG114 (user info) at 2005-06-29 13:04:18 EDT (#)
Ranking: 2
Wicked.
Submitted by thecaes (user info) at 2005-06-29 12:55:33 EDT (#)
Ranking: 0
And now some fun facts.
The building rises to 1,250 feet or 381 m at the 102nd floor. The Empire State Building was officially opened on May 1, 1931. Much of the office space went unrented until the 1940s. This lack of inhabitance earned it the nickname "Empty State Building" in its early years. A broadcasting tower added in the 1950s brings the total height to 1,455 feet (443.5 m).
The building weighs approximately 330,000 metric tonnes. The building has 6,500 windows, 73 elevators, and 1,860 steps to the top floor.
The design of the building changed 16 times during planning and construction, but 3,000 workers completed the building's construction in record time: one year and 45 days (1931)including Sundays and holidays. The Empire State Building is composed of 60,000 tons of steel, 200,000 cubic feet of Indiana limestone and granite, 10 million bricks, and 730 tons of aluminum and stainless steel.
How they managed to build such a tall structure in less than two years with 1930 technology is beyond me.
In 1945, a B-25 bomber on its way to Newark Airport in New Jersey crashed into the 79th floor of the Empire State Building. Amazingly, the building suffered only minor damage.
The Empire State Building contains 3,194,547 light bulbs, 50 miles of radiator pipe, 70 miles of water pipe, 1,060 miles of telephone cable, and 7,450 tons of refrigeration equipment.
One hundred tons of trash and waste are removed from the building each month.
The Empire State Building is designed to serve as a lightning rod for the surrounding area. It is struck by lightning about 100 times per year.
Submitted by DonkeyOnTheEdge (user info) at 2005-06-29 12:53:57 EDT (#)
Ranking: 2
WTF EYEM NUT REEDING ULL TAT!
Submitted by thecaes (user info) at 2005-06-29 12:46:05 EDT (#)
Ranking: 0
Before you get mad, I have the next part more or less ready to go. This was just too long to post in one piece. It won't be long before the next one.