Team of Seven Heroes Shorts Tales 1; Chapter 19 & 20

Descent into Hell

19.

The locals call the weather most times, grey and gloomy or ‘dreich’. It was also raining which the highlands were deemed one of the wettest in that region. Due to the mountainous terrain, the warm, wet air forced upwards may caused clouds near to the hills.  It was cold and wet unlike the Frontier, it was hot and dry but the path there were treacherous slippery paths. Watson could see the trail left by the lady who did something more; she broke branches for him to descend. It was not far when he reached the bottom.

“You are a mad man to follow me.” Sushila was seen standing there with parts of her clothing torn and her limbs with cuts. She still held onto the hook with the cloth around the handle to hold a firmer lock.

“You are a crazy lady to climb down but you left me a trail I could follow. Without breaking my bones.” Watson sat on the green foliage there. His limping leg hurt more than his pride. He was not as fit when he was back at the Frontier. He thought the last few days would have made him fitter, but it was the reversed; he was exhausted.

“I have to complete my task. I am of the Guild. We are never to fail.”

“For love too?” Watson heaved the reply.

“For love? There is no place for love in my life. I am an assassin.” Sushila replied. “We are all orphans of love.”

“Then you won’t be missed.” The voice came from another person. Watson looked over to the right and saw the soldier there. He was holding the rifle aimed at Sushila.

“Never thought I will meet one of you here.” The rifleman voiced out while he sized Sushila. “You are ugly.”

“Corporal, you will stand down. She is not your enemy.” Watson drew rank.

“Clam it, Doctor. We were briefed.” The Corporal looked at the doctor. “You are not on my side. Don’t make me do it. I kill easily. I am a sniper.”

Doctor Watson looked at the sniper. He knew what killing was all about. He had seen how it was done, when his healing skills failed to prevent it. He had done it with the pistol. He had done it with his daggers. He had killed more than once with his hands.

They all died before him.

“You don’t know what killing is about.” Doctor Watson looked at the Corporal. “She does.”

The hook came like a dagger; an oversized one. The blunt side of the hook slammed into the Corporal’s left hand holding the barrel. The rifle fell downwards, and it was then Watson did what he had trained for.

The dagger tossed by the Doctor impacted into the throat.

Corporal Wallace died clutching his throat.

“We move on. The faster we do this, the less life we will take.” Sushila within herself stepped forward to pick up the hook. She looked at the dagger and then reached to pull it out. She handed it to the Doctor.

“I will keep the rifle.”

Corporal Smith reported to the Major. He reported that Corporal Wallace was in pursuit.

“She must be crazy to attempt that. Your mates’ survival was four out of five climbers. The last one will never walk.” Major Turnbull made his statement. “I want the men on that cliff. They are crazy and expect the worse.”

“Major, I am back in full strength.” That was a Corporal Leighton giving the update then. “We are back to nine recruits and one officer. I am missing Corporal Wallace.”

“Wallace is in the ravine. He is in pursuit of the enemies.” Major Turnbull told the Corporal. “I want you to guard the Mullah. If he is compromised, shoot him.”

With that, Major Turnbull turned to the issue on his mind. He signalled Corporal Smith over.

“I can’t wait. You are one of the better ones. You done the descend more than once. You saved …”

“I will go. Wallace is my mate.” Corporal Smith ran off to fetch the ropes and hooks. He was going down to help his mate. That made the Hidden Ones tougher than others.

In the ravine, Sushila looked up the cliff. She knew the descent was easier than the climb. She studied the terrains and paced up and down the place. Watson was still recovering from his ordeal of the descent. She then approached the Doctor.

“The men trained here. They know the terrain. If they do, they will know the easy way up or down. They had to for they need to pull those injured out. No one trained unprepared.” Sushila looked to the dead soldier. “He found us quick.”

Watson was still listening when Sushila took off down the ravine bottom. She was back trailing from where the soldier had emerged from. The path was not any safer or treacherous for a hiking walk, but the lady was used to the rough terrain. She looked for signs and broken trail. She saw then the descending soldier. He was rappelling by the rope line.

So, there was a safe path.

Sushila was there to wait.

It did not take long. Or time did not matter when you are anxious.

“I am not going to wait here.” Mullah of Sartor was agitated. The soldier assigned to him looked old enough to know the drills, but he was more experienced than them. He had gone dark on the tasks for over twenty years; he was becoming the best. His real name was Desmond Bradley; his mother was Persian. He became a soldier and then went into dark tasks. He built his cover five years ago from a dead religious officer. He became Saidullah Ibrahim, then to Saidullah the Sartor, or the Mullah of Mastun. He was called the Mad Fakir by the Empire; the same masters he served. They nicknamed him that to build his image, and it worked. He gotten the attention of the other rebel leaders. He managed to get them into the gun sight or the isolated cells. Or the unmarked graves or fed to the crows.

Either way, the Mullah was untraceable.

Until the Guild found out. He was then hunted, and he ran for home.

London was home, but he was followed there.

Then he was set to be imprisoned in the castle.

“Mullah, we are safe here.” The other man heard the soldier. He felt safer in the Frontier. If only he had never agreed to the human slavery cell. It was damned greed and it retributed back to him.

It was God’s retribution.

20.

Corporal Smith lowered the rifle he unslung from his chest. He then pulled off the gloves he used to rappel down. He then looked to the lady standing there with the rifle levelled at him. He knew the score.

“Who are you?” Corporal Smith asked. He was brief that there were three killers on the pursuit for the Mullah. He was also told that one was a lady. A foreigner. He had seen them before. He was in the Frontier for over a year before he was posted to the Southern Continent and then back to London. He had been around, but he was never prepared for the death threats. They are intimidating.

“I know you have a code of conduct. A code which I can asked for.” Corporal Smith dropped the belt holding the Webley and dagger. “I want the fight. I am a soldier.”

Sushila lowered the rifle. She heard the soldier. She knew the code and the need to go down fighting. It was all on them from training to the killing fields; you go on killing or be killed. She took out the Webley and dagger to lowered it to the ground.

“We fight bare.” Corporal Smith talked to her. “Like in the Frontier. No submission. Only one walks away.”

Corporal Smith learned his pugilistic skills since he was nine when he knocked out the bully’s front tooth. He lost two more tooth, but it was a victory of sort. He went on to learn how not to lose more tooth. He learned the street fight moves, the Savate, the unrefined then art named the Defendu which was later to deployed as basic hands to hands fighting for British soldiers. It was a derived from the eastern martial skill and focus on the attack instead of defence. It was also known as the Gutter Fighting or the Fairbairn System.

The art of bare knuckle fighting was to get into it dirty and bloodied.

“I am no gentleman in a fist fight.” Corporal Smith rushed forth with his arms levelled to the chest. He swung out with the right fist at the lady which she deflected with a right arm block, and saw the left fist aimed at her midriff. She stepped back and blocked that with the right arm. The Corporal turned his body and went with the left arm swinging in for the outside right forearm. The impact numbed her right forearm and she stepped back. The Corporal went with the left leg for her right knee but missed it. Sushila retreated a few steps to give her space to move on her attack. She then lunged in with a right leg swinging at the Corporal which he blocked but he missed the left hand jabbed into his right side of the ribs. The pain jarred him to lower his arms and the lady went in with the rebound right kick at the face.

“You fight well, bitch.” Corporal Smith picked himself up from the ground. “I am not a gentleman.”

Corporal Smith charged at her with the body slam and they went down on the ground with him raining punches onto her. She could not stop the punches but did her own in retaliation. She got one fist into the throat and caused the Corporal to roll off her. The lady rolled to the other end, and then laid there heaving her breath. She was hit on the face and chest, with the pains screaming to shear her soul out. She felt the tears welled up in her eye’ but she was not giving in to it.

Sushila will fight on. She sat up and looked at her adversary. He was also seated up and like her, feeling out his pain. He met her stare and then stood up with his hands levelled up.

“Shall we?” The Corporal gave out the invitation. The lady rushed at the Corporal and they both went down again. It was not a fight, but a wrestling bout then. Sushila felt the fist into her left shoulder and caused her to fall back. They have been exchanging blows a few rounds and her right eye was swollen. The soldier packed a solid left paw and he was limping from the bad right knee courtesy of her among other bruises. She clenched her right fist and waited.

“I could kill you.” The soldier told her. “You won’t be the first lady I killed.”

Sushila bit her lower lip and then rushed in. She went for his extended left arm to block her approach, but she was prepared for it. Her right fist went at the elbow joint and broke the bones. The soldier reeled backwards and the lady went forward with the fist at the chest; fist clenched and then the fingers extended to the knuckles and the jab went in for the heart. Corporal Smith went down and then rolled over. Sushila went in on the kill. She went down hard on the right knee onto the left thigh of the soldier before she chopped down with the right hand on the throat. It was what they taught her at the Guild.

And only one walks away.

“Must you do that?” Watson stepped out. “I mean you could had stopped and still win.”

The lady ignored the Doctor and retrieved her belt and rifle. She was past listening. The Doctor crouched to look at the soldier. He knew the signs were there; the soldier was dead. He saw her walking to the ravine side. He saw then the rope. She was climbing.

So was himself.

“Corporal Leighton, I want a Webley.” The Mullah looked to the soldier. “I can shoot.”

“Sir, there are no orders for you to be armed.” Corporal Leighton looked at the one he was assigned to guard. He heard of the Mullah. A bad assed which was supposed to be on dark tasks. He was acceptable with that but he had a pondering question.

“Why…No, what were those ladies doing there?”

“Ladies? Oh, you meant those …. whores? They are. I am not the one who brought them. I sell them.” It was then the fist came. The Mullah went down on the flooring.

“They are ladies, guynor.” The Corporal lashed out. “When have we became …managing them? Don’t you have a mother or a sister?”

“I am an officer by rank. I hold the rank of Lieutenant. I do not know my mother; I was dumped into the services.” The Mullah explained. “I was named Desmond Bradley after the guardian there. We were all named after him. I joined the Army and worked my way up. I have no other life. Or other care.”

Corporal Leighton reached his right hand out and it was then the Mullah pushed the hand away to reach for the Webley on the Corporal’s belt. It came loose and then the Mullah had it in his left hand. He fired the pistol into the Corporal groin. He fired once more into the chest.

Death surround all of them.

It was not them.

It was their namesake.

The Mullah then picked himself up and changed into the soldier’s uniform. He then raced to the doorway. He was headed for the escape doorway that will lead him to the cliff where he was shown the rope to climb down. He had survived many attempts on his life based on his own instinct. He will do so that time and escape.

He was the survivor among killers.

So was the doctor. He was a few feet behind the lady. He paced himself behind her and not looking down. He was going to complete the task.

He was going to finish the last task as the killer.