David Presley - Rise of the Undead 1943

Matty indicates the right branch of the intersection, “They didn’t go this way.”

Monte looks to him, “You sure?”

“I’m standing here, ain’t I?” Matty says defiantly.

All eyes turn to the left.

“Johnson, go check it out,” Monte orders.

“Hell with that.”

“Oddball, go with him.”

Oddball looks around scared, “But we don’t even… I mean… Jesus, Sarge.”

“I’ll go,” Pilch volunteers.

“Yeah, he’ll go,” Oddball whines

Monte glares at him, “I gave you an order.”

“Come on Sarge, Pilch’ll go; he’s more reliable anyway.”

Pilch pulls out his flashlight and moves into the darkness.

Johnson watches Pilch walk away and sighs, “Best if I go with ’em,” and follows.

Monte turns to Matty, “Put those god-damn grenades away.”

The water is up to Lewis’ neck; he fumbles with his flashlight and the breaching charge, takes a deep breath, and dives underwater. He places the charge on the door, pulls the fuse, and comes back to the surface. He shines his light down the tunnel, something moves.

“Bless me father for I have sinned,” he fires into the darkness.

The fuse burns underwater, bubbles rising to the surface.

Lewis speaks in Arabic, “May peace and God go with you.”

He fires again. The water is almost to the top of the tunnel, Lewis has to turn his head to breathe.

He starts a Hindu prayer chant. The water is inches from the top. Lewis continues his chant, only to be silenced by the water covering his mouth. He holds his breath and frantically looks around with his flashlight. His eyes go wide with fear as two Germans swim up to him; he tries to draw his knife, but they grab him, pushing him toward the breeching charge. He looks back at it and struggles. They swim him down and push him onto the charge holding him tightly in place.

Pilch and Johnson emerge from the dark corridor into a small room. Crude cots line the walls. A metal grate sits in the middle of the floor. A muffled explosion knocks dust from the ceiling and water splashes up from beneath the grate. Yusif stands over a headless body of a German solider that’s still twitching.

Johnson looks at the river of blood running from the corpse and into the grate, “God almighty.”

Pilch turns on Yusif, “Hey. Someone tell you to go running off on your own?”

Yusif ignores him, wiping his scimitar off on the corpse.

“You hear me?” Pilch demands.

Yusif puts his scimitar away, saying nothing.

Pilch takes a step toward him, “Hey, I’m talking to you.”

Yusif looks to him, “And I am ignoring you.”

They stare each other down.

Johnson tries to break it up, “No other doors or exits?”

“No,” Yusif answers, eyes still locked on Pilch.

“Then come on, we should get back,” Johnson tells them.

Pilch waits for Yusif and Johnson to pass and then falls in behind them.

“Where the hell’s your friend?” Pilch asks.

A hand grips the metal bars from below as they leave.

Oddball looks at a life-sized drawing of an ancient warrior painted on the wall. The chest cavity is opened up, and there’s no heart.

Matty walks up behind him, “That had to hurt.”

Oddball doesn’t hear him, his eyes slowly growing wider looking at the split open chest of the victim in the picture. He can hear the ripping of flesh and the wet pops as the chest is forced open. He shivers at the sounds of the victims gurgling screams of agony.

Yusif, Pilch, and Johnson arrive back at the intersection. Pilch shoves Oddball knocking him out of his trance, “What’s the matter with you?”

Oddball looks to him, horror in his eyes. Pilch looks to Matty and then to Oddball, unsure what is going on.

Monte turns on Yusif, “Where the hell did you run off to?”

Pilch turns from Oddball to Monte, “I asked the little pecker-head; he wouldn’t say squat.”

“Well?”

Yusif locks eyes with Monte but says nothing.

“See what I mean, like he’s a fucking mute,” Pilch says shaking his head.

Yusif takes in a deep breath and sighs, “I did not see any point in standing around squabbling like school girls.”

Oddball looks to him, “Ohhh, I guess this kind of shit happens to you everyday!”

“He chopped some Jerry’s head clean off, too,” Johnson says.

“Fucking savage,” Pilch mutters.

Monte sighs, “Just let somebody know next time.”

Yusif nods, “I believe the rest of the Germans are still inside.”

“Well let ’em stay here. I don’t care,” Oddball cries out.

Pilch nods in agreement, “Damn straight.”

“Pilch, shut your damn mouth!” Monte snaps.

Monte and Pilch glare at each other. Some of the other men nod in agreement. Pilch walks away, eyeing Yusif.

“Where’s Camir?” Monte asks.

Yusif points to the tunnel that Matty said no one went down.

“How the hell?” Matty exclaims and turns to look into the darkness.

“What we gonna do, Sarge?” Clint asks quietly.

“Anything down that way?” Monte asks.

Pilch shakes his head, “Dead end.”

“Then, we ain’t got much choice.”

“What? No! Why not stay here? The Army’ll come and get us,” Oddball pleads.

Monte shakes his head.

“But Lewis and Smith, they’ll tell ’em where we are,” Oddball continues.

“We don’t even know if they’re alive,” Monte tells him.

Panicked, Oddball looks around the dark corridor, “But…”

“No! We move,” Monte barks.

“I hate to say it, but Oddball has a point,” Johnson says coolly.

Monte puts his hand on the butt of his pistol and glares at the men, “Anyone questioning my orders?”

No one speaks. Johnson spits on the floor while glaring at him.

Yusif steps forward, “I will lead.”

Monte grabs his arm, stopping him, “I’d feel better with one of my men doing it.”

Yusif shakes his grip loose, “Camir has already gone this way. I will lead.”

“God-damn-it, I’m in charge here!” Monte shouts.

Yusif smiles, “Well, of course you are, Sergeant,” and bows his head, letting Monte lead them into the tunnel.

Smith is under the grate, pushing hard to break it free his face barely able to get out of the water for air, “Come on, you bastard.” He works harder, struggling to get a good hold as blood runs from the headless German corpse and onto his face, “Guys! Hey, guys!”

Monte leads them though an intricately carved tunnel. Strange symbols adorn the walls, crude drawings of women warriors, hooded priests, and human sacrifice. Camir waits in front of a headless German corpse, scimitar in hand. Yusif looks at him; Camir shrugs with a smile.

“Only one?” Monte asks.

Pilch looks at the head, “What the fuck?”

It’s the German with the scared face.

Monte looks to him, “What?”

“I shot that guy.”

Monte looks to the head, “Seems you missed.”

“No, before up top…”

A screaming German soldier emerges from the darkness running toward them at full speed. He slams into Pilch, and they both fall to the ground. Pilch rolls on top of the struggling German and pins him down, “Crazy Kraut.”

The German looks up at Pilch as he continues screaming his feet kicking as he tries to run.

“Jeez, shut ’em up,’ Oddball says.

Pilch punches him in the jaw and he stops screaming, looks into Pilchs’ eyes and then stops moving. Pilch checks for a pulse, “He’s dead.”

Monte kneels and looks him over.

Oddball looks to Pilch, “You didn’t have to kill him?”

“I only hit him.”

Monte checks for wounds, “He ain’t shot.”