17-02-2020, 02:14 AM
Mander nodded. Then turned back to the situation at hand. Through the now shattered smoked-glass doors of the theater, they could see flashlight beams shining toward them. Mander looked out the door. He saw the beams coming from the end of the tunnel where La Policia had been fighting. Seeing that it was safe, he motioned for Helen to come out into the alcove.
"It's La Contessa!" She shouted. "If anyone can hear me after that, we took care of the others for you!"
"Si, Contessa!" A voice down the hall called. "La Policia! You're safe to come out."
"Tell me if you're lying!" Helen commanded.
"No!" The officer called back.
"Ok," she told Mander. "Used the Thing; Guy's not lying." She stepped into the illumination of their lights and the emergency lighting tracks along the bottoms of the walls. Bits of burning wreckage lit her from behind and she motioned for Mander to emerge. They made their way through the debris and over the Nazi corpses, Mander stopping to collect the Uzi and magazines off the body along the way.
"Any injuries?" The officer she'd been talking to asked as they picked their way through the new obstacle course in the once clear corridor.
"None here." She called back, close enough to no longer need to shout. "We saw one of you get hit..."
The officer interrupted.
"Si." He replied. "They got him with three rounds. Vest stopped the bullets from penetrating, but his ribs are broken. Some of the crew are reporting injuries from falling stones."
Helen looked behind the four officers and saw Larry Compton and the rest had left the set and come toward the noise, using their phones as flashlights. She put away her gun and turned off her own phone, with which she'd been doing the same.
"Save your batteries, whoever's low." She told the group. "Nobody's going to get a signal down here and we can't be sure how long we'll be; we may need that light later. I charged on the way here, so anyone else who's good, share your light with the others so they can save it." She looked over all the actors in costume, noting the ones whose costumes matched the ones they'd just killed. Some had been "killed" in the scene already and had bloody squib holes on their uniforms. Helen found a fallen boulder big and stable enough to stand on and did so, addressing the hall.
* * *
"Well," Helen said, clasping her hands and with her most Delighted-To-Meet-You smile once she stood on the boulder and had everyone's attention. "This WASN'T the on-set intro that I was hoping for. Some of you are meeting me for the first time, so let me begin by introducing myself. I'm Contessa Helena de San Finzione, ruler of the country that we're currently under. However, let me assure you that my rule also extends BELOW our lovely country that you'll be returning to soon; some for proper medical treatment. Although the entrance tunnel we all came through has collapsed, let me make it clear that our situation is only temporary. The authorities know you're down here and they know I'm down here with you. People are on the other side of that pileup and are figuring out how to get us out of here even now. And soon, because I vowed just this morning that you would all be safe, and no fucking Nazi is going to make me break it. Therefore, if you all listen to me, we can all get out of here. And since I don't need a Corporal Hicks freaking everyone out or a 'who's in charge' debate, you WILL all stay calm and do what I say."
The command got through to everyone except Mander, whom she didn't have to address it towards, so she didn't.
"Now, first priorities: Tell me if you're working with Dietz." When everyone said no, she told them to forget and moved on. The small crowd was easy enough for her to control. "OK. We just killed five REAL Nazis before they killed all of you. There may be more than one group. If there are, their guns ALSO won't be loaded with blanks." She pointed to a Policia officer and a group of extras carrying MP-40s, the same sub-machine gun that the Nazis, except the one packing the Uzi, had been using.
"Give your guns to the officers." She addressed the cop. "Check the bodies for ammo. They were planning a massacre; they'd have brought enough bullets to be sure everyone got their share. We have six pistols and the Uzi Mander picked up for defense. You've been watching the actors handle guns all morning; if you think anyone can handle the real deal, more armed defenders would be better. Get them out of those uniforms, too. If there's more, they'll probably also be dressed as Nazis. We need to be able to tell who's who."
They went to carry out their orders. She turned back to the actors.
"There are other entrances to these caverns besides the tourists' entrance, but none close by. That explosion wasn't big enough to reach them. They're locked for safety reasons, but they're not sealed. Rescue workers will be getting them open as a Plan B to reach us. It'll take them a while, but they're on their way. The nearest one I know of is too far away to try to lead all these people to with nothing but flashlights and my memory to guide us. The lines that bring power down here were crushed. For obvious reasons, we power things down here with electricity, so there were no gas lines to rupture. Oxygen isn't a concern. Once the cops get back and we're well-protected, you can get everyone back to the set. That's where they'll come looking for everyone and I imagine you've got generators and lighting set up. This was a battle scene, if there wasn't a doctor on set, you've got a first aid person. Anyone else with some training, find that person and help them triage."
The others took in her words. Establishing that it was safe, Helen pulled a cigarette from her undamaged case and lit it before continuing. As they moved, she looked around the group some more.
"It's La Contessa!" She shouted. "If anyone can hear me after that, we took care of the others for you!"
"Si, Contessa!" A voice down the hall called. "La Policia! You're safe to come out."
"Tell me if you're lying!" Helen commanded.
"No!" The officer called back.
"Ok," she told Mander. "Used the Thing; Guy's not lying." She stepped into the illumination of their lights and the emergency lighting tracks along the bottoms of the walls. Bits of burning wreckage lit her from behind and she motioned for Mander to emerge. They made their way through the debris and over the Nazi corpses, Mander stopping to collect the Uzi and magazines off the body along the way.
"Any injuries?" The officer she'd been talking to asked as they picked their way through the new obstacle course in the once clear corridor.
"None here." She called back, close enough to no longer need to shout. "We saw one of you get hit..."
The officer interrupted.
"Si." He replied. "They got him with three rounds. Vest stopped the bullets from penetrating, but his ribs are broken. Some of the crew are reporting injuries from falling stones."
Helen looked behind the four officers and saw Larry Compton and the rest had left the set and come toward the noise, using their phones as flashlights. She put away her gun and turned off her own phone, with which she'd been doing the same.
"Save your batteries, whoever's low." She told the group. "Nobody's going to get a signal down here and we can't be sure how long we'll be; we may need that light later. I charged on the way here, so anyone else who's good, share your light with the others so they can save it." She looked over all the actors in costume, noting the ones whose costumes matched the ones they'd just killed. Some had been "killed" in the scene already and had bloody squib holes on their uniforms. Helen found a fallen boulder big and stable enough to stand on and did so, addressing the hall.
* * *
"Well," Helen said, clasping her hands and with her most Delighted-To-Meet-You smile once she stood on the boulder and had everyone's attention. "This WASN'T the on-set intro that I was hoping for. Some of you are meeting me for the first time, so let me begin by introducing myself. I'm Contessa Helena de San Finzione, ruler of the country that we're currently under. However, let me assure you that my rule also extends BELOW our lovely country that you'll be returning to soon; some for proper medical treatment. Although the entrance tunnel we all came through has collapsed, let me make it clear that our situation is only temporary. The authorities know you're down here and they know I'm down here with you. People are on the other side of that pileup and are figuring out how to get us out of here even now. And soon, because I vowed just this morning that you would all be safe, and no fucking Nazi is going to make me break it. Therefore, if you all listen to me, we can all get out of here. And since I don't need a Corporal Hicks freaking everyone out or a 'who's in charge' debate, you WILL all stay calm and do what I say."
The command got through to everyone except Mander, whom she didn't have to address it towards, so she didn't.
"Now, first priorities: Tell me if you're working with Dietz." When everyone said no, she told them to forget and moved on. The small crowd was easy enough for her to control. "OK. We just killed five REAL Nazis before they killed all of you. There may be more than one group. If there are, their guns ALSO won't be loaded with blanks." She pointed to a Policia officer and a group of extras carrying MP-40s, the same sub-machine gun that the Nazis, except the one packing the Uzi, had been using.
"Give your guns to the officers." She addressed the cop. "Check the bodies for ammo. They were planning a massacre; they'd have brought enough bullets to be sure everyone got their share. We have six pistols and the Uzi Mander picked up for defense. You've been watching the actors handle guns all morning; if you think anyone can handle the real deal, more armed defenders would be better. Get them out of those uniforms, too. If there's more, they'll probably also be dressed as Nazis. We need to be able to tell who's who."
They went to carry out their orders. She turned back to the actors.
"There are other entrances to these caverns besides the tourists' entrance, but none close by. That explosion wasn't big enough to reach them. They're locked for safety reasons, but they're not sealed. Rescue workers will be getting them open as a Plan B to reach us. It'll take them a while, but they're on their way. The nearest one I know of is too far away to try to lead all these people to with nothing but flashlights and my memory to guide us. The lines that bring power down here were crushed. For obvious reasons, we power things down here with electricity, so there were no gas lines to rupture. Oxygen isn't a concern. Once the cops get back and we're well-protected, you can get everyone back to the set. That's where they'll come looking for everyone and I imagine you've got generators and lighting set up. This was a battle scene, if there wasn't a doctor on set, you've got a first aid person. Anyone else with some training, find that person and help them triage."
The others took in her words. Establishing that it was safe, Helen pulled a cigarette from her undamaged case and lit it before continuing. As they moved, she looked around the group some more.
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