Some instinct kicked in, and Cass quickly looked back at the stairs and at the same time brought the jittergun up. There was a soft glow reflecting, and through the gap she saw clawed fingers closing to grip the top stair.
A Weir.
Cass did her best to emulate what she’d seen the others do. She hissed and held up one finger, keeping her eyes on the Weir’s hand she could still see. What was it waiting for?
Wordlessly, Gamble glided over to her side, and Cass pointed at the hand. Gamble shook her head. She couldn’t see it, unlike Cass.
“Spshhhh. Naaaah.”
It didn’t matter.
“Back hall, back hall,” Wick called, and then he was firing, and Cass saw the fingers flex on the stair.
She squeezed the trigger just as the Weir pounced down the steps, and caught it with a full burst before it touched the ground. It landed in a wet heap and slid down the stairs towards her, but in the next instant a second Weir was on the steps, and she fired again. It fell backwards, flailing wildly. Gamble fired a burst from her weapon and the second Weir went still.
Wick was sending a steady but measured stream of death down his hall, pop pop pop pop-pop, and Finn fired two shots out the front.
“Help on the hall,” Wick called, and Sky was there in a second, standing behind Wick’s crouched form and adding his firepower.
Gamble ducked under Cass’s gun and moved up two steps. Then Gamble leaned forward and braced herself with one hand to get a better look up the stairs, and then fired off two quick bursts.
“They’re coming in through the roof!” she called, and then bounded up four more steps.
“Help front,” Finn said.
“Sky moving front,” Sky called, and he dashed across the room. Finn was standing right at the door, calmly firing. Sky slid on his knees and started shooting.
“Cover,” Finn said. He ejected the magazine from his rifle and smoothly replaced it with a fresh one. “I’m up.” And he went right back to firing.
“Back hall,” Wick called again. “I’m low.”
“Cass, help Wick,” Gamble said.
Cass flew across the room and took up a position just as she’d seen Sky do a few moments before, leaning over Wick so she could shoot over top of him without impeding his movement. There were several dead Weir strewn in the hallway, all in awkward positions, and three more were charging towards them.
It was a tight angle. Cass fired and saw the doorframe splinter as the burst from her weapon tore through it and into the first Weir. Wick fired twice, and Cass followed with another burst, dropping the last Weir.
“Cover,” Wick said, “keep it covered, Cass.”
“Covering,” Cass answered. And she killed another Weir that tried to round the corner.
Wick swapped magazines on his weapon and had it back up and running in under two seconds. “I’m up.” He emphasized the point by firing off four rounds and dropping another two Weir. There were enough bodies piled in the hall now that other Weir were stumbling and clambering over their fallen. But still they came, heedless of the death that awaited them.
“Gamble,” Sky called. “Get back where we can see you!”
If she answered, Cass couldn’t hear it over the shrieks of the Weir and the gunfire echoing in the cavernous room. The jittergun was starting to get warm in her hand. She wondered how much ammunition she had left.
“Gamble!” Sky shouted.
“Here!” Gamble answered. Cass glanced at the staircase and saw Gamble backpedaling down the steps, firing controlled bursts the whole way. “We’re gonna lose the stairs!”
“Finn?” Sky said.
“Go!” Finn yelled.
“Sky, moving to stairs!” Sky called, and as he moved to help his wife, he let his rifle drop on its sling and transitioned to his sidearm. Cass couldn’t tell what it was, but it was loud.
“Swoop, we’re in the heat!” Gamble said, still firing her weapon. A Weir tumbled down the stairs and Sky shot it twice more. “Where are you?” Then to Sky, “Back, get back off the stairs!” And then “Swoop, say again!”
Since Cass wasn’t dialed in on the channel, she had no idea what Swoop’s response was. But there was a sudden eruption of gunfire from the front of the building, and Finn gave a little whoop.
“There you go,” Finn yelled. “Get on ’em, son!”
“Check, we’re rolling out front side,” Gamble called. “Front side, watch my ping! Finn, stairs!”
“Finn moving to stairs!” he said, moving instantly and stepping into position as soon as Gamble was clear. Gamble strode across the room, snagged her pack off the floor and threw it over a shoulder. Pulled the boys to their feet, shepherded them towards the front door.