Paris, France
March 8th, 1946
3:36 A.M.
"Where is Eugene? The Leons? Has anyone seen them?" Manon's urgent voice echoed throughout the den. She was only met with dumb glances and groggy shakes of the head.
"Manon, it's 3 in the morning. They're probably asleep somewhere. Calm down." A fighter yawned from his cot. He laid propped upon his elbow as he lazily watched the woman's brisk search.
"Calm down. Calm down? Oh why didn't I think of that. Maybe if I just 'calm down' everything will be alright. No! Dax how am I supposed to calm down when two children and our best reconnaissance man are missing?" Manon snapped, waving her hands.
"Well, I don't know about our best reconnaissance man. Eugene's alright." Dax's accented voice drawled. Manon gave an agitated groan and turned to walk away.
"I don't need your heckling. If no one's going to help me find them, then I will go myself." The woman decided in a huff. She threw on her coat, and reached behind a wall of skulls to brandish a revolver.
"All right, all right. I'll come with you. Settle down." Dax grunted as he left his cot. Stretching, he reached his full height. With his hands extending like the limbs of a great tree, his fingertips effortlessly brushed the roof of the cavern. Manon merely squinted at the giant with eyes that could throw daggers.
"Tell me to calm down one more time, Dax..." She grumbled as she loaded her gun, "This is a very important mission. We are rescuing our own kind. Its not only Moisey we're after, but it's the Leons, too. Children. I cannot fathom how you don't see this as important. Innocent children! And who knows where Eugene is. I don't know why he would lead them astray like this. I bet it was one of his 'practice runs'..." Manon began to ramble. Dax lumbered over to equip his overcoat and slip on his boots as the lady spoke. He grabbed his pistols and a hefty SMG. The giant groggily nodded along to Manon's words while he stood there half asleep.
"Dax? Come on, allons-y! ...Are you asleep again?!" Manon's voice suddenly cracked like lightening. She stormed over to grab the towering Frenchman by the collar. Dax's eyes were closed as he lazily loaded his guns. He opened one to peer down at the fiery woman.
"Wake up, you oaf! What kind of soldier are you if you can't even stay awake to save others?!" Manon yowled as she landed a bitter smack to Dax's ruddy face. The man recoiled with a wince, pushing past her as he began walking. Dax mumbled something in a foreign tongue under his breath. Though it was more than obvious that he had more pep in his step now.
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"Well, where do we look now?" Dax's low voice boomed among the walls of bones. "We've searched for nearly two hours. They have got to be above ground." He turned to Manon. Dax's lantern shone a dramatic light on the woman's stern face. She began to pace once more in thought.
"I told Eugene not to take them above ground. He knows better..." Manon mumbled.
"Does he? Moisey's a rule breaker if you haven't noticed. Always has been. He said that even before the war he was a thief and a pickpocket." Dax sighed as he leaned against the wall of human remains. They creaked in protest against his weight. "Some people just can't be controlled." The man stated as he lit a cigarette.
"But Eugene's smart. That's why he's so good at what he does. He thinks before he does anything, especially around the Leons. Eugene thinks of them as his own kids." Manon thought aloud.
"Well." Dax puffed on his cigarette, "Maybe they just aren't done doing whatever little adventure Moisey had in mind then?"
"No. No, they'd be back by now. They left at around 11 P.M. Eugene said he wanted to show the kids how to 'Walk off sleep' when you're tired."
"That is such a Eugene thing to say." The Romanian snorted with a shake of his head. "The man never sleeps for more than 20 minutes." He exhaled with a swirling cloud of smoke.
"It is. It is..." The woman drawled. "But when Eugene usually says he's going for a walk to keep himself up, it most definitely means that he's going above ground. That has to be where they are." Manon came to a conclusion as she turned to hurry down the corridor.
"Wow. It's almost like I just said that." Dax rolled his eyes. "Huh- Hey! Wait up!" The giant bellowed as he jogged to catch up to Manon. "Manon, we just searched this way. Remember?"
"No, we didn't search everywhere." Manon's running stride came to a halt as she stood in front of a partially collapsed tunnel. A pile of crushed brick and bone blocked the entrance way. Though a small, narrow pathway no more than a foot wide could be seen to the right of the towering rubble.
"This, Dax, is where we need to go."
"Why would they go in there? The entrance is gone." Dax plucked a cracked skull from the rubble. It's hollow sockets glared back at him. "You know, I'm getting real tired of being watched by these dead nemerici all the time. It's not a good morale booster." The Romanian huffed, causing smoke to stream out of his nose like a mighty dragon. Dax took the cigarette from his mouth, smothering it right between the dead man's eyes.
"Eugene always takes a different route than the rest of us to get above ground. He chooses this way so it's harder for the Germans to follow him back to the den." Manon spoke as she squeezed through the small, hidden gap in the rubble. "He says the collapsed tunnel makes him seem like a ghost. The Nazis see the rubble, and just assume he died from the fall or disappeared." The woman dusted herself off before continuing onwards.
"Come on now, Dax. Chop, chop. I need some light over here."
"One problem. There is no way I'm going to fit through... That." Dax stood on the opposite side of the rubble, his muscular frame nearly twice the width of the gap. Manon stopped to look back at him with a sigh.
"Well... There is one other place that Moisey could've left from. Check the eastern drainage system. The one that opens up underneath the train tunnel. He doesn't use that exit very much anymore, but it's a possibility." Manon suggested. "It's a bit of a walk, but it'll be better if we cover all our bases."
"Alright. Can do. We'll rendezvous at the den after our search, then." Dax affirmed with a sharp nod. He reached his arm through the gap to hand Manon his lantern. She quickly ushered it away.
"You take that. I have a few candles on me. Besides, I know these tunnels better than anyone. I've explored them since I was a little girl." Manon showed a slight smile in remembrance.
"If you say so. See you soon." The Romanian saluted before waltzing away. His footsteps could be faintly heard splashing down the flooded corridor that ran horizontal to Manon's. Until finally, all was silent.
Manon reached into her red leather coat. She fumbled around for a few moments before pulling out a small, yellowed wax candle. She brushed her bleached hair back and took a match from behind her ear. With one sweeping motion she flicked it on the heel of her boot and the match quickly sputtered into a lively flame. Manon held it to the candle's wick, watching as it lit. She blew the match out as she began to trek down the dark corridor of the dead.
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"Where is Monsiuer Moisey? He should've come down by now." Adelie asked. She sat staring up at the ladder that lead to the street above.
"I bet that Nazi freak made him get caught." Miguel grumbled as he watched the lantern flicker between them. "He's a German. We shouldn't even be helping him."
"Are all Germans bad?" Adelie asked.
"Of course they are. They hate people like us. Why else would we be hiding down here, Adelaide?" The Leon brother huffed. He scooped up a few rocks, beginning to toss them one by one into the darkness.
"Yeah. I guess you're right..." The girl murmured, hugging her knees as they sat against the wall. She was worried. It had to have been hours since they returned to the catacombs. Moisey should've been right behind them. What was taking him so long?
"I bet that Nazi told his parents to send Moisey away to one of the camps." Miguel predicted as he got up and threw a pebble particularly hard.
"Moisey's going camping now too?"
"He's never going to come back from this camping trip." Another slung stone ticked and tocked down the dark corridor.
"But he'll see Mama and Papa then, right?"
"Yeah, in heaven maybe." Two more angry pebbles tossed.
"What do you mean? Is Monsieur Moisey dead? Mama and Papa are.... are dead?"
"Duh. Of course they are. Germans kill people like us for fun." One stone tossed . "They killed Mama." Another stone. "Papa." Yet another. "Moisey." Two more rocks were wrathfully hurled into the abyss.
"No! No no no! No they didn't! Moisey said they're not dead! Moisey is alive too!" Adelie stood up as she started to cry in disbelief. Tears ran down her little face. She shoved her brother in a turmoiled rage. Miguel didn't budge. He stared straight ahead. His own eyes welling with tears.
"They'll kill everyone. They don't care. They want us all to die. Moisey was right, we're just like rats!" Miguel used all his might to hurl a rock into the darkness. Except, this time there was no clatter of it hitting the floor. Both Leon's froze. Adelie tried to control her sobs.
The stone was tossed back at them. It tumbled to a halt against Miguel's boot.
"No one is dead. Yet, at least." Manon stepped out from the shadows. With arms wide open, she invited the children into a hug.
"Manon? What are you doing here?" Miguel questioned, his voice muffled against Manon's coat.
"The question is what are you two doing down here all alone. It sounds like you have gotten separated from Monsieur Moisey, correct?" Manon let go of the siblings. Miguel stepped away, but Adelie did not. She still clung to Manon's side, wiping at her tears in silence.
"There, there, Adelaide. It's alright. We'll find Moisey. Don't listen to your brother. Nothing brings the mighty Moisey down, right?" The lady reassured with a smile. She pat Adelie's head, but paused a moment. Manon felt something on the child's head. A hat. Since when did Adelie wear hats?
"Is that Moisey's cap? Why do you have that, Adelaide?"
"He put it on her when she got scared earlier." Miguel answered. Adelaide peeked up at Manon from underneath the battered cap.
"Right... Well, hold onto that. That's his favorite. It was his father's, so it's very old." Manon eyed the oversized hat resting upon the child's dark, curly hair. She gave a sigh as she walked over to the ladder. Her eyes following its rungs into the black wonder above. She ran a hand through her hair in thought.
"I'm assuming he was supposed to come down from this way, huh?" She asked. The Cubs nodded.
"How long has it been since you last saw Monsieur Moisey?"
"Hours. It feels like it's been forever." Miguel gave a defeated shrug.
"What were you doing up there?"
"Borrowing things without asking." Adelie piped up, she took a small can of corn from her coat to show Mama Manon. The woman gave a frustrated sigh.
"You are too young for stealing. Moisey knows how dangerous it is for you two to be doing that."
"It sure is. We ran into two Nazis and a dog." Miguel stated.
"And a ghost!" Adelie chimed in.
"Mon Dieu! What is wrong with that man?! Two Nazis and a dog? You two could've been captured. Eugene could've been ki-.... I mean, arrested." Manon furiously blurted out. She now tugged at her hair in agitation.
"And the ghost. Don't forget the ghost, Mama Manon." Adelie added. She was trying her best to be helpful.
"Right. The ghost, too. Thank you Adelaide. Whatever that means, I'm sure it's not good."
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Dax wandered down the long, dark corridor with lantern in hand. The flickering light illuminating the thousands of deceased souls lining the walls of the catacombs. The man casually reached over to pick a femur from a pile. He began to lazily drag it across the wall of skulls as he lumbered along. The femur danced across the hollow bones. Each skull creating a satisfying, though morbid, xylophone effect. Tonk, tonk, tonk went the remains, and splosh, splish, splash, went his boots as he walked along the flooded path.
Dax began to whistle an old folk song while he trudged through the flooded tunnel. His thoughtless tune was sent echoing through the caverns. It almost sounded like Dax had an entire choir with him. The sounds of his whistling and boney xylophone rang and repeated throughout the underground graves. The acoustic voices of the past were singing with him. It reminded him of home. A place far from France. Romania.
The giant smiled in satisfaction at the songful noise he was making . Dax thought he had sounded pretty swell. That was one good thing about the catacombs. They were fantastic for song. It reminded Dax of his days as a traveling musician. Oh, how badly he missed it. Nowadays he felt like a songbird in a cage. He could no longer travel the world and play for crowds. No, now he had to stay trapped underground in shame.
Dax casually bopped his head to the echoed tune as he waltzed along the eastern drainage system. That is, until a new sound entered his chorus. The Romanian's joyful noise quickly halted to a stop. Silence surrounded Dax. He paused as he listened to a distant, sloshing sound. This was no echo, the man was certain, for it seemed to be getting closer. Someone else was traveling down the same flooded tunnel, and they were heading straight towards him.
"Who is there?" Dax gruffly called out. His voice reverberating against the water as he spoke. No answer. The splashing footsteps kept coming at him.
"I said, who's there? Eugene? Is that you?" The giant held his lantern up, hoping to beat away more darkness. He squinted into the abyss before him.
In response, a single, raspy croak came from the darkness. Dax's hair stood on end. He grabbed a pistol from his hip as he began to slowly walk forwards. The footsteps were now dangerously close.
"Who is there?! Show yourself! I don't have time for games!" The Romanian commanded. The crisp kur-click of the pistol's hammer rang through the corridor as Dax cocked his weapon.
Another gurgled response moaned from the curtain of shadows. The hunched outline of a man came into view as it limped towards Dax's light. The shadow seemed to be carrying something. The Romanian's eyes slowly adjusted.
"Eugene? What the hell is wrong with you?! This is no time for pranks. I could've shot you! Why didn't you just say it was y-" Dax's scolding abruptly stopped as Monsieur Moisey fully stepped into view.
Shredded clothes haphazardly hang from the Rat's body. His flesh was crimson red with a hint of white skin underneath. Moisey's throat had been viciously tore at. Blood poured from the wound with each wheezing breath he took. A piece of cloth was haphazardly tied around his neck in an attempt to stop the bleeding. It was obvious the entire left side of Moisey's face had been ripped into. Eugene's jaw was slacked open from the tears, and his ear hung on by a thin strip of skin. In his arms dangled the limp body of the Aryan ghost.
The boy seemed to be in a state of shock. He drifted in and out of consciousness. Bloodied bite marks marred his limbs where more hastily made tourniquets clung. The metal brace on his leg was twisted and broken. Moisey wordlessly pushed the ghost into Dax's arms before collapsing. He braced himself against the wall of the tunnel.
"Dumnezeul meu... What happened?!" Dax cried out. He quickly holstered his weapon and attached the lantern to his belt before gingerly taking the boy from Eugene. "We need to get both of you back to the den immediately. Do you think you can make it?" The giant spoke urgently.
Moisey's bloodshot eyes stared at him while he rested against the cold, wet wall. His ruptured windpipe wheezed between each painful breath. A shaky hand rose to his torn mouth to wipe both blood and drool away. Moisey slowly nodded. Dax returned the affirmative motion with an unsure expression. He stepped near to let the wounded fighter hold onto him. Moisey's weakened hands clung tightly to Dax's shoulder as he sluggishly limped along.
"Eugene, I don't know what you did, or who this kid is, but I'm so glad to see you alive." Dax uttered. He glanced from Eugene, then down at the child in his arms. "Even if we have our differences, I gotta hand it to you. You are one stubborn son of a bitch." Moisey weakly choked out a gurgled, rasping chuckle.