At the last they unbuckled their belts and their weapons and threw them aside. Then they plunged through the entrances in a flood, armed with only knives and clubs.
Meanwhile, Ato’s guns were going out. The last became a white torch when a magnesium blob struck it.
The side-arms were all gone.
They fought now with sword and knife.
Jack Odin felt a heavy hand upon his arm. Gunnar was at his side. “It is even as I foretold you, Nors-King. The weapons are all gone. Stay close by Gunnar’s side now. We will fight together, as we fought before. Eh, they are coming up from underground like ants. I think we have lost the advantage. Hagen’s dead lie thick, though. And now it is our turn. The old swords and the swinging chant. Ah, Old Blood-Drinker will not be thirsty tonight. Brace yourself. Here comes the first assault.”
And with his huge short legs spread wide apart, Gunnar swung his broadsword. The first wave of attackers went down like ripe wheat. Gunnar and Odin cut their way through them, and came out against a smoking hedge. Behind them, Ato and his Lorens strewed the streets with dead.
Gunnar and Odin went through a hole in the hedge. A defender was making for it from the other side, and Gunnar broke the man’s neck. Clinging to the thin shadow of the hedge they moved forward, killing as they went.