A New Beginning...
Okay, as promised. May work it a little better later on, but i think this is a good start.
The Newberry Ornithological Society Exotic Flower Show and Benefit Gala was Lady Lin Staffordshire's yearly miserable joy. Hundreds of experts in the fields of Horticulture, Ornithology, Zoology, many upper crust academics, and dozens of special guests would be arriving soon. The societal contacts Lin had gleaned over a lifetime had paid off year after year in contributions to the Newberry Special Trust accounts. Hundreds of thousands of sterling pounds poured in yearly to fund the following years rescues, researches, and expenses.
As always she was a titter of pleasingly plump, if amazingly tireless, action. Organization was her slave and she used it mercilessly as a tool to pry open the purses and cheque books. Not only of the members, but the London Academy of Science and the feather wearing fashion chits of London's Academia Elites. The fact that Lady Staffordshire had a distant relationship to the Crown helped tremendously and was a feather in her own hat.
“James?” Lin's voice echoed slightly across the large, cavernous room as she walked toward him. Her heels clicked adding a staccato beat to her sashay. “We've half an hour before the opening speeches by Lord Andrew Milford, Professor Brian Tucker, and I believe Lady Clair Thompson if I am correct. “ she looked at her list. “Yes, I am. So please be a dear and make sure the doors are closed and locked to the atrium between the ballrooms so we don't have uninvited guests.” Lin informed Colonel James Collingsworth (Retired), formerly of the Royal Scots Army Research and Development Commission. He was an older gentleman with short brown hair, a prominent handlebar mustache, a stinging wit, and preferred a good scotch and cigar to the usual sherry or tea.
“Yes, Miss Kitteh.” He'd called her that since University. A nickname that stuck as she was very found of cats. He stopped just comfortably a pace away. ”I suppose you are meaning those fine Royal Marines from the Military ball down the grand hall at the other end?”
Lin grinned. “It's not that I don't mind them wandering in. They are wonderful chaps, you know. But some of them may tend to overdue it, forgetting their manners, and may take leave with some of the tender young ladies who attend our fine Gala.” She smiled and patted James on the shoulder while calculating whether some of the young girls might invite such an adventure. Her mind wondered a few moments, remembering her own youthful days, and suddenly she remembered why she didn't want such an encounter. Flushed with remembrances she turned to hide her cheeks and started rechecking the guest roster for the hundredth time that day. She convinced herself it had to be the flowers and not the memories of her younger, more daring self long ago, causing her flushed face.
“I suppose it is the better part of valor to nip it in the butt..erm...bud, as it were, than to salvage a young lady's honor afterwards.” James turned and headed for the giant double doors that connected the main ballroom with the smaller ballroom by way of a long connecting porch at the back of the halls. He weaved through the displays and past a giant aviary display containing wild amazonian flowers and many hundreds of brightly colored birds, making noises and calls that made it very convincing that indeed you were in the wildest jungle.
The Brinestone High Regency Hall had connecting offices, central kitchen, servant's areas, storage, and various meeting rooms that took up the bulk of the large facility. Well run and properly managed it was the proper place to have such events and the Newberry Ornithological Society Exotic Flower Show and Benefit Gala was one of those events that anybody who was anybody attended, short of death or the plague.
A young man stepped up from behind and cleared his throat. “Lady Staffordshire, I'm Stanley Drummond, Professor Tucker's assistant.” He bowed slightly and kissed her proffered hand.
“Pleasure to meet you, Stanley! Dr. Tucker has spoken so much about you. Your paper on the differences between the English Robin and the American variety was very detailed.”, she truly did enjoy his findings. She felt this young man would go far.
“These men...” He gestured to his left, “...are here to introduce the rare hummingbirds to the aviary. There are about three hundred of them so it will take them the better part of an hour. The ship just arrived from Brazil this afternoon.”
“Well I look forward to seeing them flit about and entertain our guests. Though I can't remember who ordered them or for what reason we needed hummingbirds from the Amazon.” She pondered out loud.
“Neither can I, Milady.” He pointed to and announced each worker by name. “This is William, Benjamin, Christopher, Jules, Steven, and Thomas. With your permission they'll start unloading the birds and placing them into the display promptly.”
“By all means, Stanley. I have to see to some other arrangements, so please feel free to continue.” Lin turned and wondered off to care for her arriving guests.
The screams emanating from the birds inside the aviary pierced the noise from the crowd and the seven piece orchestra. Julian had just emptied the last basket of hummingbirds into the enclosure. They had flitted into and around the aviary's foliage as though seeking something. Julian and William watched in disgust as every other bird was attacked and killed by the red and blue lancers. They were both baffled by the behavior and why they were still locked inside with Thomas and Benjamin instead of getting the hell out. Jules felt the first needle sink into neck and swatted at the bird. The fifty after that threw him into a frantic flinging of arms trying to stop the searing pain. It was like they knew exactly where to sink their beaks to inflict the most pain. He felt suddenly weaker as he struggled to get to the door. He saw his compatriots having similar reactions and gasped as he felt a white hot needle sink deep into his left ear canal. His right eye burst as another blood thirsty little monster dug in deep. The pain, the fear, the disorientation and desperation shown in all their faces as they were overwhelmed. Julian yelled out weakly for Steven and Thomas for help, but in his own shock he witnessed them covered in writhing death. Their eyes hollow sockets of fleshy goo, the gurgling shudders of last breaths. He stared with his one good eye at his own fate when the bird plunged. No one heard his breathless scream as he passed into the next life.
The attendees threw up at the spectacle of gore, some were panicking and running for the doors toward the back of the hall, others fainted and died on the spot when the birds reached their limp forms, some fought futilely, but the feathery horde built momentum. Feeding on the panic and blood of their prey the hummingbirds thrummed with power and sped like little Spitfires from feeding to feeding, human to human, expelling their quickly digested meals in a continuing stream of excrement. People were being drained in seconds before the group leaped to the next victim. Those trying to escape, finding they were blocked by the locked doors, turned toward the on rushing crush of people to seek the main entrance. They fell under the weight of horrified animals trying to flee the flock of doom, climb over the blockage of humanity, and not knowing who or what was grinding under foot. Lady Lin Staffordshire, Professor Tucker, and Lady Clair Thompson, trying as they might, fell under the weight of so many people as they fought valiantly to turn the tide of frightened humanity at the doors. The wooden frames buckled and splintered under the onslaught. Steel gates just beyond the pretty framework became a giant playdough fun factory with squishy people flesh. Blood and bone spurted far beyond the gates staining the marble porch a profusion of reds, pinks, and pulped meat purples.
Colonel James Collingsworth and Lord Andrew Milford in the interim, had the brilliant idea to gather more forces for a counter attack. They had somehow made their way through an opened server's entrance unscathed and called upon the Royal Marines, who were just getting started with their own party, to do what Marines do best. Fight a battle against forces with which they may not return.
The scene unfolded as they rushed in with the Marines hot behind them, the Captain of the group barking orders as they went. So many brave men entered that hellhole as the Colonel and the Lord were literally pinned to the floor by a flurry of red and blue. The Captain watched in just a few seconds as the birds made quick work of Lord as he killed a few dozen by crushing blows with fire iron. The Colonel, though dying quickly from blood loss, knew he was dead and took it upon himself to douse his best decanter of scotch on his suite and light himself on fire. The quick blaze caught the birds buried in his shirt and they flew out into the rest of the evil swarm catching more on fire and spreading the panic among the birds.
“Quick! Burn them with fire! Sergeant Gorman, get those curtains and make torches! Corporal Eddings, get the men to bar these things from escaping!” The Captain rallied the men from their fearful awe and put boot to ass to handle the situation and resolve the problem. The men obeyed without thought. “Use whatever you can, but these bloody things die now!”