Casca 7: The Damned (19 page)

There on the banks of the river he gave his final orders concerning the burial of his father. Since the day of his father's death, slaves had been hacking away at the banks of the river until only a wall of earth separated it from the entrance to the valley. Once that barrier was removed the river would follow a new course. The grave of Attila would be forever lost to the eyes of man.

Arnak gave the order and the slaves opened the way letting the waters of the river rush into the valley, flooding it as it sought its new course. Once this was done he had his archers kill the slaves.

When he returned to his camp, the archers of his escort were put to death by those that had remained behind. Arnak took no chances. Now he was the only one who knew the exact location of the crypt. The treasure that had been buried with Attila would be there if he ever needed it.

From a distant hill, a lone rider watched the proceedings that ended in the burial of the master of the Huns. The
manner in which his fur robes were embroidered, with runic symbols of luck, said that he was from the tribes of the northern Vandals and an ally of the Hun. A closer look would show blue gray eyes set in a scarred face. Casca had been ordered to go into the territory of the Huns and the Gepids. He was one of the few Romans who knew enough of the tongue of the tribes and their customs to be able to pass for a barbarian warrior if he was questioned.

As the waters of the diverted river erased all evidence of the burial site of Attila, he marked the spot in his mind taking a sight on several landmarks that time would not soon eliminate. It occurred to him as he watched, as it did to Arnak, that there might come a time when knowing where Attila and his treasure was buried could come in handy.

He turned his horse away. There would be no need to return to Italy. The Huns would not come again, at least not for some time. With the death of Attila there was no one left to hold the thousand tribes together. Casca knew from long experience that soon there would be civil war among the tribes of the Huns as their leaders fought for supreme power. Then, once the division between their masters was evident, the vassal tribes would be quick to try and reassert themselves and regain their own independence. The Huns might come again but not until they found another Attila.

A warm evening breeze rode with him. In three day's time he would be able to see the clean, high, snow
covered peaks of the Alps. The past months had wearied him. He was even afraid to love. Perhaps in the clean air of the Alps where few men went, he would be able to find peace again for a time. At least he wouldn't have to think; and time meant nothing.

Hunched over in his saddle, he let his body sway with the easy gait of the horse, lulling him with the motion. The last thought he had before closing his eyes to sleep was how good it would be to have centuries just slip away from him while he slept the long sleep of eternity.

The Cambodian jungle…an easy place to die.  Endless miles of vermin-infested swamps, heavily patrolled by the Khmer Rouge. But for Casca (alias Casey Romain) it is a chance to make $200,000.  A fair price for a suicide mission.  To earn it, he must parachute deep into the heart of this jungle hell, rescue a family of Chinese refugees… 

And bring them back to Taiwan – alive.

For more information on the entire Casca series see
www.casca.net

The Barry Sadler website
www.barrysadler.com

By Barry Sadler

Casca 1: The Eternal Mercenary

Casca 2: God of Death

Casca 3: The Warlord

Casca 4: Panzer Soldier

Casca 5: The Barbarian

Casca 6: The Persian

Casca 7: The Damned

Casca 8: Soldier of Fortune

Casca 9: The Sentinel

Casca 10: The Conquistador

Casca 11: The Legionnaire

Casca 12: The African Mercenary

Casca 13: The Assassin

Casca 14: The Phoenix

Casca 15: The Pirate

Casca 16: Desert Mercenary

Casca 17: The Warrior

Casca 18: The Cursed

Casca 19: The Samurai

Casca 20: Soldier of Gideon

Casca 21: The Trench Soldier

Casca 22: The Mongol

By Tony Roberts

Casca 25: Halls of Montezuma

Casca 26: Johnny Reb

Casca 27: The Confederate

Casca 28: The Avenger

Casca 30: Napoleon’s Soldier

Casca 31: The Conqueror

Casca 32: The Anzac

Casca 34: Devil’s Horseman

Casca 35: Sword of the Brotherhood

Casca 36: The Minuteman

Casca 37: Roman Mercenary

Casca 38: The Continental

Casca 39: The Crusader

Casca 40: Blitzkrieg

Casca 41: The Longbowman