Fighter

by Jessica Wayne

  “I would like that.”

  “Goodnight, Elizabeth.”

  “Goodnight, Tony.”

  He turned and closed the door gently behind him. The silence of the small house settled over her. She took a deep breath and looked toward the room where Dakota slept. Ever since he was a boy, he had been head over heels for Anastasia. What must it be like to hold that much love in your heart? She wondered.

  After Anastasia disappeared the first time, her son changed. He went from wanting to be a doctor to becoming a cop overnight, and she knew he had searched for Anastasia in every single victim he came across. It wasn’t until they'd found each other again, and he'd come to terms with what had happened that night all those years ago, that she had finally seen him genuinely smile again.

  Now, though, she worried she would never see his face light up again.

  She wrapped her arms around herself. What were they going to do? It wasn’t just the dying world that frightened her, but the son she was watching fade away to nothing right before her eyes.

  Elizabeth knew he hurt more than he let on, and if they didn’t find Anastasia soon, she feared that her son would never be the same.

  If he survived it at all.

  22

  Dakota

  Dakota stood on the edge of a tall cliff. He couldn’t see the ground below, and the fog made it impossible to determine how high up he was. He turned to look behind him, but there was nothing but jagged, black rocks, and what appeared to be a tall building unlike anything he’d ever seen in the distance.

  The wind picked up and he stumbled, nearly falling off the edge of the cliff. He took a step away from it, determined to discover where the hell he was. The sour stench of sulfur filled the air, and the wind whipped at him harder, as if pushing him toward the ground below.

  When he turned back to the cliff, Ana appeared in front of him. Her face was bloody and bruised, and he took a step toward her. The wind ripped and pulled at her, and she stumbled.

  “Ana!” he screamed, reaching for her. He caught her hand, and felt that her skin was ice cold. “Where are you?” he called over the sound that made it nearly impossible to hear anything but his own pulse pounding.

  She smiled and pressed a hand to her heart.

  “Tell me where you are!” he yelled again.

  She released his hand and took another step back.

  Dakota lunged for her and grabbed her hand again as she started to fall. His heart pounded, the adrenaline surging through his veins. “I’ve got you!”

  Her blue eyes were wide with panic, her bruised face pale.

  “Dakota! Save me… I need you,” she cried out as she clutched his hand. “Please don’t let me go!”

  Her hand began to slip from his, and he reached for her with his other hand. “I won’t let go!”

  He tried to pull her back over the edge, but something below was pulling her down. When he looked, there was nothing there but fog.

  “Dakota!” she screamed as she slipped from his grip.

  “No!” He reached over the edge for her, but she was already gone, swallowed up by the thick fog below.

  Dakota sat up in bed, his chest heavy. He rubbed his hands over the short beard on his face, and waited for his heart rate to slow. “Well, that was fan-fucking-tastic,” he muttered and leaned back against the pillows.

  A large furry head nudged his arm, and he looked down at Ana’s lion-sized cat standing beside the bed.

  “Hey, Kaley,” he said as she rubbed her face against his arm. “I won’t let her get away from us this time, girl. I promise I will find her.”

  Seemingly satisfied with his reaction, Kaley padded back over to the corner of the room and curled up to sleep. He glanced out the window; stars still glittered in the early morning sky.

  He rubbed his hands over his face and climbed out of bed. It would be nice to get in a quick run around the perimeter of the village before the day actually began.

  Dakota stepped into the modest living area and started the fire in the kitchen. How he wished he had some freaking coffee, but tea would have to do.

  The door flew open and Brady burst in. His eyes were wide, and his chest rose and fell on heavy breaths.

  “What is it?” Dakota asked quickly.

  “We have Brutes coming!”

  “Now? It’s barely morning!” Dakota yelled as he threw on a shirt and grabbed his boots. Tea would have to wait. Fucking Brutes.

  “They are coming up on the east wall,” Brady informed as they ran toward the village’s center.

  “How many?”

  “About three dozen.”

  “Fuck!” They didn’t have the kind of manpower and weapons to hold off that large of an attack on such short notice. Even if they somehow managed to pull a win from the hat—they would lose dozens of their own.

  He ran with Brady toward the scout platform on the east wall, where Tony waited. Elizabeth stood next to him, and they watched over the trees.

  “Mom, what are you doing here?” he asked as he climbed up beside them.

  “I was just heading to the cellar and wanted to see for myself.” Her arms were folded across her chest and, had Dakota not been afraid for their near future, he would have smirked at the large knife that hung from her belt. It looked so out of place on the woman who had spent her life treating the sick and injured.

  “Okay, make sure everyone stays quiet,” he told her.

  She nodded. “You guys be careful.” She climbed down to run for the underground cellar they had built to hide the villagers from the Brutes. Even if they failed to keep the beasts out of the village, they’d at least taken steps to ensure the safety of the people.

  He looked down at the Fighters assembled below him in front of the fence. They all stood firm, their faces unreadable, determined not to show fear to the enemy.

  Dakota and Tony climbed down and made their way toward the gate, joining the Fighters lined up outside the perimeter.

  “No matter what happens, keep this closed,” Dakota told Brady.

  Brady nodded and sealed the gate behind them.

  Dakota stood in front of the group beside Tony and swallowed hard as the Brutes grew closer. His people would not die today.

  Heavy, rhythmic footfalls were the only sounds in the early morning, and the sunrise cast an orange glow on the otherwise pale beasts. The Brutes stopped ten feet from them.

  Dakota’s brow furrowed. What the hell were they stopping for?

  “Who is Dakota?” one of them asked gruffly.

  “I am,” Dakota said, holding his ground.

  “Our leader wishes to speak to you.”

  “Vincent?” Dakota asked, his fingers itching for his sword.

  If Brutes could show disgust, this one certainly did. It’s human-like mouth turned into a grimace. “That murderer is not our leader,” it growled, pounding a fist against its chest.

  Tony glanced at Dakota and gave a curt nod, a silent signal that they had his back if anything should go south.

  Dakota turned back to the beast. “Then who is your leader?”

  “We will not bring him forward until your Fighters sheathe their weapons.”

  “We will not stand down until we know there will be no attack from you.”

  The Brute shook its head. “We will not harm you.” He lifted his massive arm and all but a small grouping of the Brutes stepped backward toward the trees until they were nearly half of a football field’s length away.

  Dakota turned to Tony, and he gave the signal for the Fighters to lower their weapons. Here’s to hoping this wasn’t a massive fucking mistake.

  “Fine. Where’s your leader?” Dakota asked, taking a step forward.

  “I am here.” The largest Brute Dakota had ever seen stepped toward him from the small grouping that had stayed put. The thing stood at least ten feet tall and, while he was covered in intricate designs like the others, his tattoos had colors woven in, whereas the others’ markings were only black.
>
  “I am Argento,” the Brute said. It pressed a fist to its chest with a light bow. “The true leader of the Brutes.”

  23

  Dakota

  Dakota folded his arms. “What do you want to talk to me about?”

  “This Vincent that you speak of, he is the sorcerer, correct? The one who is responsible for the spreading Darkness?”

  “Yes, he is.”

  “He has been coming to my world and stealing my people, turning them against me in an effort to take over my world, much in the way he has done yours.”

  “He hasn’t won yet.”

  The Brute inclined his head. “Just as he has not in my world. The captain of my force has been trying to overthrow my family for years, and Vincent promises him the throne if he helps him. But as long as I stand, he will not succeed.”

  “You are from a different dimension? Another world?” Dakota asked, slightly fascinated. “Legends said that the Brutes were once humans.”

  Argento scoffed, and the Brute next to him laughed.

  “We are no puny humans underneath this.” He pounded his fist to his chest again.

  “We are no puny humans,” Dakota growled through his teeth. “If Vincent has not been creating the Brutes from our people somehow, then where have our villagers gone?”

  “We have some of your people, and we have brought them as a sign of goodwill.”

  “You have the other villagers? How?” Tony asked, stepping forward to stand beside Dakota.

  “Who are you?” Argento cocked his head to the side, and puffed his chest up slightly.

  Dakota nearly scoffed. He may have had Tony in size, but Dakota was willing to bet if it came down to a fight, his friend would rip this beast apart in a matter of seconds.

  “Tony. I am the one who has gone through each and every village your Brutes have torn apart.” Tony’s body vibrated with barely leashed anger, and Dakota put his hand on his shoulder to calm him.

  “You said you have our people,” Dakota interrupted. “How?”

  “Vincent,” Argento began, returning his attention to Dakota, “has been sending them through a portal and into my world as a way to trade with my captain for more of my force. My captain has been using them to make weapons in an effort to kill me.”

  “Platinum-coated.”

  “Yes,” he growled. “My people can’t handle the platinum, and until Vincent started trading the humans, it did not even exist in my world.”

  “So what do you want from us?”

  “We wish to work with you to bring down this Vincent. Those you see behind me are the only warriors I can trust to remain loyal to me. The rest of my soldiers can’t be trusted.”

  “How do we know we can trust you? Or any of your warriors?” Dakota gestured to the Brutes behind Argento.

  “I could tear you all apart before you could even blink,” Argento said, folding his arms over his chest. “But I will not. You and your people are not those we are at war with. I am showing you goodwill by coming here, knowing that your blades are coated in poison and could strike me down. I have also brought your missing people here as an additional show of unity against our mutual enemy. You and yours will come to no harm by my hand or the hand of those I trust. We are not a violent race, Dakota. Vincent has made us this way. Until he showed up in my world, we had no war with anyone.”

  “How did you know my name?”

  “Word travels fast, Fighter. Rumors have spread about you, Dakota, the warrior from another world.”

  The Brute’s words shocked him, but Dakota tried to not convey his shock. Why the hell were people talking about him?

  “Give us a few minutes, please. We need to confer.”

  “As you wish.” Argento stepped back with his people, and Dakota and Tony headed back inside the wall.

  “Watch them,” Tony whispered to Shane just before they stepped behind the gate.

  Selena waited for them beside her son. “Did I hear that right?” she asked, her brows furrowed. “That they want an alliance?”

  Dakota nodded.

  “You can’t be seriously considering this.” Brady’s hands tightened into fists at his sides. “They have been slaughtering our people for decades.”

  “According to Argento, he wasn’t aware,” Tony offered.

  “Bullshit.”

  “Brady.” Selena’s tone left no room for argument from her son.

  “Whatever.” He turned and stalked off.

  “What are you thinking?” Tony asked Selena.

  She bit down on her bottom lip, contemplating their current scenario. Dakota could practically see the wheels turning as she decided the future of Terrenia. If they sought an alliance with these Brutes, and Argento spoke the truth, it could mean the difference between winning and losing this war.

  But on the other hand, if Argento was lying, and this was just a way for Vincent to destroy them from the inside, they were screwed.

  “What is your impression of these Brutes?” Selena asked.

  “I think if they are truly returning our people,” Tony responded, “it is worth going out on a limb.”

  “I agree,” Dakota added.

  Selena sighed. “Then let’s do it.”

  Tony nodded and Dakota followed him back out through the gate. They stopped in front of Argento.

  “Give us our people, and we will work together to bring this bastard down.” Dakota took a step forward and reached his hand out. Argento took it, and they shook.

  Argento smiled. “I like you, Dakota, even if you are a puny human.” The humor in his deep voice caught Dakota off guard. “Bring them,” he commanded the Brutes behind him.

  Two broke off and headed back into the trees. Moments later, two rows of Brutes began marching out of the forest, a grouping of villagers between them.

  Dakota’s eyes widened. He had expected dirty, starving, tired, and beaten people, but—

  “We fed them and allowed them to rest before we made the journey. Some were very near death when we found them, so we provided necessary aid.”

  “Thank you, Argento.” Tony stepped forward.

  Argento nodded. “If it were my people, I would have been angry as well. My captain will pay for what he has done. I am afraid to report that some of your people had perished before we could get there, but we brought the bodies of those who have passed with us so you may give them a proper burial. It is imperative in our culture to do so, and we wish to offer you the same respect.”

  “Thank you,” Dakota said as Tony rushed to the villagers coming home, some for the first time in years.

  “We will make camp out here until you trust us. I imagine your people would not take too kindly to those they perceive as their enemy sleeping inside the walls of your village.”

  “Do not set up camp out here just yet. I will speak to my people. I would prefer to keep you all hidden from view in case any of Vincent’s scouts are lurking outside the walls.”

  Argento nodded in agreement and then showed his teeth in a frightening smile. “Yes, I would very much like to be a surprise to them as well.”

  “You are going to let them in here? To stay? Near our people?” Brady shouted. “Are you serious?”

  “They are not our enemy, Brady,” Tony said calmly.

  “You have got to be kidding me! They have slaughtered and kidnapped our people, and you are just going to let them live in here with us?” Brady slammed his fists down on the wooden table.

  “They aren’t the ones we are at war with. Vincent and the rogue Brutes are the enemies,” Dakota told him.

  “So he says!” Brady gestured to the wall where Argento and his men waited.

  “So all of the other villagers say as well, Brady,” Tony added, a silent warning in his voice. “They all corroborated his story once they were back inside the walls. Three hundred people are back here, nearly too many to even house. They are sleeping a dozen to each cottage, and some are even setting up camp outside. They are back because of Argento.
”

  “So now we are calling them by name,” Brady spat. “Anastasia would have never allowed this.”

  Tony was in Brady’s face so quickly Dakota didn’t even have time to block him. “Anastasia would have done whatever was necessary to ensure the safety of our people. She would have welcomed Argento and his warriors with open arms if it meant defeating Vincent. Do not ever pretend that you know her better than I.” He glanced at Dakota. “Or better than Dakota, for that matter. Don’t you want your mother to be safe? Your sister? Because the only way that is going to happen is if we align with them to end this war.”

  Brady shot Dakota an angry glare and stomped out of the cabin.

  “He will come around,” Selena said, shaking her head. “We lost his father, and then Emma, to the Brutes.”

  “It’s definitely going to be a tough sell, but I believe it is for the best.” Tony leaned back against the counter.

  “I do as well,” Selena agreed. “Allow them inside and put them over in the empty field space near the training center. But I want them under constant guard, just in case.”

  Dakota nodded in agreement and went out to let Argento know.

  He sure as hell hoped they weren’t making a big ass mistake.

  After meeting with the villagers, Dakota led the Brutes inside. They made up their camp near the training center, and Dakota assured the villagers that they would have Fighters guarding the Brutes the entire time they remained within the gates. He watched curiously as some of the villagers who had been prisoners walked toward their camp and spoke to the Brutes as if they had been friends for years. That showed him more than any words could have; Argento and his followers could be trusted.

  Dakota smiled to himself. They had just been handed what they needed to get Ana back and win this war. Vincent wasn’t going to know what hit him.

  24

  Anastasia

  “Hey, honey, how was your day?” Dakota asked as he and Annabelle returned home that evening.