Dakota Hunter
Nickname: Koko
Role: Newcomer
Traits:
Confident, smart, kind, adventurous, a fighter; brutally honest, stubborn, sarcastic
Personality:
Dakota has a strong personality, oftentimes appearing rude due to her inherently sarcastic nature. However, she is very kind and treats people as best as she could, choosing to stay quiet instead of responding rudely. If a response is required, she will be bluntly honest and that can often hurt people's feelings. She is often quick to make amends but if she believes she is right in a fight, she will stubbornly insist so. She can be charming and fit in well with social circles, but she prefers spending time with close friends. She enjoys going to parties and dancing. She hates arrogant people and liars.
Interests: Faron, Kieran (FI), Janine(FI)
Groups:
Scavenging Group-- The Sword
Ritual Group-- The Defenders
Story: Done
Chapter 21: Aftermath
[ Month 10 - Winter ]
I jerked awake, wondering when and how I had managed to fall asleep amidst the chaos of the zombies. I found that I was impossibly warm and cozy and after a few seconds of drowsily trying to figure out what was happening, I realized that my face was pressed into a warm chest and that strong arms were wrapped tightly around me.
Mmm, Faron...
I shifted and he released me immediately, as though I had caught on fire. I blinked at the weak sunlight pouring through the thick clouds, barely managing to shine. Looking around, I took in the fog and the fog zombies moaning and crying. Kieran was dead asleep nearby. I looked at Faron who was silently looking at me, arms crossed and face tight with tension.
"You okay?" I asked, scanning his body for any injuries.
"Better than you," he answered curtly. I frowned at his tone and then slowly sat up, stretching out my body. I was glad to see there was little soreness, which meant fighting our way over to the Hotel wouldn’t be too bad.
“I’m fine,” I told him. He sighed.
“You have cuts on your hands and cheek, Dakota.”
Oh. I lifted my hand to touch my cheek and flinched at the dull throb. “Okay, so maybe I got a minor injury. No biggie.”
He didn’t respond, his brows furrowing over his eyes as he stared at me intensely. I climbed to my feet, dusting off the sand from my clothes and hair. God, it will take forever to get them out later. I nudged Kieran’s foot with my boot.
“How is he even sleeping like this?”
“Dakota--”
“We need to get to the hotel,” I said, interrupting him. He looked so stressed out and I figured it wasn’t about the fog monsters. I didn’t want us to talk about it now while we were still trapped and I definitely didn’t want to force him into telling me about this part of himself.
Faron climbed to his feet--and I saw that he now had shoes on. My eyes flickered to Kieran.
Whatever that man thought, he really was like Faron’s dad.
“Dakota…” Faron muttered, reaching out and then pausing, before dropping his hand. I sighed, rolling my eyes. So much drama for such an inappropriate time. I walked up to him, grabbed his face in both of my hands, and yanked it down to plant a kiss on his lips. I pulled my face back to see his eyes wide open in surprise. I smiled and kissed him again before releasing him.
“At least now I know why you smell like the ocean,” I teased before turning around to shake Kieran awake. The man’s eyes popped open after a couple more hard shakes and then he was up, grumbling and cussing like the sailor he was.
Getting out of the wards and into the hotel was far easier than I expected. Having Faron around was pretty handy seeing as he was quite strong plus he could control water! We got to the Metropole Hotel in record time.
I’d just stepped in when a body came colliding with mine. A flash of dark hair and familiar blue eyes before I stumbled back told me who it was. I let out a sigh of relief, anxiety I didn’t know I had leaving my body as I hugged her back.
“Annie! I’m so glad to see you’re okay. Everyone made it?” I asked, pulling back. I glanced over her shoulder to see a tired-looking Dominic hovering nearby. He smiled at us.
“Most. Did you get Faron--oh hey. Thank goodness you’re both okay,” Annie told Faron and Kieran, offering them relieved smiles. She turned to me, pulling me away from the entrance of the hotel. “In a couple of hours, Sirvan is going to host a meeting. Probably going to talk about whatever is going on.”
“There’s a lot of people,” I muttered, looking around at the mass gathered in the great halls and walking up and down the stairs. Faron came to my side and I reached out, entwining my fingers with his. He hesitated for a moment before stepping closer and squeezing my hand.
Annabeth nodded, her face grim as she scanned the foyer. We saw Dominic stride up to where the Mayor stood, a deep frown on his face.
“Most of the townsfolk are in here. We’re hoping that those scattered around will be able to find their way here, if they even know to come back into town.” Annie handed me a set of keys.
“It’s like an apocalypse,” I muttered. I looked down at my hand. “What’s this?”
“Keys.” She nodded at Dominic. “They were giving out rooms to people and most people will have to share. I got one for you and I and one for Faron, but Dominic is making me stay with him, so you and Faron will probably share a room.”
Kieran’s face lit up. “I get my own place?”
Annie shook her head, almost apologetic. “No. You’ll probably room with--”
“Kerry, Faron!”
At the familiar boisterous yells, we all turned. A few of Faron’s crew members were running up to us, covered in tattered clothing and bruises. There was a round of hugging and back slapping and Keiran cheerfully told us to head up without him, he would be staying with his boys. A few more technicalities were discussed with Annie before I headed for the stairs with Faron beside me.
*
After showering and getting rid of all the sand, I slipped on a bathrobe, waiting for my clothes to dry off after giving it a quick rinse. I stepped into the room to see Faron waiting for me on the sofa.
I went to my backpack and pulled out my book, taking it with me as I sat next to Faron. “There’s a lot we need to cover in order to re-do the ritual.”
He looked at me, brows furrowed. “Re-do the ritual?”
I explained the entire conclusions of the ritual and the how-tos and the things needed for it. It wouldn’t be easier to retrieve the things and we had yet to find out if anyone else knew about it.
“And you have the ward symbols?” he asked, raising an eyebrow.
“Yes, I told you before. I did extensive research and I think I may have figured it out. I sketched out the runes in the notebook--”
“We need to talk,” he suddenly said, face closing off.
I blinked at him, my hand hovering over the notebook pages. “Right now? Don’t we have more pressing matters?”
“Dakota, I’m--” he paused, hesitant. “I--”
I waited, not wanting to rush him. After another couple seconds of silence, I spoke up. “If it’s too difficult now--”
“No, it’s not that it's difficult. I mean, Kieran knows….it’s just…” he paused again, rubbing the back of his neck. “This wasn’t the way I wanted to tell you; in the middle of this mess and when I didn’t have a choice to show you who...or what I am.”
“A merman.”
He gave me a long look. “Yes.” He cocked his head to the side. “Also, I have a few siblings.”
My eyes widened. “Siblings?”
“Yeah.”
“What made you decide to become a sailor?” I asked, curious on how Faron lived his life. He shrugged.
“I prefer to travel ashore and expand my own horizons. It’s what I like.” He gave me a steady gaze. “If this is too much for you, let me know.”
There was silence as I mulled everything over. Finally, I looked back at him.
“It’s a big surprise, I wasn’t quite expecting that,” I told him honestly. “And yes, it would have been far better to find out differently, but either way, it’s not something that could change whatever we have...if you want it, I mean.” I stroked his waves, running my fingers lovingly through the soft mass. “I always thought you were beautiful. And now I just think you’re even more beautiful.” I leaned in and kissed him lightly, moving closer. “I was so worried for you, seeing those monsters swarm you like that.”
He smiled, pulling me in. “I’m fine--”
“Maybe you should convince me,” I whispered, eyes wide as I undid his bathrobe, exposing his leaned body underneath. Faron’s eyes glinted with a wicked fire as in one fluid movement, he picked me up and carried me to the bed.
* *
A good couple of hours later, we stood in the hall where Sirvan spoke out, reassuring the remaining townsfolk. He spoke about what was happening in Draycott, the situation and the horror that had invaded this sleepy seaside town. He spoke about needing scavenging teams which sent a wave of fear coursing into the townspeople. Half spoke out against it, half agreed even though they looked terrified.
After allocating food scavengers, Sirvan moved onto the main topic; the Mh’ilerh or the Miller.
I saw Alex and Aimee amongst the people standing around. There was a massive oval table where Sirvan was seated and he’d asked all those who knew what was happening to gather. I took a seat next to Annie while Faron and Kieran sat on the other side of me. Alex took a seat at the table along with the bartender I’d seen around. A handful of other women came forward, faces grim.
With our DARG researcher Janine being the closest to the research, she acted as a spokesperson. We recapped all that we knew; a ritual had to be done in order to stop the darkness. At this point, many of the townsfolk left and only those willing and able remained in the room.
“So what have we got?” Sirvan asked, looking around. “What is missing and what needs to be retrieved? It is essential that we move as quickly as possible.”
Again, more discussions were taking place, everyone had more-or-less similar ideas, and in their own way, they had found different parts of the ritual.
Puzzle pieces… I mused. All coming together and now, Draycott was ready to kick some ass.
Upon checking on the equipment needed, Janine spoke about the ritual and the wardstones. Scarlette, another member of DARG, and I helped pitch in what we knew about the research. We’d need the stone pillars, the sedatives, the chalkstones to draw out the runes...and Janine mentioned needed the reference book.
“I might have that so we wouldn’t have to stop by the library,” I said. Janine raised an eyebrow.
“How do you have that?”
I cleared my throat awkwardly. “I thought the ritual circle was...weird and I wanted to know what it meant. So I might have taken a picture of it for research.”
Janine’s brows lifted and then she motioned me to go ahead. I cleared my throat and stood up, pulling out my trusty notebook that had become worn out over the months. I flipped the pages until I found the one with the reference circle including a sketch of the one from the researcher’s room.
“I actually did some research on the runes, what they mean and the ones meant for the circle.” I tapped the runic symbols. “They go clockwise from here and end on this symbol here,” I pointed at another one of the symbols. Then I flipped the page to where the symbols were sketched out in a circular form. Janine leaned forward.
“Impressive, they look like an exact replica.” She looked up at me. “How did you string them together?”
I shrugged. “Research. Lots of times. Hours.”
After I sat down, we discussed further on what else we needed. The sword was in the Town Hall, locked in the Researcher’s Room. The DARG members glanced warily at each other. That place was heavily alarmed after the last time someone tried to break in and the people who knew the password were missing or still out of action.
Alex piped up then, mentioning that she could try fixing it. She’d quietened down after the attention was turned towards her but Sirvan moved on, telling her it was Janine’s call on who was to go to the Town Hall.
A few more squads were formed and before the meeting broke, we more-or-less knew that whatever we were up against, it may cost us our lives.
Chapter 22: Scavenging
[ Month 11 - Winter ]
Though we had started out the plans in great spirits, as the days bore on, the spirits seemed to be getting diminished. Getting the chance to go scavenging was difficult as Draycott was blanketed in what felt like an eternal fog. Sometimes a scavenging team would go out in groups of seven and only three or four would return.
I was finding it very hard to stay positive and spent time trying to find out plans that would actually work. Days turned into weeks and Sirvan and the scouts were getting more and more agitated.
A Rescuer Squad had been formed and some of the scavenging team members moved to that group. It was terrifying, what they said they had found; pods on the West Pier. With people in it; the people of Draycott.
I had found Janine one night trying to fight off the fog monsters as she headed towards the West Pier. It took me and a few others to fight the monsters and drag her away from her own suicide mission. She’d been agitated, wanting to save her beloved classmate and friend, Zain. That night, I’d spent it silently hugging Faron who offered his support and comfort without hesitation, always reminding me that he was like a steady pillar of support. I knew that Janine wasn’t the only one suffering the loss of a loved one and hoping desperately to see them again.
I saw many people with sad eyes, those who looked out of the windows and seemed to believe that maybe, just maybe, they could save them. Suicide missions were the reason that Faron, the sailors, and a few tough cookies were now patrolling the main doors to ensure no one tried to run off on their own.
Annabeth sometimes looked out the window with that crazy look in her eyes but then she’d snap out of it and go back to her plans of the ritual and the retrieval of her own scavenging team. On days when I returned from our failed attempts at getting the sword, if I found a pretty flower, I’d bring them to her and stick it in her hair. Annie was meant to have flowers in her hair and a dreamy smile on her face, so I hoped bringing her a flower when I could would help bring a little of her back.
*
A few weeks into the frightening apocalypse, the Sword Retrieval Squad was preparing for another attempt to get into the Town Hall. Getting there had been extremely difficult, and it didn’t matter if we went in the morning or at night. The fog monsters swarmed the place like bees in a beehive.
Clearly, that sword was important as hell.
Those who didn’t know how to fight were given a few lessons on self-defense. As I already knew how to fight thanks to engaging in sparring matches with my dad’s trainees, I wasn’t too much in need of it. Faron and Kieran definitely had the time of their lives sparring against me though; Faron was obviously not a normal person so he was able to move faster and actually move almost like water. Everytime he beat me, he’d sprinkle water on my face. Water that came out of virtually nowhere.
My only saving grace was that I could finally, finally beat Kieran at something. I was faster and quicker on my feet and I’d have him tap out more times that I could count. It was fun.
We switched out a few members on the team since they had gotten injured on our last trip and we’d lost one person to the fog creatures.
I sat in Kieran’s room with Faron as Kerry was busy patching me up. Fighting the fog monsters wasn’t necessarily difficult, but getting swarmed by the creatures who were trying to drag you into the darkness would sometimes leave scratches or two on our bodies. My injuries weren’t that bad and they were healing pretty well, but I just needed to get my bandages replaced with fresher ones before heading out.
Kerry was good with first-aid and he’d insisted he patch me up before I headed out.
“With these band-aids on your face, you look like a right menace,” Kerry chuckled as he pulled back.
I bared my teeth at him. “Grr.”
He laughed, getting to his feet. “Terrifying. I’m shivering in my fuckin’ boots.”
I stood up and then realized something. “Oh no, my bat is in the room. I gotta go get it--”
“I’ll pick it up. Meet me in the lobby,” Faron said as he started for the door. As the wooden door shut behind him, I turned to ask Keiran something but stopped when I saw his wide grin.
“What?” I asked warily.
“When’s the wedding?” he asked, waggling his eyebrows. “I hope I’m invited.”
I rolled my eyes, stepping out of the room. “There’s no wedding.”
“Yet.”
I glared at him. “Honestly, we’re in the middle of an apocalypse--”
“Fog-copalypse,” he interjected.
I stared at him but he just grinned back. I turned and pretended that I was alone in the hallway as I headed for the elevators.
“No, but seriously, when’s the wedding? Where does the father of the groom go?”
I lifted an eyebrow as I hit the elevator button. “On the front row, I guess. But too bad, there’s no wedding.”
“My son not good enough for you?” Kieran pretended to shake his fist at me. I laughed. The elevator dinged open in front of us.
“Kerry! I didn’t know you adopted him.” I pretended to gasp in horror as we stepped into the elevator. “Does that mean… you’ll be my father-in-law?”
“I thought you said no wedding?” He gave me a kind look. “I know I make an excellent father, no need to be so excited.”
I just laughed again, giving up. He was trolling me for sure, this man. As we headed for the lobby, Kerry turned to me.
“I worry about how the two of you will turn out…” he said, his smile dropping. “It's not fair that this is all happening to you two. Y’all young and still have a lot to live for.”
“You also have a lot to live for. Whatever unfairness is happening, it’s happening to you and the others, too.”
Kieran just frowned, his gruff expression turning him into a tough looking sailor instead of the total troll I knew him to be. “Yeah, but--”
“Nope, we are not talking about this,” I said, cutting him off. I saw my crew heading into the lobby and Faron was striding towards me with my bat in his hand. I hugged Kerry. “We’re fighting for our time, your time and everyone else’s time. We’ll be back!”
I turned and took the bat from Faron, heading into the lobby.
“I want a front row seat, remember that!” Kerry called out. Faron glanced at him before looking back at me.
“What’s that all about?”
“He wants a front row seat at our wedding,” I said, laughing at his stunned expression. We stepped into the lobby and our moods instantly became somber. Everyone was dressed for a battle and it looked like we all had a mad glint in our eyes.
We had spent a long time trying to get the sword. And today, we were definitely retrieving the damned thing.
*
The Town Hall was barely visible through the fog. Sounds of the team pushing against the horde of zombies was almost sickening to hear. There were wails and cries, accompanied by the occasional hiccups from the fog-zombies. There was the sickening thud of body slamming into body, of hard objects beating back more bodies.
The inside of the Town Hall was no better than the outside. We were hit with another wave of zombies and this time, I moved over to the front to help protect Janine. As DARG members, we knew where to go to reach the Researchers’ Offices, which were of course located on the upper floor and nowhere near the warded cafe. Of course.
I swung my bat against the head of one of the zombies, kicking at their chest to send them falling backwards. We started for the stairs, me and another person keeping Janine protected while Faron and some others covered the back and the sides. Fog-zombies swarmed us but we managed to push back, tripping them and shoving them down the stairs.
Once we got to the Researchers’ Offices, it was no surprise that it was infested. Of course it was.
Aimee stayed close to Janine as the more ‘fighter’ types of the group went inside and kicked out the fog creatures. Aimee defended Janine by shooting the creatures and just generally kicking ass. I almost wanted to clap with how much in awe of her I was.
Once the room was cleared, Janine entered and she and I moved stuff around to gain access to the vault. Because of the break-in we’d had a couple of weeks ago, the sword was kept in a makeshift vault, and the case was alarmed and locked behind an electronic pair of doors. Also it was kept somewhere inside the vault. Janine pointed Alex to the computer where she then got behind the screen and started tapping away.
We all exchanged excited looks with each other as Alex’s tapping filled the air. This was the first time in weeks that we’d been able to actually get inside the building. Just getting on the street was difficult enough.
“We’ll make it,” Janine whispered confidently. She nodded at me. “Just gotta find the sword now.”
“If the labelling system hasn’t been changed since the last time,” I reminded her. Janine frowned, eyebrows furrowed.
“It shouldn’t have changed for the worse.”
I nodded and we fell into silence. I felt little stings from where the zombies’ nails had managed to pull at me. Glancing around, I realized no one else was worse for wear.
Sad moans and chilling groans came from outside the door and bodies thumped against it. There was the sound of clawing, prompting Ariana, Aimee and a few others to stand guard. The door rattled and everyone braced themselves.
When it seemed like the door would hold for a few moments more, we gathered around Alex curiously, wondering what she was doing. After a few moments of people getting too close and asking questions, she asked us to look around the room for where Professor Azari might have kept the password. We all came up empty but I knew we would because our researchers loved their research and findings more than anything else.
Once it was clear that hacking into the computer wasn’t working, Alex pulled out a screwdriver and got to work locating the panel for the doors. I watched her pull apart stuff and wires in total admiration.
“It’s like watching a spy movie,” I whispered to Faron. “Who needs double-oh-seven when we’ve got our own agent here?”
He chuckled in response. “That’s Alex for you.”
“So cool.”
Once Alex got the doors open, Janine and I bolted for the vault, storming inside and--
We blinked.
It was a mess. The labelling system seemed pretty useless amongst all this chaos. Boxes and cabinets were crashed around, making it difficult to figure out where things had been kept. Behind us, someone gasped.
“What the fuck?”
“Where was the last place the sword was located?” Janine asked as we looked around, trying to find our way around the overturned boxes and mess of papers and objects lying haphazardly on the ground.
“It was near that pile of rocks Zain put in the box...” I said, pointing in the general direction of where the colourful rocks had been. “I think it might be there. I don’t know who has been after me.”
Janine nodded, carefully picking her way amongst the things. “We’ll start there and then try the section on the left. I think some of the artifacts had been stored there.”
It wasn’t near the rocks, nor by the exhibition section. It took us a few minutes to figure out that the box was indeed by the rocks section, buried under a pile of empty boxes and papers. Janine and I hurriedly pushed off the boxes and papers and we immediately stepped back.
“Oh my goodness,” Janine whispered.
The sword was glowing and humming. And as we got near to it, we could feel a bit of heat emitting out of it--just like when someone had tried to steal it that time.
“Let’s grab the box,” I suggested, grabbing hold of one end. Janine nodded and grabbed the other. We heaved and--
Nothing. I tried to lift my side up but it wouldn’t budge. From the exertion and confusion on Janine’s face, hers wouldn’t budge either. I glared at the sword.
“I’m going to try and grab it,” I said, pointing to the fingerless gloves I was wearing. If the sword was hot, at least it wouldn’t burn my hands as much as Janine’s bare ones. I grabbed the hilt, relieved to find it cool to the touch, and tried to pull it. It wouldn’t budge. I tried again.
“It’s like it's glued to the bottom.”
Muffled banging and sobs reached our ears. Aimee stuck her head in. “What’s taking so long?”
“The sword won’t come out!” I called. “What’s happening?”
Aimee’s face was grim. “The doors are weakening so Faron and some of the others are out trying to beat them back.”
“We need someone to help pick up the sword,” Janine called. A few of the guys who came with us tried but to no avail. The others all tried but it didn’t work.
“Faron!” I called. He should be able to pick it up. He wasn’t a human so maybe it wouldn’t affect him. “Someone get Faron!”
Janine jumped to her feet and then disappeared out of the vault. For a moment, the moans got louder and then there was the sound of crying and sickening thuds. And Aimee’s shooting.
Moments later, Faron strode into the vault. “What is it?”
“Sword. Can you pick it up? No one else can.”
He looked at it for a moment, his expression steely, before he nodded and then grabbed the box. After a moment, the box left the ground.
“Yes!” I breathed in relief. “Alright, let’s go!”
* *
The trip back to the hotel wasn’t an easy one. Having Faron definitely helped but he couldn’t waterbend and carry the sword at the same time. Whatever was in that sword, it was taking Faron’s concentration to carry it safely and carefully.
We fought through wave after wave of crying fog-zombies and once we crossed the threshold of the hotel, we collapsed, exhausted and battered. People came to us, Kieran leading them, as they helped us to our feet and tended to our wounds. The sword was put aside until the ritual so Donovan and Mikel took it from us. Melia came over and helped with the tending.
We weren’t the only successful ones. The other scavenging teams had made it back one by one with the requirements we’d needed.
Sore but immensely satisfied with our success, our teams shared drinks to commemorate a little bit of the first ray of hope we’d seen for the first time in weeks.
Chapter 23: The Ritual
[ Month 12 - Winter ]
The weeks during the scavenging, rescuing and preparing for the rituals, there were rumours of people trying, once again, to make a break for it. When Faron and Kieran had come up to me suggesting I go with those people, I laughed at the idea and walked away to find food.
There was no way I was leaving Draycott and all its inhabitants when I could offer some help. There was no way I was leaving Annie. She was like a sister and I loved her and her grandmother. It hurt to even think of the idea of leaving them. Not to mention, leaving Faron and Kieran? Hah. Yeah, right.
Those who wanted to leave packed their things and prepared for their trips. Those planning to stay and do the ritual spent most of our time holed up in one of the hotel’s halls that had tables and chairs. The Metropole was basically a palace; beautiful, huge and extravagant.
Annabeth, Mikel and a few others gathered around one of the tables, discussing the latest plan; the ritual.
We had finally managed to snag the last requirement so the next step was the lighthouse.
“We will have to divide the teams into Actors and Defenders,” Mikel was saying, motioning to the papers in front of him. “Actors will be participating in the Ritual and the Defenders will need to help buy us time. It won’t be easy so we need the strongest fighters outside the lighthouse.”
His eyes flickered meaningfully to Donovan and Faron.
During the last couple of weeks, all the supernatural beings had made themselves known. Mikel was a magician, Melia was something of a tree spirit, Donovan was a dhampir and Faron was a merman.
Donovan’s identity was quite surprising to me; I’d never have figured it out if not for overhearing it during one of our discussions.
“I’ll join the Defenders,” I said, raising my hand. Annie and Faron gave me a wide-eyed glance. I tapped my notebook and slid it over to Annie. “I might not be useful as an Actor and all I know, Annie knows too. She can draw out the ritual symbols.”
Plus we’d worked on sketching and drawing out the runes almost everyday until she perfected it. We didn’t want to make any mistakes. Melia had been there, offering her support and guiding us along.
Mikel nodded. “Alright, Dakota for Defenders. Anyone else?”
A few people pitched in, Kieran as well. After the names had been sorted into groups, we took a break, heading into the cafe for a bite to eat.
I settled at a table near the window, looking out at the fog and the fog-monsters wandering about with their vacant eyes. Faron joined me, reaching over to pluck my hand and hold it in his.
“Are you sure you don’t want to be an Actor?” he asked quietly.
“I want to be able to buy more time for those doing the ritual. I may be more helpful helping you fight off the zombies.”
He was quiet, eyeing me thoughtfully. “You’re joining the Defenders because you want to protect me.”
I stilled. “No.”
He cracked a smile. “Dakota, in case you haven’t noticed, I’m not human. I don’t need you to protect me.”
“But--”
“There’s no buts.” He leaned forward, brushing his fingers across my cheek, eyes darkening ever so slightly. “You’re more precious to me than even the deep-sea jewels no human would ever get a chance to lay hands on. All this happening in Draycott,” he waved towards the window. “It will pass for me. But humans aren’t so lucky.” He cupped my face gently in both of his big hands. “I don’t think I could bear losing you so early. I don’t want to imagine what will happen if I were to lose you.”
“You won’t,” I told him confidently. “I’m a tough cookie.”
He sighed, moving his hands to brush my hair back. “That’s what I’m afraid of.”
We were then joined by Kieran, Annabeth and Dominic, where we jumped back into the discussion of what was to take place. I noticed that Dominic wasn’t too happy with Annabeth’s volunteering to join the ritual and I snickered internally. What was it with guys and their overwhelming need to protect us as though we were fragile? Annabeth was a tough cookie too.
We ate our fill, and then parted for our rooms. I had just managed to close the door behind me when Faron picked me up and tossed me over his shoulder, ignoring my squeals of protest, and striding confidently towards the bed.
*
The Lighthouse was one of the safe zones, as far as we all deduced. Fighting through the fog creatures to get to the building was so easy seeing as us measly humans didn’t have to lift a finger; Mikel, Melia, Donovan and Faron took care of it without even breaking a sweat.
At the base of the lighthouse, Melia and Mikel handed us humans a few sphere-like glass bottles that were glowing and sizzling inside. They explained that some of their magic had been bottled up. A few of the bottles were grenades, and the ones in the black tinted glass were elemental magic and they came at a cost. Faron watched me take it from them with a dark expression and a wild look in his eyes. Kieran just patted his shoulder as he packed away his own little grenades.
“You remember how to do it?” I asked Annie as I approached. She nodded, face determined. We hugged each other tightly, and I wondered if this could be our last time. I refused to dwell on it.
“Stay safe,” she whispered as we pulled apart.
“Kick ass,” I told her. She smiled and then she and the others went inside. I walked amongst the Defenders, finding Faron and Kieran and standing next to them.
“You won’t have to use the elemental magic,” Faron told me. “I’ll protect you.”
“Faron,” I said patiently. “You can’t protect me all the time. You need to focus on--”
“I’ll protect you,” he repeated, quiet but firm. I looked to Kieran for help but the salt-and-pepper man just shrugged.
“He said what he said.”
“I’m taking away your first row privileges, Kerry.”
Kerry just chuckled, pulling me in for a hug before walking away.
We got into position, with Aimee directing our places. The strongest fighters were up-front, the heavy hitters who were willing to put it all on the line. I found myself between Faron and Catherine and I swung my bat, loosening my stance. Behind me, Aimee was instructing the other fighters to guard the base of the lighthouse. Donovan and a few others stood by the entrance of the lighthouse so if the fog-monsters broke our ranks they’d still be met with a strong force at the back as well.
Everything so far was calm--eerily peaceful. There was virtually no sound except the murmurings of people talking to each other.
Faron’s fingers got to work and I watched in excitement as clouds of water floated up from either side of the lighthouse and over to where we stood. He smiled as he brought one of the water clouds to me.
I reached out in wonder, my fingers brushing the cool texture of water--
A scream pierced through the air, making me flinch back in horror. Faron’s face turned dark and he grabbed me, pulling me behind him. Kieran cursed.
The sound of scream grew louder, angrier. It sounded like an old, Eldritch horror waking up; the sound you imagine when you think of blasphemies. I gritted my teeth. The Miller must be furious with the prospect of an eternal slumber. That meant the Ritual was underway.
Our heads whipped around at the sound of moans and groans. The fog was too thick for me to see anything past the suspension bridge and all around us, the fog got denser, thicker.
Faron’s stance widened and stared straight ahead, the clouds of water forming into spears of blindingly fast spinning water. He shot them into the darkness and then screams and louder moans emitted. I tensed as the first zombie walked over the bridge.
Just then, the Lighthouse lit up, a beacon of pure golden light shining from the top. We froze, staring around us.
“I thought there wasn’t a keeper!” Someone yelled.
“Must be the ritual!” someone else shouted back.
The light was strong enough to give us a berth from the fog zombies but I knew they would swarm us soon enough. I turned to Faron just as he turned to me, we locked eyes, and in that moment, I knew we were thinking the same thing. He grabbed me and dropped a kiss on my mouth before turning away, stepping in front of me.
A zombie appeared, crying its way towards us.
Faron knocked it down. Another came, and another. At first they came in a single file but soon, they swarmed the bridge, closing in on us. This was our last stand, I realized. We had to protect the lighthouse at all costs.
My grip tightened on my bat, blood ringing in my ears, my heart pounding almost painfully in my chest. Deep breaths, Dakota…
The first zombie reached me and I swung.
*
It hurt.
I was so tired.
The fog-monsters seemed to be coming towards us at an endless pace. My shoulders were bruised from how aggressively the monsters kept trying to drag me into the water. I had run out of the magic grenades a while ago and I only had the elemental magics left.
I used the fire magic as sparingly as I could. Everytime I shot fire at the zombies, my body would get hot and feel like it was burning from the inside out.
After deciding I pushed enough with the fire magic, I swung my bat tirelessly, kicking and punching when I could. All around me I could hear the grunts of our fighters pushing back but it was getting clear that we would soon be completely overwhelmed. I cursed under my breath as I realized the monsters were now climbing out of the ocean and up the sides of the rocky base of the lighthouse.
More swinging, more fighting.
I noticed the fog getting denser and now there were fog tendrils, snaking up the lighthouse, towards us. I moved backwards, afraid and not knowing how to defend against something I couldn’t touch. A zombie grabbed my shoulder, digging their fingers in. I let out a cry of pain, turning and elbowing the creature’s face. I rammed my bat into its face, tripping it so that it went down.
A couple of zombies reached for me but were suddenly washed aside by a jet of water. Faron appeared in front of me, hair and body wet and eyes burning.
“Are you okay?”
I nodded. We jumped back into the fight.
The fog tendrils continued to creep towards us, they curled around my feet and--
The lighthouse glowed… and something shattered. The sounds that filled the air were sharp and loud, rending us motionless for a moment. There was nothing but shrill screaming and cacophony of voices. We weren’t the only ones frozen.
The zombies stood motionless, their moans cut off as they stared into nothing. It was enough to buy us more time. We got to work, pushing them back, throwing them into the sea and away from the lighthouse.
A couple of heartbeats later, the zombies came back to life, their groans once again filling the air. I glanced around me to see if anyone needed help. So far, everyone was holding on their own--my eyes widened when I saw a group of the zombies swarm Kieran, pushing me steadily towards the edge, where they clearly intended to drag him into the ocean. I located Faron in a panic but he was busy fighting off the zombies that had gotten around one of the people who’d gone down.
No time.
I ran towards Kieran, breaking the last of my borrowed fire magic. I dived into the horde, grabbing Kieran and shoving the heavy man away from the edge. Then, I burned.
Like, literally.
I burned fire at the zombies around me and Kieran, sending them screaming and toppling off the edge of the cliff and falling to the ground, crying and sobbing loudly.
“Dakota!” he yelled, horrified.
“You’re ridiculously heavy,” I managed to tell him. The zombies around us fell away but it was really hot. Really, really hot. I was burning.
Was I on fire?
I tried to take a step forward but my legs couldn’t support me. I collapsed and Kieran caught me, hissing out a string of curses.
“It’s hot,” I whimpered as Kieran helped me to the ground. I stared up at the sky and the lighthouse which was still glowing. I was getting dizzy from the pain.
“Faron! Faron, hose her down, she's burning up!” Kieran’s scream barely cut through the pounding in my ears. Hot. Hot, hot hot.
Faron suddenly appeared in my line of sight and his eyes were wide, terrified. He grabbed me but then I noticed the lighthouse’s light dim and stutter, fading away.
Faron was saying something but I couldn’t hear him.
I managed to turn my head to the side and I wanted to scream. The fog and its monsters seemed to be rushing right at us, closing in. This was it.
It’s over.
We wouldn’t make it.
Something lifted me and then my sight obscured by a familiar chest and Faron’s familiar scent. I couldn’t feel him, all I felt was burning. My eyes welled up with tears.
Totally didn’t want to spend my vacation losing a grandmother and a sister. Didn’t want to die knowing Kieran and everyone in Draycott may be meeting the same fate. And totally didn’t want to fall in love with a sailor who was actually a merman and then losing him like this.
I couldn’t even hug him back.
Suddenly, light engulfed the area around, washing over us. My eyes shifted to look over Faron’s shoulder and that bright light blinded me, piercing into my head.
And that was the last thing I saw before everything went dark.
Outfits:Plan Execution; The Sword Retrieval
Round Status:
Round 1: Done | Round 2: Done
Round 3: Done | Round 4: Done
Round 5: Done
Last edited by MistyMisty (27/07/2020 at 10:30)
I think the description fits Genevieve perfectly.
