It had been a month and they still had no leads. Not one fucking shred of evidence as to what happened to Anastasia. Where was she? Had she been captured? Was she even alive? Ever since Anastasia gave herself over to her magic to save him, Dakota had only had his mind on rescuing her. Then again, even if the circumstances had been different, he supposed it probably would have still been the same. He needed her, and he’d be damned if he lost her this time.
He knew that although they hadn’t given up hope that they would locate her, some didn’t believe she could be rescued even if they did find her. Rumors that The Phoenix, as they called her, had gone dark were floating throughout the village.
“It’s going to take time, Dakota,” Carmen assured him as he continued pacing the floor in the small cottage.
“It’s been almost a month,” he repeated his thoughts, “why can’t we find her?”
“Vincent is blocking her. Although his magic is strong, it is not nearly as practiced as mine. He will slip up, and when he does, you will be the first to know.” Carmen lightly touched his shoulder.
He looked down at the aging woman and smiled lightly. Anastasia looked so much like her grandmother. He could see the strength in her face and the resolution in her eyes. There was no doubt in her mind that they would find and rescue Ana, and when they did, they could start putting an end to this war.
“Dakota, we need you.” Tony, the head of the Fighters of Terrenia, opened the door to the small cottage and peered inside.
“Coming. Let me know if you find anything.”
“You know I will.” Carmen smiled softly at him.
“How is the tracking going?” Tony asked him as soon as they were outside. If you didn’t know how gentle he could be, Tony would intimidate even the brawniest of men. He stood at least three inches taller than Dakota and had twice the muscle mass he could have ever even hoped for, but Dakota knew that deep down he was just as scared that they may never find Anastasia. She had been like a daughter to Tony ever since she had been taken to Terrenia as a teenager.
“Nothing yet.” He shook his head as they walked the short distance back to the village. “Why hasn’t she opened another portal and come home?” he whispered loudly to Tony. If the other villagers knew she possessed that ability and still hadn’t come back, the rumors would get worse, and those who still believed would begin to lose hope. Dakota knew that once that happened, they wouldn’t stand a chance.
“Carmen said that Vincent is blocking her, correct?”
Dakota nodded.
“Then he may have her somewhere she can’t use her magic. Be blocking her powers just the same as he is keeping us from tracking her.”
Tony’s reply did little to soothe the growing fear in Dakota’s chest. Deep in his bones he knew they had to find her soon, or they may never get her back, and that was something he knew he wouldn’t survive. None of them would. Without Ana, they didn’t stand a chance against Vincent. She had been the one who had been prophesized to bring his demise. Without her, no one else held the power that would be needed to end this war, not even Carmen.
They walked into Tony’s cottage, which had become the new headquarters for the war. Maps hung on the walls tracking where the Brutes were moving in this dimension as well as where they had been in Seattle. They were continuing to bring more weapons through, and it seemed as though the more Brutes they took down, the more they continued to just pour into Terrenia.
“There’s been an attack at one of our outposts.” Brady came through the door directly behind them. He was covered in dirt and bruises, and Dakota gave him a look-over to make sure there were no serious wounds.
Brady was one of Anastasia’s closest friends, and he knew that when it came time to bring her back, they needed all the familiar faces they could find, not to mention the fact that Anastasia would kill him if he let anything happen to Brady. He had also grown to respect the boy who had been forced to grow into a man much too soon. Brady reminded him of himself, being that they had both lost their fathers as kids. Granted, Dakota had been much older than the five-year-old Brady.
“Shit,” Tony cursed, and turned to the map of Terrenia. “Where?”
Brady stepped past him and pointed to a spot just east of the village. “The scouts must have not even seen it coming. When we arrived to get the activity report, there was no one left. We ran into a few Brutes on our way out, but none of our people were there.”
“Shit,” Dakota repeated after Tony. “We have to find a way for some advance warning. Man, what I would give for an alarm system and some electricity right about now.”
“Alarm system?” Tony asked.
“Back where I come from, people can install alarms in their houses so if anyone enters who isn’t supposed to be there, it goes off, alerting anyone who might be in the house and can even be set up to alert the police.”
“That would definitely be helpful,” Tony agreed.
Terrenia had no power or running water, which had been an adjustment at first, but now Dakota found that he had grown accustomed to and rather enjoyed the silence that surrounded the village. There were no bright lights that drowned out the light from the stars, no traffic noise or horns blaring from the cars of angry drivers. Children here played outside with each other, rather than locking themselves in the house with video games.
“I’ve got it!” Robbie burst into the house, a large smile on his aging face. Robbie, along with his family and neighbors, had been sent through a portal from Seattle when Brutes had attacked their safe house. Anastasia had used the last portal vial they had in order to save them, and Robbie had made it his own personal mission to see that the village survived long enough for her to come back and finish the war. He had been a structural engineer back in Seattle, and had proven himself to be a valuable asset. Thanks to him, they had managed to beef up the structure of the wall and the outlying guard buildings.
“Got what?” Brady asked him.
“Platinum-coated stakes!” he said, and looked around the room waiting for everyone to catch up with him. When no one responded, he continued, “The Brutes have been blowing past our barriers, right? As if they aren’t even there. Even if the stakes manage to wound them, they don’t take any significant damage. But if we coat the tips in even just a small amount of platinum, then we may be able to slow them enough that we can either get our people out or put them down permanently.”
The simple nature of the plan was so brilliant that Dakota wondered why they hadn’t considered it before. Platinum was much easier to come by in Terrenia than it was back home, so he knew it was completely doable.
“That’s a fantastic idea Robbie!” Tony patted him on the back. Robbie looked up at him and smiled cautiously, and Dakota could see he was completely aware that Tony could break him if he wasn’t careful.
“It is a great idea, Robbie,” Brady agreed. “The only issue I see is making it to the mountains to get more platinum. We could also use the extra to coat the new weapons that Wade has been forging.”
“Is the way blocked by Brute camps?” Dakota asked Brady.
Brady nodded and walked to the map to begin searching it for a clear path. “The only way I see that it would be possible is here.” He pointed and traced his finger along the road. “There are two Brute camps here and here, but it is by far the most manageable. We won’t make it anywhere close to the mountains any other way.”
“Then that’s the way we will go,” Dakota said, and stood staring at the map for a moment. “How many Fighters do we have available?”
“We have thirty that are not currently tasked on something else,” Tony responded.
“We will take eight. Then the rest can stay here.”
“Eight?” Brady asked, surprised. “Why only eight?”
“If we take a smaller group, we may be able to sneak past the camps. Less risk that way,” Dakota answered, studying the map.
“But if we can’t sneak past?” Brady asked, worried.
“Then we engage. There will be ten of us including Dakota and I.” Tony pointed towards the map. “It’s a much better idea to go on a stealth mission rather than a full attack. We don’t have the manpower if they decide they want to counterattack the village.”
Brady nodded. “Want me to stay behind?”
“Yes.” Dakota turned to face him. “I know you’re skilled, Brady, and you’ve been in Terrenia a whole hell of a lot longer than me, but that’s why I need you to stay behind.”
“All right. Mom will be happy I’m staying behind on this one.” Brady laughed. “I feel like I haven’t seen her in weeks.”
“Go rest up, son, we will see you in a bit to talk about our plan.” Tony patted Brady on the shoulder and watched as he walked out. “Kid grew up too fast,” Tony said, echoing Dakota’s earlier thoughts.
Dakota nodded and then rubbed his hands over his face. The last couple of months had begun to feel more like years, and he couldn’t wait for the day he got to hold Ana in his arms again.