The monster's jaw curled upwards in what looked like a smile as it advanced upon Jake. It took its time now, knowing it had a clear advantage. Jake gritted his teeth against the pain that was wearing through his body again as the adrenaline rush began to slow and his previous wounds from the brobot were starting to ache. He focused on the black figure through dirt-stained glasses. His eyes followed as the monster crept towards him with agonizing slowness. Suddenly, the monster opened its mouth and looked to Jake's right. Before he had a chance to turn and see what it was looking at, a huge weight crashed into him from the side and sent him flying across the grass.
He landed on his back hard which forced the breath out of his lungs. The surprise attack sent another spurt of adrenaline through him and he was able to get to his feet between gasps for much-needed air. He did a quick 360 degree turn and nearly sat back down in the grass when his eyes locked on what had attacked him. His eyes widened and he took an involuntary step back as his brain struggled to come to terms with his new enemy. It was a woman. She was easily twice Jake's size and her skin was a pale grey color. Bright horns protruded from the top of her head and her attire made her look like she had been an aspiring scuba diver. Jake shook his head to try and focus, but before he could make a move to defend himself the woman had used her trident to knock him to the ground and pin him there.
She smiled down at Jake as he tried to struggle against the cold steel burning against his skin, showing rows of sharp, pointed teeth that made him cringe. The grin widened when she spoke.
"No use in struggling dear, you should be flattered the Condescendence came all the way here to catch you!"
Now Jake was really confused. Who was this woman? Why was she so concerned about him? Had he done anything to merit someone wanting to catch him? And why couldn't he just ask her these things?
Oh wait. That would be the trident cutting off his air supply.
He coughed and resumed struggling, trying to get another breath. She sighed and shifted her weight slightly so he could breathe and would still be unable to move. Jake panted as he caught his breath and looked up at his captor.
"What in God's great name are you doing here? Who are you? What do you want? Get off of me!"
She laughed at this barrage of questions and waved them away with her other hand.
"I can tell you the answer to only one of those questions, boy, and you have already heard it. The rest will have to wait until we become friends and I know I can trust you. Now," she stood and beckoned to the monster that had been calmly watching from afar "you, Jake English, are coming back to where we are from. And since I can't have you messing up our traveling plans…" she trailed off as she made another gesture to the monster. Jake heard it coming closer and gave one more valiant effort to get free before something struck the side of his head violently and he lost consciousness.
Now Dirk was seriously worried. He ground the heel of his hand into his forehead and stood up to walk across his room. For someone who had survived for years alone on an island, Jake had more than a few issues actually paying attention to his surroundings. Thank God the kid had some sort of natural instincts. Dirk turned back towards his computer and allowed himself to stare blankly at the idle icon next to Jake's handle for a few moments. If he didn't come back on in a few minutes, Dirk was going to have to do something. It did not take longer before Dirk realized he really only had one option if he needed to go to Jake's aid. He knew his new, larger, transmaterializer was still in the prototype phase, but if Jake was seriously in danger it was a risk he was going to have to take. He had already successfully sent a couple of smaller things through it to Jake, but a person was no small matter.
As minutes ticked by agonizingly slowly, Dirk felt his stomach twisting into knots. Something was up and he knew Jake would have contacted him by now if everything was okay. He leaned over his computer and sent Jake a message. A few more tense moments were allowed to pass before Dirk powered down his computer and grabbed his shades. After tossing a small collection of various survival items into his bag, Dirk took one final look at his room. Was he really going to run the risk of never being able to return to his life? There was no way for him to come back once he had sent himself across time and space; it simply did not work like that. He shrugged the backpack over his shoulder and pulled the strap tight across his chest. He did not even have to give that notion a second thought; he would do anything for his best bro.
Dirk picked up his katana before walking down the hall towards the workshop. He pulled open the door and surveyed his handiwork. The transmaterializing machine dominated one full corner of his workshop. His two favorite robots were powered down and tucked away against their respective pieces of wall. The desk against the back of the room was a clutter of plans and pieces he had been working on the night before. Dirk sighed and turned back to the large machine. The handle felt smooth against his hand as he pulled it open and stepped inside. He quickly checked the co-ordinates on the display to make sure they were still taking him to Jake's island and took a deep breath. The 'Send' button glowed underneath his index finger as he hesitated. He hated not knowing what he was getting himself into, but the Strider code explicitly called for helping bros in need. Besides, Jake was one of his best friends and no one just left their friends when they were needed.
"Fuck it. Let's go see what English is up to." Dirk grinned at Lil Cal peeping out of his backpack before slamming his fist down on the button.
Dirk felt his feet hit the ground and gulped in a welcome breath of air. He watched as the rest of himself appeared and allowed himself a quick smile of victory. From what he could tell from their endless hours of video-chat, he was in English's room.
"God Cal, just look at all these lame-ass movie posters… We are definitely in the right place".
Cal's smile of agreement pulled Dirk out of his distracting curiosity.
"Shit Cal we can't get distracted by this! We have to find English somehow." He gave the straps of his pack a quick tug to make sure it was on securely.
"Okay, he said the noise originated from the kitchen so we should start there."
Cal nodded in approval and Dirk made his way through Jake's room and through the rest of the house until he located what he assumed used to be the kitchen. It had been completely torn through and, fuck, was that blood on the tile?! He grimaced as his stomach twisted into anxious knots. What if Jake was seriously injured? Dirk shook his head and made himself focus on the scene in front of him. Luckily, it was easy enough for him to read what had happened and he followed the action out the destroyed front door.
Had he been there visiting, Dirk would have been amazed by the beauty of the island, the enchanting sounds of the wildlife, and the great power of the ocean's waves. However, his eyes were locked on to the multiple bullet casings that were strewn about and the odd stains on matted patches of grass. His stomach turned and he pulled out his katana. Having a firm grip on something was reassuring, and he continued walking. Suddenly he heard voices, one of them he distinctly recognized.
Jake sounded like he was in pain and the voice that responded to him sounded anything but friendly. Dirk broke into a sprint towards the voices coming from the forest, throwing off his backpack in the process. As he ran, he heard a terrible thudding sound followed by a horrible stretch of silence. The conversation had stopped but Dirk kept running, desperation making his adrenaline spike. He heard the horrible voice that had been talking to Jake begin to bark orders which were answered by some sort of dog-like noises. Dirk skidded to a stop and pressed up against the back of a tree when he heard the powerful voice say:
"We need to get the page back to Derse before anything else goes wrong."
Dirk's mind searched for answers. Derse? Why the fuck is something from Derse on Jake's island? I don't remember him mentioning anything about this…
A long sigh punctuated the air before the voice continued, "It's so tiring having to come all the way out to a desolate island such as this to round up some idiot human, and look he even managed to wound you after all. Hurry up and open the portal so we can get back. We don't need him waking up before he is properly restrained."
Sudden realization hit Dirk like a semi-truck. He took a half-step backward and gasped. That was the voice of the batterwitch. She had come all the way here from Derse to take Jake! Dammit, he would not let that happen. His eyes set in determination and he pulled away from the tree to see her and a little crony standing in front of a whirling portal. The winged creature had Jake unceremoniously draped over his shoulder and Dirk's blood boiled in rage.
"Hey! I think that's my friend you have there you pieces of shit!" Not very cool, but it would have to do.
The batterwitch turned in surprise at his voice and she smiled as she realized who he was.
"Ah the prince of heart huh? I was not expecting to see you again this soon in my little game. I suppose I can't count on all of my pawns to do exactly what they are told to do all the time!" She clapped her hands together gleefully, "Oh but that will make this so much more fun!"
Dirk had began to charge at them, wielding his katana expertly, but the woman just laughed and walked into the portal with a "Not now my little prince! Not all my pieces are in place yet! Consider your little friend as restitution for what you did to my poor little Brute!" The monster carrying Jake's limp body followed closely behind her. Dirk leapt towards the portal in a desperate attempt to break through and follow them, but ended up doing a face plant into the dirt on the other side. He rolled back onto his back just in time to watch the small hole wink out of existence. His stomach dropped to his feet and pulled his heart down with it as he realized he had failed.
Jake was gone.