When the first wave was done, John raced to the house. Jack met him at the door with a shotgun in his hands.
"What do we do now?" Abigail asked. "Stay inside, like I said. There's more coming," John told them, then rushed out the door. Jack tried to follow but his mother held him back.
The boy lunged forward and Abigail lost her grip. Outside, Arthur's herd were lined up in front of the house like army soldiers waiting for a command. Uncle gripped his gun and Arthur pawed at the ground, then snorted angrily. On the horizon, dust rose off the ground as thousands of horses ran towards the house.
"Pa, what do they want?" Jack asked.
"I don't know, son. But whatever it is, it ends here." John hoped that was true, but he knew that someone was gonna die on this battlefield.
"Look how many there are. They're gonna kill us, aren't they?"
Arthur sounded frightened by his words.
Killed? No. Not again. I'm NOT gonna let that happen twice!
Rufus barked and ran into the barn. The army was closer and charged up the hill. As soon as they got to the top, the deer charged at them.
"I won't let you take them again!" John cocked his rifle and shot a few of the soldiers down.
Arthur tried to find Ross in the middle of it. He finally spotted him going round the corner of the house. The buck felt anger rising in him and remembered their first meeting...
"Well, look who we have here. Arthur, isn't it? Arthur Morgan?" the man walked towards him and Jack.
He put a hand to his chest, "Agent Milton, and Agent Ross. Pinkerton detective agents. You're a wanted man, Mr. Morgan. $5,000 for your head alone."
Arthur lowered his antlers and ran at Ross, hitting him with full force. He tumbled to the ground and rolled a few feet away before stopping. The buck pined the old man down and raised up on his hind legs. His sharp hooves came down at full force and Ross's world went black.
Meanwhile, Uncle, Jack, and John were still fighting off the army. A bullet hit Uncle in the chest and he fell.
"Darn it! I'm hit!"
"Uncle!" Jack ran to him. John killed the rest of the soldiers and joined them.
"Hang in there, Uncle! I'm gonna get you outta here safe!"
Uncle coughed. "I ain't got time, John. Ain't gonna make it off this porch anyhow. Take Abigail, Jack, and Art-" a cough got in the way and stopped the words. "Don't worry about me. Get'em outta here!"
His body jolted and then went limp. He was dead. Arthur's ears went down and he lowered his head.
"Oh my God! They killed him!"
John slowly walked back into the house. "Come on, son. Ain't nothing we can do for him now!"
Arthur kept watch outside with the herd. I'm sorry, Uncle, he thought.
The family raced past him to the barn.
Jack and Abigail got on a horse and Rufus sat in the corner. Arthur and the herd kept watch outside the barn door when a doe gave a call.
"Arthur, take your herd and get out of here. Save yourself," John insisted. The buck shook his head. Arthur looked up at Abigail and Jack.
"Goodbye, Arthur," Abigail whispered. The animal nodded. John smacked the horse and it ran out of the barn. Rufus followed. Arthur started towards the door but his brother stopped him.
"Art- Arthur, are you sure we can do this? Two of us Vs. all of them. We don't stand a chance."
Arthur turned tail and walked out the back door. He let out a call into the air and sunlight shone down on him, turning his pelt golden. An eagle flew down and landed on his right antler while a rattlesnake slithered up.
Hi Lenny, hi Sean. Hey, can you two maybe help us with something?
The snake nodded. Sure thing, Arthur Morgan.
Thanks, Sean. What about you, Lenny?
The eagle looked down at the deer and nodded. Arthur looked at John and smiled.
"Okay, we need a plan. We need to take these guys out!"
I think I have an idea. Arthur smirked. While he told Lenny and Sean his plan, John looked outside the barn door to see where the army was. Lenny screeched and launched himself into the air. He perched on a tree branch and waited for Arthur's signal.
Sean slithered into a hole and traveled underground to pop up by the house. Arthur snuck out of the barn and gathered his herd, waiting just outside of the fence.
"John! Get out here!" Ross called. As soon as the barn doors opened, Arthur jumped up and down then ran towards the army with his herd. Lenny screeched and launched into the sky, followed by some birds.
Ah, it's the signal! Sean slithered into the army soldiers and bit Edgar Ross' leg, making him scream. The birds dive-bombed them while the deer charged. John drew his revolver and shot Edgar, killing him, then took out more soldiers. Some ran off, some fought. Eventually, it ended.
Abigail and Jack heard the gunshots. "What was that? Jack, we have to go back for Pa," Abigail said. Jack turned the horse around and ran back to Beachers Hope. Bodies were on the ground, covered in dust and blood.
John, Arthur, Rufus, Lenny, and Sean rushed to them and rejoiced.
"You're alive! Your both alive!" Abigail hugged her husband and Jack made sure Rufus was alright. Arthur looked at Sean and Lenny.
Thank you, he thought. The eagle screeched and took off, leaving a few black feathers behind. The snake rattled his tail and retreated into a hole in the ground. The buck noticed something black on the ridge and saw Micah sitting with his tail over his front paws. As if he could read the wolf's mind, Arthur knew what he was thinking.
You haven't seen the last of me...