In the days that followed, the reunited campers prepared for the final battle looming on the horizon. They did not know exactly when Dorian and the DuValls would strike, but they knew, now that Thomas was gone, they had to do this on their own. As always, it was Duncan who focused hardest on their goal. But he was not alone. They were now all dedicated to ending the war. The driving force behind their renewed vigor was the threat of the Reckoning virus. Izzy, Noah, Harold, and Cody had taken it upon themselves to find a way to stop the virus, should Dorian unleash it. They were hindered in their efforts however, mainly by the fact that they did not know how the virus was constructed or what it was being stored in. Still, they would not give up.
A week and a half after Thomas' death, Gwen and Trent were out gathering supplies when they were approached by a man in black. They recognized him immediately as one of Dorian's soldiers.
"What do you want?" Trent asked, looking suspiciously at the man.
"I was sent to tell you that my master is ready." the soldier replied. "The final battle begins in two days. My master and the assassins will be waiting in woods outside of town. Meet them there and this conflict will be settled." He bowed and disappeared.
Gwen and Trent looked at one another and then ran back to the hotel. They burst into the room they had been using for planning, startling Lindsey and Beth, who were the only ones there.
"Where the hell is everyone?" Gwen asked looking from Lindsey to Beth.
"Don't know." said Beth, shrugging. "We came in to see if there was anything we could do and the room was empty."
"Shit!" said Gwen, impatiently. "Why is no one ever there when I did them to be?"
"What's so urgent that you need everyone to be here?" asked Lindsey.
"We were just approached by one of Dorian's goons." said Trent. "He said we have two days until Dorian will be ready to settle this."
"Oh, no!" said Beth. "Will we be ready in time?"
"We will be, if we can just find the others." said Gwen, rolling her eyes. "Where the hell could they be?"
"Well, Duncan did say something earlier about going for food, but I didn't catch exactly what he said." said Lindsey.
"Oh, that's just fucking spectacular." cried Gwen. "Here we are about to face the greatest challenge of our lives, and everyone's out getting snacks. Does no one take this seriously?"
Just then, the others entered, loaded up with massive amounts of food. Owen spotted Gwen and, seeing the look on her face, stopped up short, causing the others to crash into him.
"Ow! Owen, what the hell? Did you have a stroke or something?" asked Duncan. He too caught sight of Gwen. "Oh, hey Gwen." he said smiling. She glared at him. "Uh, Gwen, is something wrong?" Duncan asked.
"Is something wrong?" she exploded. "You all were just out gathering snacks while there's a psychotic killer giving us an ultimatum and you're asking me if something is wrong? Fuck you! Of course something is wrong Duncan. Nothing has been right since we got here."
"Alright, shit, I was just asking." he said. "You don't have to tear me a new one, for fuck's sake."
Ignoring Duncan, Courtney asked, "Did you just say we were given an ultimatum?"
"Yes." said Gwen. "Trent and I were out gathering supplies, when one of Dorian's soldiers approached us and told us we have two days until the final battle begins."
"Well, shit. That ain't good." said D.J. "Are we gonna be ready in two days?"
"It looks like we're gonna have to be." said Chef. "We don't seem to have much choice in the matter, and to be honest, I'm ready now. Let's end this once and for all."
Two days later, they left the hotel, for what was likely their last time. They headed for the clearing in the woods they had been told to meet at. After walking for an hour, they arrived, to find Dorian was already there. He was flanked by the DuValls and around two hundred of his personal soldiers. As the former campers approached Dorian opened his arms wide in greeting before speaking.
"Welcome, my friends, welcome." he said. "Welcome to the final battle that will decide the fate of this little conflict. I hope you are all prepared and have made your peace. I cannot promise a quick death, but I can promise death. Now, step into the arena and face your destiny."
" Well aren't you just a cocky sack of monkey shit?" said Duncan, an evil grin on his face. "You seem pretty confident Dorian, but don't forget, he who laughs last laughs best and he who bleeds first bleeds the most."
"Well said, but words will not gain you victory." said Dorian.
Brenden stepped forward, glanced at Dorian and then said, "You think you have what it takes to destroy us, but do not forget that we kill for a living and we enjoy our job." After a few seconds of posing, Brenden asked, "If I may Dorian, I would like to challenge one of our fine guests to combat."
"By all means Brenden, be my guest." said Dorian, smirking. "Who would you like to face?"
"Her." Brenden said pointing at Gwen. "One on one, no interference, to the death. Bare knuckle."
Gwen looked at the others, unsure if she wanted to except. Trent looked at her and nodded. With that, Gwen stepped forward and faced Brenden down. "You can do it Gwen." Izzy shouted. Gwen drew a deep breath and lunged at her opponent.
Brenden sidestepped easily and caught Gwen with an elbow to the head. Gwen stumbled, but caught herself. She threw a kick at Brenden's midsection, connecting this time. Brenden staggered backwards, but did not fall. They each landed several more hits, each drawing blood.
Brenden stopped, and peeled off his jacket, throwing it aside. He then drilled Gwen in the face with a wicked right hook, that sent her sprawling. Trent jerked, moving towards the battle, but Chef stopped him. Gwen got to her feet, only to catch more blows from Brenden. "Come on Gwen." he taunted. "What's the matter, never fought an assassin before?" Gwen gave him the finger and nailed him with a brutal roundhouse kick, drawing cheers from her fellow campers. Brenden shook off the blow and motioned to his sister.
"Let's make this interesting." he said, as Aneka tossed him two swords. Brenden caught them and tossed one to Gwen, who caught it. She stared at the blade for a moment before Brenden lunged at her. She raised her blade in time to block his swing. Brenden twisted away from her and came back for another swing. Again Gwen was able to block the swing.
The blades clanged loudly as they clashed. Gwen held her own, despite never having fought with swords in her life. She slashed him several times, drawing blood. He got her as well. Finally Gwen went for the kill, aiming her blade for Brenden's throat. He sidestepped and swung, shattering her blade with his own. Caught off guard, Gwen turned, and felt Brenden's blade pierce her midsection. Her eyes widened in shock, and she gasped in pain. "NO!" Trent shouted from the sidelines. Brenden held Gwen close for a moment and whispered, "Goodbye, Gwen."
Brenden withdrew his blade from Gwen's body and turned away from her. She stood for a few seconds, before falling, her broken blade slipping from her hand as she hit the ground. Brenden walked back towards Dorian and Aneka a smirk on his face. As he reached them he felt something behind him. He turned to find Gwen rising to her feet. He charged, blade raised, but she caught him in the midsection with a knee. As Brenden doubled over in pain, Gwen wrapped her arm around his head. With one quick upward thrust, she snapped his neck, killing him instantly. She dropped his body and stood for a moment in shock, as did everyone else, before staggering backwards. Trent caught her, a smile on his face.
Dorian looked over at the campers, hatred in his eyes, drawing a small metal sphere from his pocket, speaking as he did. "First blood goes to you, but let us see how you deal with the Reckoning."
