Days of Darkness: Awakening

Chapter 18: Down to Business

The following morning, everyone met in the conference room to discuss further plans. Even though the previous day was filled with joy and fun, they knew that those moments wouldn't mean much of anything unless they made it into more permanent conditions. The bottom line remained the same – the world needed to be rid of Dante's reign of terror forever.

As Damien, Christian, Diamond, and Nadia all sat down, Cyris stood at the head of the table to speak.

"My friends," he started, "we have come to a point in time where we need to fight back. Everything we have faced has led us all to this moment. All of us are together because of a common enemy. And that enemy is Dante. We have a name and face to our tormentor. And now, it's time for us to take him down. That being said, we need a permanent solution. One that'll rid this world of him forever. Now, we have one solution in progress and it's our most viable course of action. Christian, can you elaborate on that for us?"

"According to the data that was gathered by Damien and Nadia, Dante made it here through a wormhole that opened up in front of a building on the UIC campus. Now, Diamond and I have been working on a device that will replicate that same wormhole."

Diamond stepped in, "And as you all know, that device works, but only to a certain degree."

"What do you mean, 'to a certain degree'?" Nadia asked.

"We saw it working the day the Night-stalkers invaded and destroyed the lab," Christian. "But the stability of the wormhole isn't quite there yet. At this point, it could potentially do more harm than good."

"Do we have a time frame as to when it'll be ready to go?" Cyris inquired.

Christian looked down at his notes. "According to my calculations, two days. But that's if everything goes how I plan it to. I still need to figure out the stability issue. But I am hopeful."

Damien interrupted. "We still need to find him. I mean, honestly, there's no point in doing all of the planning if we still can't locate him. He could be anywhere in the city."

Cyris looked over to Damien and said, "I have an idea for that." Everyone sat up at full attention. "Now, we've all concluded that both you and Dante are linked somehow, Damien. There's no denying that. You both share the same, exact abilities. That brings me to my solution. There was a machine that was being developed here about ten years ago that would allow someone to link their mind with someone else's, even at great distances. Now, it's only a prototype. It never got tested in the field. I think now would be a perfect time to try it out. If something were to go wrong, I truly think that your body would be able to withstand it. But it's totally up to you. Also, Damien, I've thought of some specialized training just for you. I think we should get started right away."

Nadia immediately objected to that idea. "Cyris, that would mean unlocking whatever it is that Dante has? No! You can't! It's beyond not safe. As both his doctor and his girlfriend, I can't agree with it."

"From a military standpoint, we don't have a choice," Diamond suggested. "We need to, somehow, level the playing field. And this is possibly the best way of doing that. As much as it pains me to admit, we're severely outmatched in every way. Going in without some sort of trump card would be suicide."

Nadia gazes over at Damien - obviously concerned. "No, Damien. What if you can't control it? What if this power takes over? You can't put yourself at risk like that."

"There's no other way, babe. We can't beat him without some kind of edge. I am that edge. I've accepted that. We all have. I know what I need to do now. I need to be the one to take him down."

Tears began running down Nadia's face. "But what if you can't control it, Damien?"

"Then, you kill me. Take me off the board. The first sign of me going out of control, you kill me. No questions asked." Damien, then, looked over to Christian. "I want you to do it, Chris. You take my dagger." He pulled the dagger from his side and slid it across the table to Christian. "If anything goes wrong, bro, you put an end to it." He looked back over to Nadia and held her hand as he wiped the tears from her eyes. "You've gotta trust me on this, babe. It's the only way."