The Showdown
Joseph couldn’t sleep that night. His mind was a swirling storm of memories, fear, and rage. Every time he closed his eyes, he saw the shapeshifters’ camp, the monstrous figures moving in and out of the firelight, plotting the destruction of everything he held dear. And then there was Vust—his old friend, standing among them like he belonged there, laughing, scheming. It had been years since Joseph had last seen him, and now, the image of Vust grinning beside those creatures was burned into his mind. It felt like a betrayal of the highest order, a punch to the gut that left Joseph reeling.
But there was no time for sentimentality. The shapeshifters were planning something catastrophic, and they had a bomb capable of wiping Avaleris off the map. The time for questions and second-guessing was over. Action was needed, and it was needed now.
The next morning, Joseph made preparations. He fortified the ranch as best as he could, reinforcing the doors and windows, locking away supplies. His children, unaware of the looming danger, played outside with their favorite Triceratops, the large, lumbering creatures happily munching on the grass as the kids laughed. Joseph watched them with a heavy heart, knowing that whatever happened next, his family needed to be protected.
Lila noticed the shift in his demeanor. She approached him while he was sharpening his old blade, the serrated edge glinting in the early morning light. It was an heirloom, passed down through his family for generations, said to be enchanted by one of the old gods. Joseph didn’t know if he believed the stories, but the blade had always been with him in his darkest moments, and he trusted it more than any rifle.
“You’re leaving, aren’t you?” Lila’s voice was soft but firm. She wasn’t one to mince words when it came to matters of life and death.
Joseph paused, looking up at her. He could see the worry etched into her face, the way her eyes lingered on the blade. He sighed, wiping the sweat from his brow as he placed the knife down. “I have to,” he said quietly. “There’s something out there, something worse than we’ve ever seen. If I don’t stop it, everything we’ve built, everything we love… it’ll all be gone.”
Lila’s eyes shimmered with unshed tears, but she didn’t argue. She knew better. They had always faced their problems head-on, side by side, but this was something Joseph had to do alone. “Just promise me you’ll come back,” she whispered, stepping closer and placing a hand on his chest. “Promise me you’ll come back to us.”
Joseph’s throat tightened. He couldn’t make that promise, not truthfully, but he nodded anyway, pulling her into a tight embrace. “I’ll do everything I can.”
That night, under the cover of darkness, Joseph rode out. His plan was simple—find the shapeshifters, stop them from detonating the bomb, and make sure his family and his world survived. It was a suicide mission, and he knew it. The creatures were too many, and he was just one man. But if he could take them by surprise, if he could stop the bomb before they could deploy it, maybe, just maybe, there was a chance.
He followed their trail into the wilderness, his horse navigating the rocky terrain with ease. The plains stretched out before him, vast and silent, the stars above blinking coldly as if watching his journey with indifference. As he rode, Joseph’s thoughts drifted to his children. He pictured Evie’s determined little face, Maria’s sweet smile, and Jack’s wild energy. He saw Lila, strong and steadfast, waiting for him at the ranch, her heart heavy with worry. They were the reason he had to do this. They were the reason he couldn’t fail.
After hours of riding, Joseph found himself at the edge of a cave system he hadn’t known existed. It was hidden deep within the plains, masked by the natural contours of the land. The entrance was wide and dark, the jagged rocks resembling the gaping maw of some ancient beast. Joseph dismounted, securing his horse to a nearby tree. His gut told him this was the place. He could feel it in the air, a thick, oppressive energy that seemed to pulse from within the cave.
Drawing his blade, Joseph made his way inside.
The cave was a labyrinth of narrow passageways, the air damp and heavy with the scent of earth and stone. Joseph moved with purpose, his senses on high alert. The deeper he went, the more he could hear—faint voices, the low hum of machinery, the unmistakable growl of the shapeshifters. He pressed on, following the sound until he reached a large chamber.
There, at the center of the cave, was the bomb.
It was massive, far larger than the device he had seen at their camp. Wires snaked out from its core, connecting to strange, glowing crystals embedded in the walls of the cave. The bomb hummed with an ominous energy, its surface pulsing with a sickly green light. Shapeshifters moved around it, their hulking forms shifting between human and beast as they worked to prepare the device for detonation.
And standing at the heart of it all, overseeing the operation with a cold, calculating gaze, was Vust Oreamia.
Joseph’s breath caught in his throat. Vust looked older now, harder, his once playful smirk replaced with a grim determination. He was dressed in dark, functional clothing, his eyes sharp as they swept over the shapeshifters, giving orders with a calm authority that sent chills down Joseph’s spine. This was no longer the friend Joseph had once known. This was a man who had embraced the chaos, who had chosen power over loyalty.
Joseph stepped forward, his boots scuffing against the stone floor. The sound echoed through the chamber, drawing the attention of the shapeshifters. They snarled, baring their fangs, their eyes glowing with a predatory light as they turned to face him.
But Vust didn’t react immediately. He stood there, his back to Joseph, his head tilted slightly as if listening to something only he could hear. Then, slowly, he turned around, a small, humorless smile curling at the edges of his lips.
“Well, well,” Vust said, his voice smooth and cold. “Look who’s decided to join the party.”
Joseph gripped his blade tighter, his knuckles white. “What the hell are you doing, Vust? This isn’t you.”
Vust’s smile faded, his expression hardening. “You don’t know me, Joseph. Not anymore. You think I’m the same kid who used to run around town, pulling pranks and getting into trouble? That was a lifetime ago. The world’s changing, and I’ve adapted. You should too.”
Joseph shook his head, taking a step closer. “Adapted? You’re planning to destroy Avaleris, Vust! You’re going to wipe out everything—our families, our homes. For what? For power? Is that what you’ve become?”
Vust’s eyes flashed with anger. “You don’t get it, do you? The world’s already falling apart. You’ve been hiding on your ranch, pretending everything’s fine, but out here, beyond your little bubble, everything’s crumbling. I’m just speeding things up.”
Joseph’s heart pounded in his chest. “You don’t have to do this. We can stop it, Vust. We can fix things.”
Vust’s expression softened for a moment, and for the briefest of seconds, Joseph thought he saw a flicker of the man he used to know. But it was gone just as quickly as it had appeared, replaced by cold, unyielding resolve.
“No,” Vust said quietly. “This is the way it has to be.”
Joseph felt a surge of anger, his grip tightening on the hilt of his blade. “Not if I have anything to say about it.”
Vust’s smile returned, but there was no warmth in it. “I was hoping you’d say that.”
With a flick of his wrist, Vust signaled to the shapeshifters, and in an instant, they charged.
Joseph’s instincts took over. He moved with the precision and strength of a man who had spent his entire life working the land, his muscles honed by years of hard labor. He swung his blade in a wide arc, the enchanted steel slicing through the air with a sharp hiss. The first shapeshifter lunged at him, its massive claws extended, but Joseph was faster. He ducked under its swipe, driving his blade into its side. The creature let out a howl of pain, its body convulsing as it fell to the ground.
But there were more—dozens of them. They circled him, their glowing eyes filled with hunger and rage. Joseph fought with everything he had, using the narrow passages of the cave to his advantage, forcing the creatures to come at him one by one. The blade cut through their thick hides, sending sprays of dark blood across the stone floor. He moved with a grace that belied his age, his body fueled by adrenaline and the desperate need to protect his family.
But it wasn’t enough.
For every shapeshifter he took down, two more appeared, their snarls echoing through the chamber. Joseph’s arms ached, his breath coming in ragged gasps as he fought to keep them at bay. His body, worn from years of ranching, was starting to give out. He could feel it in the way his muscles burned, in the way his movements slowed, his strikes becoming less precise.
And then he saw it.
The bomb, pulsing with an unnatural light, was nearly ready to detonate. The shapeshifters had done their work well, and the device was primed to unleash its destructive force upon Avaleris.
Joseph knew what he had to do.
With a roar of defiance, he fought his way through the horde of shapeshifters, his blade cutting a path toward the bomb. His body screamed in protest, blood trickling down his arms from cuts and scrapes, but he didn’t stop. He couldn’t stop.
As he reached the bomb, he glanced over his shoulder, locking eyes with Vust one last time. Vust stood there, watching him, his expression unreadable.
“I’m sorry,” Joseph whispered, though he wasn’t sure if the words were meant for Vust or for his family.
With a final surge of strength, Joseph drove his blade into the core of the bomb, its enchanted edge slicing through the machinery with a crackling hiss. The device sputtered, sparks flying as the crystals embedded in the walls shattered.
The bomb was disabled.
But the shapeshifters weren’t finished. They swarmed him, their claws tearing into his flesh as they attacked with savage fury. Joseph fell to his knees, blood pooling around him, his vision dimming.
In his final moments, as the world faded around him, Joseph’s thoughts drifted to his wife and children. He pictured Lila’s face, her smile, the warmth of her touch. He saw Evie, Maria, and Jack, their laughter filling the air as they played in the fields, their joy untainted by the darkness of the world.
And then, there was nothing.
Joseph Smitthy had saved Avaleris. But he had paid the ultimate price.
As the shapeshifters retreated, their bomb disabled, Vust Oreamia stood in the shadows, watching the scene unfold. His expression remained cold, though his eyes lingered on Joseph’s fallen form for a moment longer than he intended. There was a strange flicker in his chest, a pull deep inside that he hadn’t felt in years, but he pushed it down, locking it away as he had done with every other feeling that had threatened to shake his resolve.
Joseph Smitthy—his oldest friend, the man who had been more like a brother to him than anyone else—lay still in the center of the cave, his body broken, his blood staining the ground beneath him. For a moment, Vust considered walking over, standing beside him one last time. But what was the point? Joseph had made his choice, and so had Vust.
The shapeshifters around him snarled, their frustration palpable. They had been so close to detonating the bomb, so close to achieving their goal. But Joseph had stopped them, and in doing so, he had crippled their plans, at least for now.
Vust’s cold gaze drifted to the remains of the bomb, sparks still sputtering from the severed wires and shattered crystals. The device was beyond repair, its power neutralized, but the shapeshifters wouldn’t give up that easily. They never did. Their cause—whatever twisted ideology had driven them to this point—would push them to try again. Vust had no illusions about that.
As the remaining shapeshifters began to file out of the cave, retreating into the wilderness to regroup, Vust lingered, his sharp eyes scanning the chamber one last time. His expression was unreadable, a mask of indifference, but deep down, something nagged at him—something he refused to name.
“Joseph,” he muttered under his breath, shaking his head as he turned away. He had warned him. He had told him to walk away, to let this happen and save himself. But Joseph, ever the stubborn rancher, had refused. He had chosen to fight, to sacrifice himself for a world that was already on the brink of collapse.
Vust’s jaw tightened as he stepped out of the cave and into the cool night air. The stars above were the same as they had always been, indifferent and distant, but something in the world felt different now. Something had shifted, and Vust wasn’t sure if it was the outcome of this night or the weight of his own decisions finally catching up with him.
For a moment, he stood at the cave’s entrance, looking back toward the ranch in the distance. He knew what he was walking away from—the friendship, the memories, the simpler days when he and Joseph had ridden together across the plains, carefree and untouchable. But those days were gone. They had been gone for years.
With one last glance at the cave, Vust pulled his hood up over his head and disappeared into the shadows, leaving Joseph’s lifeless body behind, knowing full well that the consequences of this night would ripple through Avaleris for years to come.
Back at the ranch, Lila Smitthy stood on the porch, her arms wrapped tightly around herself as she stared out into the darkness, waiting for any sign of her husband. The night was quiet, save for the occasional call of the dinosaurs in the paddocks, but there was an unease that hung heavy in the air, a silence that felt wrong.
She had been waiting for hours now, her heart heavy with dread. Joseph had promised her—he had promised he would come back. But as the minutes turned into hours, and the hours into the deep, late night, that promise felt more and more like a lie she had desperately wanted to believe.
The children were asleep inside, blissfully unaware of the danger that had been looming just beyond their home. They didn’t know what their father had gone to do, what he had sacrificed to protect them. But Lila knew. She had always known, deep down, that Joseph wouldn’t return.
Tears welled in her eyes, but she blinked them away, refusing to cry. Joseph wouldn’t have wanted that. He would have wanted her to stay strong, for the kids, for the ranch. He had done what he had to do, and now it was her turn to carry the weight of that burden.
The sky began to lighten with the first hints of dawn, and as Lila stood there, watching the horizon, she knew—Joseph was gone. But his sacrifice had not been in vain. The shapeshifters’ bomb had been stopped, Avaleris had been saved, and their children would live to see another day.
She would carry on, as she always had, with the quiet strength that had seen her through every challenge life had thrown at her. But now, she would do it alone, without the man she had loved by her side.
As the first rays of sunlight broke through the clouds, casting a warm, golden glow over the ranch, Lila took a deep breath and whispered a silent goodbye to Joseph, her heart heavy but resolute. The world had been saved, but the cost had been great. Avaleris would live on, but it would never be the same without him.
And somewhere, far beyond the reach of that morning light, Vust Oreamia walked alone into the wilderness, his past behind him, his future uncertain, and the memory of Joseph Smitthy—a man who had once been his friend, and who had died a hero—haunting his every step.