It was a fight to behold. Never in all my days of dealing with the bloodthirsty walking and flying damned did I see something as magnificent as a Day Stalker and Savage go head to head. Two hours before dawn in what we considered a relative safe time, I made my way back to the beach to check on those there.
My plan was to check on it, get some rest, then head to the old Hanson Book Barn where we store explosives in the basement. I was pretty excited about going on the offensive with the Day Stalkers. I knew there were a lot, but no more than we could handle.
After my beach expedition, my adrenaline was pumped.
Suddenly, Davis’ original plan to let the Stalkers and Savages take care of most of the problem seemed brilliant. It was a plan I had paid little attention to and Vala had dismissed as passive and, well, cowardly.
The proof was in seeing it.
There were three breeds of bloodthirsties, they all hated each other, and they all were fighting for the same thing.
Us.
It was like the apocalypse books I would read, where gangs would roam the land, bad men, wanting what good people had. Fighting for it.
The first wave of Savages arrived on the beach later than the usual time. They must have failed at finding food, because for them to be out so close to the light of day told me two things: they were hungry, and they lived and hid close enough to escape before the sun could burn them out.
They perched in their usual position on the wall that ran along the beach, waiting for the right moment to fly out and snatch someone. There weren’t that many. Only the brave ones, the cocky ones. We had enough manpower to handle any attack they initiated.
We waited armed and ready. Those who opted for the safety of the beach were silent, and only a few were awake.
One of the Savages did his signature twitch of his head, turning it so as to eye his sleeping victim, planning his stalk and attack— one I was certain would fail. Then, just before I thought they were about to form a lynch mob, from behind them, leaping the walls, were Day Stalkers.
My heart thumped. Day Stalkers near the beach sanctuary? That had never happened. I was certain these were not the ones from the road, the ones we planned to take out the next day.
The Day Stalkers sank into the stand. Getting a footing was tough for them, and while I was positive we had enough strong power for Savages, we didn’t have enough to conquer both.
Thankfully, the moment the Day Stalkers jumped ahead of the attack, the Savages descended upon them.
It was vicious and brutal and also beautiful.
The Savages were faster but the Day Stalkers were stronger.
I watched a Savage land on a Day Stalker. There was no attempt to lift him. It was a simple kill situation. Since the Day Stalkers were already dead, they didn’t go down without a fight. Ripping their necks did nothing but anger the Day Stalkers, and they engaged in an all-out blood brawl. A Savage ripped legs from a Day Stalker and the Stalker kept fighting until he was nothing but a head on the beach. The Savage finished it with a hard claw to the skull.
Outnumbering the Savages, instead of their focus being on humans, the Day Stalkers turned on the Savages. Three or four Day Stalkers took on a Savage, tearing it apart until it was no more.
The people on the beach awoke and instead of retreating to the water, they were able to get to the buses without even being noticed. The Day Stalkers and Savages were too consumed with each other.
The guards stayed to finish off the battle, inadvertently practicing Davis’ original plan.
To begin with, there were close to twenty Savages and triple that of Day Stalkers. When it was finished, only four Day Stalkers remained, the rest had diligently battled to the death, eliminating not only each other, but their threat to us as well.
It was brilliant, exhilarating, and we killed the final four, already battle weary, with relative ease.
It was a light at the end of the tunnel. A tweak in Davis’ plan. Let the Savages and Day Stalkers take each other out and the Sybaris would be a breeze for us.
By the time the sun had risen fully, I wasn’t in need of rest, I was raring to go on our initiative to cut the Day Stalkers off at the pass. As I thought about that, another idea hit me.