The Winter Tyrant-Chapter 26: Sleeping in the Fire

Dean shifted his focus over to the Scouts; each and every one of them had done things worse than what Dean had just done. But they were shocked by the callousness of it all. 𝐟𝚛𝕖𝚎𝕨𝗲𝐛𝚗𝐨𝐯𝐞𝕝.𝐜𝗼𝗺

When they raided, when they scouted out new areas to attack, to plunder, to steal and enslave. They felt powerful; they felt the adrenaline, the endorphins, the cortisol rush through their blood in a way that the life before the snow had never given them.

But Dean when his face shifted towards them concealed by a winter camouflage balaclava and a ballistic visor with blacked-out lenses. They felt nothing but the cold chill of the blizzard storm whose ravages they had kept at bay through fire and blood.

They had adapted to the winter, but Dean was something else entirely. The chills they felt down their spines caused their internal composure to fracture. Especially as Dean lowered Daniel’s rifle before kneeling in front of the bound men so that he was on their level.

"What are we going to do with you, indeed.... Unfortunately, I have no use for four prisoners. One of you will suffice. You will have to choose who that is. Which of you possesses critical information to your organization that you will give me to buy your own life? Who would sell out his brothers for a chance to live? And who will die..."

Dean wasn’t actually sure what to do with the scouts. He knew he needed at least one of them alive to give him information about the size and scale of their forces. But he also didn’t know if he would be able to feed them, house them, securely confine them, or even successfully interrogate them.

So he bluffed... Weaponizing the chilling atmosphere he had just created in an attempt to break them psychologically during a moment of volatility.

Unfortunately, these men were either more afraid of whoever they were fighting for, or had a stronger brotherhood than he suspected.

They did not stir; they did not move, and they did not speak. They were completely and utterly silent.

This left Dean no choice.

"Alright, I respect your choice..."

Dean walked back to Daniel and placed a hand on his shoulder as well as a silent nod. Daniel instantly knew what he needed to do.

"We’re not done here... form ranks on me!"

The boys who had only just recovered from the execution of Avery and Richard gazed over at the men who were tied and bound nearby. This time they were far less unsure of themselves.

Whether it was because they had already shared in the sin of spilling blood, or because these men weren’t members of their community that had betrayed them, but rather were active, hostile forces. There was no disagreement to be had this time. Dean took his place at the front of the firing line and gave the command.

"Present arms! Aim! Fire!"

Another short burst of gunfire echoed across the woods. This time the boys’ hands were nothing but steady. They lowered their rifles after the muzzle stopped smoking, flipping their selectors to safe in a uniform gesture before turning around to face their commander.

Dean nodded his head in approval; his voice was less callous than it had been moments ago.

"You boys did well tonight. And I want you to know something. Taking a life is never easy, but you should know that what you have done was necessary. You have taken up arms against those who sought to do ill against your families. That is the role of those who guard the community."

The boys were silent; Dean couldn’t begin to understand what was going through their minds right now. And just when they were going to turn back and head home, Daniel posed a question that none of them wanted to ask.

"So are we just going to leave them here?"

Dean looked back at the bodies lying in the snow, a thin layer of frost already beginning to coat their skin. He then turned back to Paradise Falls and began walking, his words trailing behind them.

"More will come looking for them, let them find what happens to those who target our community."

And so the boys followed Dean back to their homes. Returning their equipment to the man before going their separate ways for the night.

---

Dean found himself taking a long and hot shower after the night’s events had concluded. He then soaked in the hot tub for an inconceivably long time.

It was not until Yuki appeared in the doorway, far less sheepish than the last time, holding two liters of beer in her hands. She entered the pool without ceremony and handed one of the beers off to Dean quietly, and gently.

"You need to drink something, or you’ll pass out from heat exhaustion...."

Dean smiled bitterly accepting the gesture and drinking the "medicine" that Yuki had brought him. Staring silently off to the side, gazing out at the winter that continued rage unrelentingly beyond their walls.

"What are you? Some kind of doctor now?"

Yuki forced a laugh at the poor attempt at humor, settling not across from Dean but next to his side. Her cheeks flushed slightly, forcing her to drink from her own glass to stifle her embarrassment.

Dean continued to stare off into the distance, slipping in between his thoughts, only paying attention to Yuki when she rested her head on his shoulder.

"It’s okay to feel sad you know... I mean... She was your fiancée. You must have felt something for her, right?"

Dean went cold, and quiet for a long while. Yuki let him sulk, believing at first that he was simply not going to respond. And then he said something that shocked her. Not because of its content, but because it was perhaps the first truly honest thing he had said to her since they began living together.

"I loved her... She stabbed me in the back. I tried to let her go, and now I’ve killed her...."

That was all he said for the remainder of the night.