by Brian King
“They?” I asked.
“Idiot, the beings that took us from our home, tore our eyes out, put new ones in, and dumped us here to get eaten by giant lizards.” Trel spat the words and crossed her arms over her chest.
“Yeah. Sorry for kind of a stupid question,” I said, and I forced myself to smile at the dark-haired woman. Her long thin fingers were more spider than human, and I wondered absently how she touched people without hurting them.
“And what are your stats, if you don’t mind?” I asked the feline warrior woman.
“My strength and movement are both 8, but my stamina is only rated at 4,” she replied.
“Wow, that’s amazing.” I whistled with awe. Sheela was much stronger than me.
“Humpf,” Trel snorted, and then she cleared her throat and pointed a long finger at me. “You aren't even polite enough to inquire what my Eye-Q reads. You should have asked me first since I am the most important one here.” Trel looked like she rolled her eyes at me as she spoke, but it was hard to tell because they were all black.
“Uhh. What is your special skill?” I asked while being excessively courteous. Trel was quickly approaching the point where her beauty wasn’t enough to justify her attitude, but I still didn’t want to piss her off.
“Structure Building,” she said without further explanation. I could tell she was waiting for me to say something. She smirked, and I saw her vampire fangs again.
“What does that do?” I finally asked.
She threw up her human-looking arms. “How should I know? Do you think I want to build something? Ewww. Peasant work.” Trel's pretty nose scrunched up with disgust.
“And, uh, what are your stats?” I asked, really trying hard to be nice.
“My strength is higher than yours, male. That’s all you need to know. Pft!” she huffed. “If you were on my planet, I'd put you at the back of my ten thousand-deep suitor line. I’m almost tired of hearing my own voice repeat it, but you are going to be useless to us.”
“That remains to be seen,” Sheela replied to Trel with more patience than I thought possible. “Whoever brought us here and did this to us is very powerful. They must have had a purpose for bringing him here, as well.”
“Yeah, so he can drain away our food and water,” Trel sniped back under her breath.
“I can carry my own weight,” I countered.
I couldn’t believe that I was weaker than Trel, but her spider-legs and claw-hands did look deadly. Strangely, I was also a little deflated at getting tossed to the back of her suitor line. It was like high school all over again, with the prettiest girls not giving me the time of day.
“We appreciate your help no matter what skill you have,” Sheela said with a nod, and I saw Galmine smile at me pleasantly.
“Just tell me what you need me to do, and I’ll do it,” I said with more confidence. Maybe Trel didn’t like me, but Sheela and Galmine obviously did, and I’d work to protect them. “If angry birds are coming to roost in your cave, let’s figure out how to stop them. With four of us, I'm sure we can think of something.”
“Ha! As I predicted, the male is only as good as the women who command him.” Trel walked around on her human-looking legs to the other side of Sheela. Her spider-legs were now folded up on her back again, so they resumed looking like bulky wings. It made her no less scary because I knew they could come right back down.
“No,” I said. “It’s not like you command me. I’m willing to help. If we all work together, we can--”
“I do not do common labor or planning,” Trel snapped. “Haven’t you been listening?”
Galmine moved to be close to me. “Don’t worry, Victor, everyone has their place. I am not very strong, nor do I move fast, but I will help where I can. If we find a spot for a garden, I can grow some vegetables for us to eat.”
“Can you grow meat?” Trel huffed.
Galmine was steadfast. “I’ll do what I can for you until then. I’m glad you came to us, Tamer.” She stepped closer and surprised me with a quick hug. Her body was surprisingly warm, and during those tantalizing seconds we were joined, I wondered if the gray rock on her skin counted as clothes, or if she was actually hugging me while she was naked.
“We have a few hours of sunlight left, and much to do, but I will show you around,” Sheela said.
She directed me to follow her through the large cave opening, but the task became shamelessly sexual when I watched her firm ass sway in her torn bikini-bottoms. Her long blonde mane swished across her butt hypnotically while she walked, and I almost tripped over a rock when I was watching her instead of where I was stepping.
A dozen wooden spears were leaning against the wall right at the exit. Their tips were burnt for strength, and I saw one of them was covered with blood. I figured it was the one she’d used to kill the giant crocodile that had almost eaten me for breakfast.
“What’s that for?” I said while pointing to a clay pot just off to the side of the mouth of the cave.
“Do you not relieve yourself?” she deadpanned.
“Oh,” I said, realizing the whole world was now my toilet. “All the time.” I laughed to cover the dumb question, then I followed her out the door.
I rubbed my face with my free hand as we emerged into the daylight. Every moment of my life was now a surprise, but I was greeted by a huge shock in the landscape.
Instead of the wet, sticky tangle of ferns, vines, and strange sinuous trees from yesterday and this morning, we were now in a forest of huge conifers that seemed more like the Sequoia Redwoods than a Jurassic jungle. There were relatively few of the true giant trees, and they grew with forty or fifty yards of space between each other for as far as I could see into the grove. Ferns and other small plants hugged against the trunks, and clumps of smaller evergreens dotted the forest as well. There were also flat, open areas of fallen pine needles between each of the ancient redwoods.
“How far away was the place where you rescued me?” I asked as we walked down the narrow pathway leading from cave to the bottom some twenty-five feet below us.
“About a mile and a half,” Sheela responded.
“How is that possible?” I wondered. “Where are the vines, and stuff? It’s like we’re on a different planet and we didn’t go very far.”
“I do not try to understand the technology controlling this world. I have walked the coast for many days and have seen several different lands. On my world, we have vast swamps, grasslands, and forests seemingly without end. Here, everything is jumbled as if the builders want to confuse us.” She paused for a moment to choose her words carefully. “I stayed here because it reminds me of home.”
I wanted to ask her about her world, but something she said was more pressing.
“How do you know what ‘mile’ means?” I asked. “Do your people use the same unit of measurement?”
“Yes,” Sheela said as she shook her head. “You misunderstand. Our abductors have made it so we speak the same language and use the same measurements. It sounds as if you are speaking my language. We believe they have done this so that we can survive in the world they built.”
“You think all this was built?” I asked as I thought through her words.
“I do not know. It matters not. Come.” She walked me to the bottom of the ramp in front of the cave and then we turned around to look back along the route we came. I could barely see the cave mouth back up the steep hillside. “I spend all day hunting or berry picking. Trel won't leave the cave to do the work, and Galmine moves too slow to escape any of the creatures that are on this planet. You cannot really see the cave from the position down here, but I worry about dinosaurs getting in. A second warrior with a spear will make things safer.”
We stood facing each other as the sunlight beamed from the pine boughs high above.
“Yeah, it seems as if you've been supporting them,” I said.
“I do what I can. Having someone who will cooperate will help us all,” Sheela answered, and he
r yellow eyes seemed to focus on my badge.
“I'm happy to help. You did save my life.” I smiled at her, and I lost a bit of my breath when she returned my smile. She was like the sun to Trel's darkness.
“I have been here much longer than the other two. Trel is convinced help is coming. I think Galmine believes that, too.”
“But not you?” I asked as I stared into her beautiful golden eyes.
“Rescue might come, or it might not. I do not want to bet my life on the uncontrollable actions of others. I predict that those birds will return to the cave and force us to fight. They might not, but if they do, we will not be able to survive against them the way we are now.” She shrugged, and the movement did all sorts of amazing things to her chest area.
“It's too bad that the guys I first met are dead, they could have helped defend us against these birds.”
“It does not matter,” she said. “They are dead. Wasting energy thinking about what could have been will only hamper our ability to survive. I know Trel will not agree, but you showed up at the perfect time.”
“Yeah, she doesn’t like me for some reason, but I appreciate your words,” I replied with a smile.
“We are all scared, Victor. This world is cruel and unforgiving. I do not know what happened to Trel before I found her, but the constant threat of death affects us all. Do not let her words bother you.”
Sheela’s voice was intoxicating. I had a million questions about her home world, her travels on this one, and how she came to be with the other two women. But I had her alone, and there was one burning question I needed to ask.
“Um, why do you sound like you’re speaking Australian? It’s, uh, distracting as hell.” I was tempted to tell her how sexy she was when she spoke it, but it didn’t seem appropriate.
“This is my natural way of speaking. I am surprised that you interpret it as an accent from your world, but as I said, our captors did something to our minds to let us understand everyone’s different languages.”
“Okay. So you--” I began, but motion caught my eye near one of the large trees fifty yards away at the edge of the clearing. I watched for a few moments before I was certain what it was.
“I’ll be damned. It followed me,” I laughed a bit at the thought and guided Sheela’s beautiful eyes to the object of my mirth.
The little blue roadrunner dinosaur was hopping around pecking at the ground. It would look up, move a little closer to me, then peck at the ground again and pull up some big bug and swallow it whole.
“I saw that beast around you before,” Sheela said with a touch of amazement.
“Yeah, I’ve tried to get rid of it, but it doesn’t get the hint. Maybe I should keep it for a pet?” I laughed at the thought of having a roadrunner for a pet back home. It would look hilarious on a leash at the dog park.
“Can you call it to you?” she asked.
“Seriously?”
She nodded and then looked to the small bird.
“Okay, I’ll give it a try.”
I took a few steps in the direction of the dino-bird and hesitated. If I was back home, I’d try to snare it and bring it out of the wild, but this was all different. The aliens who built this place, if I believed Sheela’s theory, must have had a reason for wanting this bird to follow me.
Damned if I could think what it was.
On a whim, I blinked to turn on the Eye-Q and pointed my hand at the bird inside the overlay of the user interface. “Tell me what that is,” I said half-heartedly.
I was so surprised at the response I blinked the thing off.
“Holy fuck. It worked,” I said.
“What are you doing, Victor?” Sheela called from over my shoulder.
I held up my free hand with my index finger pointing up, hoping she understood the “please wait” gesture.
I blinked the Eye-Q back on and looked at the screen. It showed an outline around the dinosaur and displayed its name.
“Identification: Dinosaur, Jinfengopteryx Elegans, male.”
“This is awesome! Hey, that dinosaur is called Jin, uh, fen, g, opter, ix. Ugg, this name sucks. I’ll call him Jinx for short!” I’d encountered long names in biology and animal sciences but seeing them and saying them were light years of difference.
“Here, Jinx. Come!” I crouched down with glee, still with the Eye-Q system displaying in my field of vision.
At first, the little animal didn’t do anything, and I imagined Sheela’s disappointment behind me. Then the bird sort of hopped a few times in my direction, and I thought I had it for sure, but then it got back to pecking at the ground. I called it for several minutes but finally had to admit that wasn’t going to work.
I flicked off the Eye-Q and turned to Sheela. I expected an insult like Trel would deliver, but the warrior cat woman smiled brightly instead.
“I do think it likes you,” she said. “He will come closer next time.”
“Yeah, I guess,” I replied as I looked at the little blue dino again. It had already hopped away, and I suspected that Sheela was just being nice when she told me he would come closer next time.
“See? He can’t even tame a puny beast. Useless male!” Trel shouted from behind some bushes up by the cave entrance. She laughed and then disappeared back through the opening.
“Trel is harmless,” Sheela said as she stepped near me and motioned to the cave. “And that is the challenge we have.”
Her problem was not complicated. Trel wasn’t going to help, and Galmine couldn’t survive out and about in a world full of bloodthirsty predators. Sheela rescued me believing I was going to be extra hands needed to fight for survival. The dinosaurs that took out Heracula and Kelg sent a shiver down my leg, but sexy-girls-in-distress were more than making up for the terrifying experience.
Maybe I’d stumbled on why the aliens chose me. I really liked animals and beautiful women.
Our eyes met once more, and her feline orbs pulled at me as surely as if she was reaching into my brain. We stared at each other for a few moments, and then she tilted her head and looked up and behind me. When I didn’t immediately turn to follow her lead she looked at me again and repeated the act.
I finally got the hint and turned to face what Sheela was looking at. A pterodactyl-type dinosaur swooped through the pine boughs and landed near the top of a medium-sized tree in the grove of redwoods. The branch sagged under the weight as the dino-bird folded its wings next to its body about seventy-five feet over our heads.
The beast was much scarier than the drawings or models I had seen. The size reminded me a lot of the California Condor, only a little bigger. The wings of the creature were each longer than I was tall. The dinosaur had hooked claws on the end of the top joint, and its long maw was pointed and very sharp. Its skin was gray with brown undertones, and it blended almost perfectly with the tree branches where it perched.
I felt movement by my foot and looked down to see Jinx standing behind my boot. The little guy was looking up at the pterodactyl while he trembled.
“You said the bad birds were orange, right? Does this thing want in, too?” I asked Sheela as I turned up again.
“I am not surprised something else wants the cave. It is a good location for mating and laying eggs.”
Sheela was correct. We were standing out in the open below him, but the pterodactyl didn't seem curious about us. Instead, the winged dinosaur was staring intently at the women’s cave.
But now it was my fucking cave too.
“I'll help you defend your home,” I said as I turned to Sheela. “I’m thinking you’re right, we are going to have to fight birds sooner or later.”
“It will be hard work, Victor.” The woman's full lips turned into a small hope-filled smile that made my heart dance in my chest.
“No worries. You saved me, so I owe you, but I also want to live, and I want to protect your friends in the cave, even Trel.”
“Thank you,” she said as we shared a quick smile. “Evening is fast approach
ing. Let us get back inside and tell them about this new flying dinosaur. We have much to do to make things safer for all of us.”
“I’m looking forward to it,” I said, and then I followed the beautiful woman up the narrow path to where her friends waited for us.
Chapter 5
Sheela and I returned to the cave to report the presence of the pterodactyl to the other two women. The cat-like warrior went right inside, but the smell of food stopped me in my tracks at the entry. The small clay pot was still on the outskirt coals of the fire, and all threats to the cave seemed distant once I took another deep drag of the incredible turkey dinner smell. The last meal I’d eaten was a pair of strawberry Pop-Tarts I hadn’t even bothered to toast before I drove to work the morning I was abducted.
I overheard Sheela mention the pterodactyl, then compare it to the orange birds, and finally, she pointed to the food on the fire. That’s when I realized I needed to be a part of their conversation, so I took a few steps into the cave. My hunger pangs spun up like a train’s diesel engine, and the three beautiful women cocked their heads toward me at the interruption.
“Um, sorry about that. I’m kinda hungry,” I said with a good-natured chuckle and a little boyish pride at the impressive protest by my stomach. The smell was overpowering, and I was in danger of floating into the air, drifting over to the cooking pot, and diving in head first like a cartoon character.
“Laugh it up, male. The delicacy is not for you. You’ll have to get your own,” Trel spat.
“Okay. How do--” I began.
“Victor, please do not worry,” Sheela replied. “I caught this turtle for the benefit of all who live here. You are welcome to some. Sit and enjoy it, please.”
Trel turned to study me, and I felt her eyes scour my body. After a few moments, she finally reoriented on the sexy feline woman.
“Sheela, before you sit down I wanted to remind you it is getting late and we are out of water,” Trel said while tapping one of her sandals against something hollow on the floor near the fire.
I turned to Sheela and saw exhaustion flicker across her beautiful features, but then she looked at me, and her eyes were determined.
