by L. S. O'Dea
It was dark, dank and smelly. Mold grew on the walls and things scurried past his feet, but he ignored them. He had to find her. He searched tunnel after tunnel. He had no idea of how much time had passed. It was all one endless nightmare of foul odor and darkness but then she was there, lying on a pile of bones. Rats and small crabs crawled on her skin, feeding.
He roared, racing to her. He stumbled, fell to his knees and crawled the rest of the way, snapping at any creature that dared come near him. Her eyes were almost white now, but they were still green in his memory. He pulled her close, stroking her hair. His vocal cords trembled but he forced a few final words for her. “W..eet. Lo...ve.”
He cradled her close to his chest as he began searching for an exit. Hours passed, maybe days, but he kept walking, trying to locate a hint of fresh air that would lead out. He’d catch a whiff every now and then and would adjust his path. His body ached from carrying her, but he continued moving. He would never leave her again. A roar echoed in the tunnels. He stilled. Water. A lot of water. That much would hit him hard.
He ducked into another tunnel, but the sound was the same. They were flushing the system. Water was coming at him from all directions. He had to find an exit or somewhere to wait out the rush. He wouldn’t drown, but he could get smashed against the walls. He ran, breathing deeply, praying for a trace of fresh air to point him in the right direction and then there it was, just a little, but enough. He pushed himself to run faster. The roar was closer now, the spray of water at his back. The weight of Sweet slowed him down but he would not drop her, not even to save himself. The first wave knocked his legs out from under him. The second blast carried him along, tossing him about. He clung to Sweet as he hit the side of the tunnel and then tumbled and hit the roof. He was spun about like one of his prey and then he slammed into something and darkness swept over him.
When he came to, he was lying on his stomach in a small culvert half-submerged in water. His arms were still wrapped around Sweet. He sat up, coughing. Remnants of the sewer’s trash filled his gills. He used the tip of his flipper to pry it free. Once he could breathe he pulled Sweet close. The Almightys had flushed the system, trying to kill him. Instead, they had set him free, him and Sweet. Now, he’d take her home. He tucked her under his arm, slipping into the water. He moved from culvert to culvert until he found his way into a small stream. It led to the river and that took him to the Lake of Sins.
He placed her in the high grass on the bank and dove under the calm water, searching the hidden crevices and tunnels of the lake for a place that Sweet would like. He settled on a small alcove under the island. He swam to shore and searched the woods, gathering branches and carrying them to the underwater cave.
Once he was done assembling her home, he surfaced and froze. A fox had its face buried in her chest, feeding. He wanted to roar and send it fleeing, but his instincts warred with his temper. He slipped under the water, moving closer. The fox was wary, sensing danger. It kept looking back at land, never suspecting that the danger was only a few feet away, lurking below. He swam a little closer and then jumped from the water. His flippers snatched at the fox but the animal was fast and its fur made it slippery. It let out a yelp, Sweet’s rib bone dropping from its jaws. It raced off into the woods, tail between its legs. He bellowed his rage, but the fox was gone, his dinner gone. He picked up her rib bone, placing it back into her chest and carried her to her new home. He placed her into the crevice, tangling her in the branches. Once she was secure, weariness seeped into his body, making his bones heavy. He held her hand and slept.
A slight ripple in the water stirred him from his rest. There were small fish darting around Sweet, feeding on her. He snapped at them, gobbling up as many as he could catch as he chased them away. He returned to find more nibbling on her eyes and chest. He’d never win. They would eat her until there was nothing left, or he could keep her with him, always a part of him. He kissed her cold lips and then buried his face in her stomach and fed.
He ate until he was full. Then he slept and fed again, until she was no more. All that remained were her bones. He tucked them into the alcove. They’d be safe now. There was nothing left that anything would want and she would be a part of him forever. He placed his flipper on her pile of bones, closing his eyes and remembering every day they’d had together and imagining every day they should have had. He’d rest for a while, gain strength and learn how to catch prey.
Sweet understood. He saw it in her face when he shut his eyes, but he’d made her a promise and one day, he’d leave. He’d learn the forest and the hidden passages that led into the city from the Lake of Sins. Eventually, he’d find the one that would lead to Conguise’s lab. It would take time, there were many tunnels but he had nothing else but time....and hatred.
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The world of the Lake of Sins
This story takes place hundreds of years after the Great Death visited the earth, killing most humans, all domestic animals and all wild animals larger than a turkey. Those who survived were left with the task of rebuilding society.
The new social structure is based on a class system. The classes important to this story are the Almightys, Guards and House Servants.
Almightys, the only direct descendants of the human race, rule the other classes. They are generally between five and six feet tall with pale, alabaster skin.
Guards belong to the Almightys and are used for hunting or protection. They are between four and six feet tall and their hair color varies. Their eyes are usually brown and they have a light coating of hair on their bodies. Most males wear facial hair. They have large canine teeth used for biting and tearing. They are strong, fast and heal quickly. Their senses of hearing, smell and night vision are superior to Almightys.
House Servants also belong to the Almightys but their role in this society is to manage the households and businesses of the Almightys. They are slender in build and between four and five feet tall. They have a light coating of hair covering their bodies. The males are usually clean shaven. They are born with fangs and claws, although their claws are often removed by their masters. Their eyes are usually a vibrant hue and their senses of night vision, hearing and smell are superior to the Guards’.
Unwanted Guards and House Servants are taken to the local shelters and executed if not purchased.
Mutter is a Guard who is no longer wanted. This is his story.
Characters
Ableson: A male Almighty in his thirties with blond hair. He is an assistant to Professor Conguise.
Almightys: The ruling class. They are between five and six feet tall. Generally, have dark hair and white skin.
Araldo: Their god.
Aranea18: One of Professor Conguise’s projects. Spider-like creature.
Anna: The Almighty girl who owned Sweet.
Great Death: The event that swept over the earth, killing most humans, all domestic animals and
all wild animals larger than a wild turkey.
Guards: Belong to the Almightys. They hunt for the Almightys and protect the Almightys. They vary in size and hair color. Their eyes are usually brown. They have large canine teeth and an enhanced sense of smell and hearing. The males generally wear facial hair.
House Servants: Belong to Almightys. They manage the households and businesses of the Almightys. They are slender in build and short, between four and five feet tall. They have fangs and claws and their eyes are a vibrant hue. They have an enhanced sense of smell and hearing.
Jorge: A male Guard. Belongs to Professor Conguise.
Laddie: A male Guard. Belongs to Professor Conguise.
Mutter: A Guard. Used to belong to Vickers and was used as a fighter. He is big and scarred.
Noodles: A Guard who is involved in the black market.
Parson: An Almighty who works with Professor Conguise.
Professor Conguise: A male Almighty in his late fifties. He’s tall and thin with gray hair. Runs the lab where Mutter is taken.
Satcha: A male House Servant. Runs the Guards’ Shelter where Mutter is held.
Scar: A female Guard. Belongs to Professor Conguise.
Sovee: A Guard, owned by Vickers. He is a retired fighter who now trains the fighters for Vickers.
Sweet: A small, female House Servant who lives at the grocer’s.
River-People: Fish-like creatures. Can live in or out of water, but prefer to be in the water. They can breathe both above and below water. They have scales for skin, sharp teeth. Hunt from below the water and drag their prey under to drown it.
Tantiori: An Almighty who works with Professor Conguise.
Truent: An Almighty who works with Professor Conguise.
Vickers: A male Almighty. Uses Guards to fight.
Voice, the: A creature, former Guard, in the lab at the same time as Mutter.
Feeding Fersia – Volume Two in the Chimera Chronicles Series
CHAPTER 1: McBrid
MCBRID RACED OUT OF his office and down the hallway, following the faint sound of the muffled scream. He should stop. Go back, but his legs kept moving. He should’ve never heard the noise, but he had and he knew that voice. It was Charlie. The damn Guard was too young to be in a place like this but here he was and he was in trouble.
A House Servant shoved past him, barely limping on a leg that’d been broken too badly to repair. Apparently, when monstrous death stares someone in the face, injuries cease to exist.
McBrid didn’t hesitate at the door. He should’ve. Any sane Almighty would’ve, but there was the problem. He wasn’t pure Almighty. Thirty-two years of hiding the Guard in him, ruined over one garbled scream of terror. He burst into the room.
Charlie was on the floor, several feet over the line that separated safety from death. The young Guard was trying to scramble away from Aranea18, the giant spider mutation, who had one of her four, long, hairy legs wrapped around his waist. The two claws on the end kept him in place but didn’t dig into his flesh. That pleasure would be saved for her fangs.
“Help me,” yelled Charlie. “Please! Help me.” He clawed at the tile but Aranea18 dragged him closer to her, closer to death.
The other Guard McBrid had assigned to feed Aranea18 with Charlie, was on the floor near the cage. He had no idea why she wasn’t eating him. One of her other legs wrapped around Charlie’s face, sliding into his mouth and silencing his screams. He bit down and she screeched, letting him go for one quick instant. As the Guard lunged forward, McBrid grabbed his hand, pulling Charlie toward him, but Aranea18 wasn’t going to be denied her meal. She grabbed Charlie’s ankles with two of her good legs, flailing the injured one in the air as if chastising them and clinging to the bar of the cage with her other leg.
“Don’t let go,” whispered Charlie, his big, brown eyes wide with fear.
McBrid tightened his grip but he was no match for Aranea18. He slid forward with the young Guard. He tugged and scrambled backward but the Aranea was strong and hungry, her fangs snapping together as poison dripped down her furry torso. In another moment he’d be over that line too. She looked at him, with her eight, black eyes, four on top and four on bottom, and let go of Charlie with one of her legs. She reached for McBrid’s arm. He dropped his hold and scooted away from the line, away from death. He hadn’t planned on letting go, he hadn’t meant to but instinct had kicked in and this one was probably Almighty not Guard.
“No, please,” yelled Charlie, his eyes almost popping from his head as he clawed at the tile trying to get away.
McBrid shouldn’t do anything. Guards’ lives didn’t matter. They were expendable, easily replaced. He’d heard it his entire life and he hated the truth in the words as much as the lie. To him and his mother Guards had never been replaceable.
The poles they used to control the Araneas were lying next to the cage. He jumped to his feet, ran across the lab and grabbed the hose used to clean the enclosures. He unraveled it from the wheel and ran toward Charlie, stopping right at the line. He turned it on, aiming for Aranea18. The water burst forward, hitting her in the head. She screamed but tightened her leg around Charlie’s ankle. She wasn’t one to give up easily. He lowered his aim to her abdomen. She was sensitive there. She flew backward hitting the wall of the cage. This time, the sound she made—a grating, screeching cacophony of pain and anger—echoed through his bones almost causing him to piss his pants. Then, she dropped to the floor, falling silent.
Charlie scrambled to the door, as McBrid turned off the hose. His heart hammered in his chest as he stared at the Aranea. Her legs twitched and then curled inward as if protecting herself.
“You okay?” he asked.
Charlie nodded and then bent over and vomited.
He wanted to puke too. Aranea18 wasn’t moving. She was the most important creature in Professor Conguise’s lab and he was pretty sure he’d just killed her to save a Guard.
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Book 1 of the Lake of Sins series. (excerpt)
CHAPTER 1
Trinity trudged through the forest. The sun’s strong rays blinded her as she walked and her feet ached. Her stomach rumbled. She’d eat when she stopped for the night. Hunger was nothing new to her. She shifted the backpack on her shoulders and trudged around a bend. A flash caught her eye. Something silver glistened on the rocks, sparkling like ice crystals in the sunshine. It was partially submerged in the water. She cautiously approached, ready to run into the forest at any sign of danger. It was similar to her in size and shape except instead of feet and hands this creature had flippers and a long, thick tail. Its skin was silver-gray and scaly. It was hairless and lying on its side with its head in the water. There were four slits along its rib cage.
“Hey, are you all right?” She took a couple of steps back in case it was just sleeping.
The creature didn’t move. She should just go. She didn’t have time for this, but she’d never seen anything like it. She crept closer, her heart beating faster with each step. Her feet were in the water now. She was only a few feet away. She nudged it with the bottom of the stick and jumped back. It remained still, lifeless. She moved farther into the water and poked it again, harder this time. There was still no reaction. It was dead. Poor, ugly thing. What had happened to it? Had it drowned? It kind of looked like a fish. Maybe, it suffocated, stuck on the rocks and unable to get to the water. That would be sad, being that close to what it needed to live and unable to reach it.
She bent and peered at its face. It certainly was gross. Its large black eyes stared straight ahead. She jerked back. She could have sworn its eyes had adjusted but there were no whites just pupil so it was hard to tell. She stood still for several minutes but the creature didn’t move. It must have been her imagination; it was certainly running wild today. She leaned in close
r. Its mouth was wide open and filled with rows of long, sharp teeth. It smelled briny like the lake. Its lips quivered slightly and she jerked upright, stumbling backward and falling right next to it, within reach of its long arms.
She dropped the stick as she scrambled backward out of the water and sat panting on shore. It was alive. She was such an idiot to get so close. It lay half-in and half-out of the water, its head angled in an uncomfortable looking position. Was it in pain? She shook her head. What did that matter? She needed to go and this thing was not her problem. She stood and started to walk away. She sighed. If it was a bird or squirrel, even a mouse or rat, she’d help it without thinking twice. It wasn’t the creature’s fault that it was hairless and nasty looking and stinky.
She turned around and trudged over to it. If it were going to attack her it would have done it by now. She studied it closely. Two of the four slits on its side were moving a little. It was more of a slight tremble than an actual movement. The other two were stuck firmly together. As the side slits shivered, the creature’s bottom jaw moved forward and back. It was like the face Adam, her baby brother, had made once when he’d swallowed too much bread. That was it! The creature was choking. She quickly filled her bottle from the river. A fish couldn’t breathe air. She dumped the water over its head and chest.
