Cage (Dark World Book 1) Read online

  Spying on your neighbors paid big bucks in the effort to catch terrorists and racists. Freedom of speech was only a memory and only in a hypothetical situation. Guilty until proven innocent was the norm and flying drones in the form of pigeons, seagulls and other fowl long replaced real flying birds. Spies were everywhere, for all Cyra knew, the odd squirrels could have been drones reciting her position—perhaps not a bad thing.

  With the bad came the good, the only kidnappings to occur were government planned. Children played free with the many eyes on them, including insect drones. The government was insistent bees were the real deal, but everyone knew bees had died out long ago. A major player in politics lost his only child to a bee sting, hence the eradication of bees. The drones were as effective with pollination, but a bee sting was unheard of. Children, real human children were coveted. It was death to steal a child or anyone else for that matter. Earth was all but free of thieves, psychos and terrorists. In vitro screening played a huge part. And the guilty were always caught and dealt with. Loss of privacy was considered irrelevant when everyone went to bed without fear.

  Cyra was tired of thinking. She loved her planet, faults and all; it was her way of life. Her cottage getaway was looking better by the second. A beautiful lake, a peaceful evening, a fire, marshmallows, hot chocolate with Baileys and whip cream…heavenly. If a few bees watched her every move she could sleep under the stars in a mesh-covered, luxury, lounge chair. Cyra wondered if the mesh chairs had been enhanced. The ones she was used to were temperature controlled, meaning she could sleep naked in a snowstorm without fear of freezing or a heat wave without broiling. Not that she would, but seeming vulnerable during a storm was intriguing to some who loved to watch the madness. The chairs would give off a warning to chase away unwanted furry intruders. That idea was a real selling point to those like Cyra who had encountered frightening beasts. The chairs were also impervious to Mother Nature’s assaults. But, who knew what improvements had been made, if any? They were already perfect in Cyra’s opinion.

  A crack sounded behind the trap walls, ruining her peaceful pondering. Cyra crept to her knees and scooted to a wall. Had help come finally? About frickin’ time. She pressed her face to the wood resting her cheek against the slick coolness. Her long ebony hair she normally wore in a bun had come loose to rest across an eye. She knew she must look a sight. She plastered on the best friendly face she could muster until she realized whatever was behind the wall wasn’t making the friendliest of sounds. Cyra took small breaths, something was growling on the other side of the fence. Something was prowling around the perimeter.

  “Hello?” she whispered.

  The growling grew heavier. Whatever it was had stopped right behind the other side of the wall where she was.

  Dumbass, now it knows you’re in here.

  Cyra couldn’t breathe. A being so hideous and huge jumped into her cage, the ground shook when it landed, spirals and puffs of dark dirt leapt and settled. Cyra stood shakily, partially bent at the knees. She was frozen, her eyes wide in fear. The winged beast was four feet high at the shoulder. A deep indigo, hard gaze settled onto her, the two eyes round and large as saucers. Two long antennae wiggled in her direction. The pale, dingy, dust-looking green wings fluttered in a small breeze. The beast was still growling, showing off large teeth. Tufts of deep purple fur rustled in a slight breeze. Its lion-like body rippled with power.

  Cyra wasn’t on Earth. This being wasn’t a progeny of a manipulation of toxins. She knew it as much as she knew she was doomed. She had entered into the black hole with Earth’s garbage and could be anywhere, in any universe. She backed up slowly until her back hit the wall. There was no escape. She crouched as the fanged creature moved closer, closer. Its oversized furry head cocked to the side, studying her. The pads of its hoofed four feet shuffled in a slinking motion. A cow tail twitched back and forth.

  Droplets of rain began to fall. As the creature readied itself to pounce, small walls formed around Cyra sealing her into a little cage, protecting her from harm. Only one tiny rectangle allowed air into her jail. The creature screamed in rage as a ceiling covered the larger cage. Everything went dark. Cyra was trapped with the beast. Damp panties were the least of her worries.

  Chapter 3

  “What do you suppose caught the beast’s attention?”

  “I guess we’ll find out.”

  Both males watched curiously as the small creature crumpled to its side when released from the cage keeping it safe.

  “Odd lookin’ thing. Small. What do you think it is, Kai?”

  “Beats me, Zenon.”

  “Is it dead?”

  “I’m not touching it. With the weird diseases spreading, I bet it’s full of germs.”

  Kai crouched down to study the being, keeping his distance. “I can see the chest rise and fall. What weird skin. It seems to have two layers. I’ve never seen one of these. Do you think it belonged to the strange wrecked craft we came across?”

  “Probably. But if it can’t subdue a baby praefuge it must be harmless. The safety cage wouldn’t have activated unless it coward back and the sensors indicated fear. Just leave it. It will wander off on its own. Let some other tribe deal with it.”

  “You mean like some other planet expects us to deal with their garbage?”

  “It’s one little being, not a mound of shit.”

  Kai shrugged and got to his feet. The baby praefuge was munching on treats the warriors had brought. Collared with his wings temporarily clipped, the little being was happy to follow when more treats were waved in his face. The three walked for a short time.

  “Uh, Zenon?”

  “What?”

  “The other being is following us.”

  “I know.”

  “What do we do?”

  Zenon stopped, turned and waved his arms in the air trying to scare the being. The praefuge hissed and sidestepped but Kai stuffed more treats into its mouth. Zenon grabbed a stone and threw it at the being, the toss was too long on purpose. It ducked and fled for a moment.

  “Go on, get,” Zenon yelled.

  The being half hid behind a tree. Its head peeked out.

  “I don’t think you’re frightening it,” Kai said. “But seriously, even I know you didn’t mean to hit it.”

  “It must not be very bright if it can’t tell we don’t want it to follow.”

  “It’ll get tired of trailing us. It’s curious, nothing more. Maybe it smells the treats. It might be hungry and stop long enough to eat. Why don’t you toss it a few?”

  “Hell no. If I feed it, we’ll never get rid of it, Kai.”

  “Seems a shame to leave it out here alone. Besides what if it is intelligent and its kind comes looking for it? Or you never know what’s a hot commodity in the trade universe. Maybe it’s worth something. It’s kinda cute. The more I see of it, the more it grows on me—in a weird way. Wonder if Cage would let me keep it.”

  “I guess we should let Cage have a look. He can decide, it seems harmless enough,” Zenon said. He motioned the being to follow, waited until it slipped from behind the tree and began walking. “Come on. We need to get this little guy home. He needs a good bath and something besides treats. He’s not very old, probably recently abandoned by his flock or lost. He’ll bring a good trade. The Motlins will pay top dollar for the new flock we’ve secured.”

  “That’s because when trained right, these things are awesome in battle, and fearless,” Kai said. “Do you think it’s true they can fly through space?”

  Zenon guffawed. “No, what I think is true is the Motlins like to tell tall tales. Really, who believes there are twelve-foot-high monster aliens out there?”

  “There’s an alien following us, so maybe it’s not so farfetched.”

  “It’s too small to be of any importance.”

  “I suppose. It is similar to us in a way. Not the coloring, that’s off, but it walks on its hind legs and has everything we do.”

  Zenon looked
over his shoulder as the other little being continued to follow. “It sure as heck doesn’t have any muscle mass like us. I wonder if Cage will kill the being on the spot.”

  “Maybe. Guess we’ll find out soon enough. Here he comes.”

  “Damn, he looks pissed.”

  “With the way his day started, he has a right to be, we all do. What a horrible blow to the tribe. I wouldn’t want to be leader. Too bad, I wouldn’t have minded keeping it,” Kai said. “But Cage is leader.”

  Cage walked right by the warriors without a word and headed straight for the being. Both males shrugged and continued on with the praefuge which gave their leader a wide berth, head lowered. They heard the little alien being screaming for a few moments before it stopped abruptly on a choking sound. Zenon glanced back. Cage was unleashing his power, but the oddest thing was happening. As Cage changed, his body formed the strangest shapes and images until finally settling on one entity. Zenon had never seen such a curious sight, as though Cage couldn’t control his change or the frightened little being couldn’t decide what was scarier. Cage had it up off its feet by the throat. It took a few more moments before the tribe leader had changed into the being’s worst nightmares. The massive furry beast was something neither warrior had ever seen.

  “He’s pissed all right,” Zenon said. “Shit, that creature is awesome. I wonder what planet that little being comes from to have such weird beasts. Hell, we should have bet on it. Five dirks say he kills the little being.”

  Kai gazed back. Cage lifted the being higher while it struggled, the furry beast doubled in size adding to the little being’s terror. Razor fangs grew to huge proportions. Puffs of smoke spewed from the beast’s mouth. Red eyes glowed.

  “Only a stupid Cloud Flyer would take that bet. I ain’t stupid.”

  Both warriors chuckled and moved on.

  * * * *

  Cyra saw the huge alien come at her. Her mouth dropped open. Her eyes widened in fear. Her feet became two solid blocks of ice trapping her. To say she was surprised would be an understatement. The two males who released her from her cage were different enough and large, but this male was twice their size. The alpha of the trio, and he looked furious. He was in black and green striped camouflage coloring from head to toe, but he wasn’t wearing clothes. A large black jock strap covered his manhood. When Cyra initially saw the first two males, she would have sworn they were clothed in the same camouflage, but when they turned to leave her alone and began moving, their rock hard asses made the barest of ripples.

  They’re all naked.

  As the predator approached, Cyra felt her mind tingle, the awful image of huge animals about to pounce on her invaded her thoughts uncontrollably as though she were being manipulated into further terror. Her mind was being searched or influenced. Lions, bears, tigers. All beasts of sheer strength and no mercy invaded her darkest thoughts. She would be ripped apart, torn to pieces, stomped on, and beaten. Her brain was a whirlwind of horror, her fear ran rampant.

  The alien changed into different creatures while it strode toward her, astounding her and adding to her terror as her thoughts came to life. Cyra blinked hard not believing what she was seeing, it wasn’t possible.

  This isn’t possible.

  The alien’s backside turned into a lion, tail swishing furiously, claws gripping the hard dark earth, while his front half was a rhino, the rhino’s head thrashed back and forth. The ground beneath its feet shook as he reared. His entire body shook for mere seconds as though discarding his facade to form another. In seconds he was half panther half tiger, his big shaggy head sported a massive mouth that roared revealing huge teeth he snapped together. He was now close enough she could smell his feted breath. Sunlight caught his pointed, glistening fangs making her quiver.

  Her mind ached with the intrusion of predators. If this were an illusion it was hysteria in her thoughts. A series of images were pulled from her mind and discarded to settle on only the most horrifying. The beast before her was now half polar bear, half Kodiak. The image of the bear brought out a deep fear. Cyra had been chased by a Kodiak years prior, she was terrified of them. Now inches from her the alien’s body formed into a full blown Kodiak, the beast grew larger and larger until it resembled three bears in height and weight. She was too stunned to react, except to scream, until it grabbed her by the throat with a paw and lifted her up off her feet, almost crushing her windpipe.

  The beast smelled of earth and sweat, and reeked of power. Cyra couldn’t help it, her bladder let loose a little and she didn’t care. She was unable to even beg for her life. Her feet dangled, her hands stayed by her sides, if she touched it, the beast would be truly real.

  It is real.

  Cyra thought her heart would explode. She survived a terrible wreck, a strange creature caged with her, the bite of a real insect and now this. How could a being change shape and into her worst nightmare? What planet was this?

  The Kodiak’s eyes turned red and bore into her, centering onto her fears, its fangs grew long, it snorted smoke. The beast manifested into a hideous prehistoric version of what she envisioned a Kodiak might have looked like eons ago. Every fear turned into reality. Her breath heaved in and out waiting for the final blow, waiting for the paw holding her to snap her neck. She knew her bottom lip quivered. How was she to fight thousands of pounds of Kodiak? She was a computer nerd—not Xena. Her teeth clacked together and she whimpered with her last puff of air.

  The bear’s nostrils flailed as he sniffed her. She went red as the bear’s nose lingered at her crotch. His tense grip eased to allow her to pant. If a bear could contemplate, this one did. As a single tear slipped its way down her cheek, she whispered a tiny plea, the first in her life, and the bear released her. Cyra dropped from the bear’s great height and crumpled to the ground, crying out as sharp pains shot up her leg, further injuring her ankle and she curled into a ball. She waited for the beast to begin eating her. She wrapped her arms around her head.

  “What is this creature I have changed into?”

  Cyra heard the demanding question. The alien was speaking her language in a loud rough voice. A bear’s voice—if bears could talk. She peeked up. The Kodiak was sitting inches from her in a comical way, rolling back and forth on its huge ass, head cocked as though examining each word coming from its mouth. Large paws rested near its belly. For a moment Cyra couldn’t form the words, her lips moved but no sound came forth. The bear growled and she knew she was pissing it off.

  “A, a, a, b, bbbear,” she stuttered.

  “Why do you fear it? It’s a simple fuzzy beast.”

  Cyra blinked. “You, you can’t be, be serious? Look in a, a, mirror.”

  “Granted I have expanded on the beast. Perhaps I should seek out a mirror.”

  I’m talking to a stupid bear, a really fucking huge bear.

  “There are many strange fears within you,” he continued. “Interesting.”

  The words were quieter, less demanding, less growling. He remained still. A threatening sight but since she was alive she was hopeful. Her breathing calmed and her heart lessened the staccato playing in her ears.

  “Who are you?” she asked.

  What the hell are you?

  The alien shook himself and was once more the commando she had seen before his change. He was just as dangerous looking as the bear, and still as close. He stood towering over her in bare feet. His hair was a shock of black, crew cut style, spiked. His eyes were as dark as her own. His broad-as-sin chest expanded as he breathed. Tree trunk legs, massively muscled—everything, everywhere her eyes glanced. This commando could terrify an entire elite squad. GI Joe would be shaking in his boots.

  “My name is Cage. Leader of the Cloud Flyer tribe. I have decided you are my prisoner and will allow your existence. You should feel grateful for my generosity.”

  Funny, I’m not oozing in the feeling of your generosity.

  “Where am I?”

  “My people call this planet many names with t
he many tribes. No one tribe has the right to name a planet.”

  He reached down and hauled Cyra to her feet, his huge hand wrapped around the upper part of her arm, no man had ever done that. She cringed when she applied pressure to her ankle, trying to pull away. The gentle force he exerted was enough to keep her in place. His dark eyes bored into her as she looked way up to meet his stern gaze. Cyra’s mind tingled again as he seemed a predator. Cyra had seen many predators. Her extent of Earth’s dangerous animals was large. Children were taught to respect beasts and maintain a healthy distance. In seconds the commando changed into a lion, his paw continued to clutch her arm. Cyra screamed and shrank down again. The lion went from a normal huge lion size to three times a normal lion into a Saber tooth tiger.

  “How do you do that?” Cyra asked, her voice bordering hysterical.

  Why do you do that?

  “I’m leader of my tribe; I protect all of my warriors. I’ve never seen these creatures your mind produces. The images are fascinating and flowing. It’s obvious you have no mental control over thoughts, a smorgasbord of delights. This, you, is a whole new area to explore, an advantage to my people. I’ve never heard your language, it’s interesting. Something tells me you will keep me entertained for some time.” Cage returned to normal.

  “You’re a shifter?” Cyra asked from her crouched position. On Earth shifters were myths but fables sometimes stemmed from exaggerated truth.

  “I am leader.”

  Cyra could see his confusion when she chanced a glance up at him. She was more confused. “I mean you shift right?”