“I thought you said T-rex was extinct,” she whispered. “Is this a baby? Are the parents nearby?”
“No it’s full grown. I haven’t seen one in years. They were thought to have died out. I heard they used to be massive but their arms were so short they evolved to proportion their body.”
The dinosaur was a lot smaller than the museum exhibits she was used to. The beast stood only four feet high, if that, and though it was massively muscled, Clarity was—disappointed.
It’s friggin adorable.
An odd thought to be sure, but all the hype deflated as she scratched her head. The mini T-rex opened its mouth and whistled, then cheeped. A cute strange sound she wasn’t expecting. The small arms did seem better to accommodate the smaller body. The teeth were decidedly cow-like. The body color matched the pretty greens, reds, and oranges of the lush bush. No wonder she couldn’t see it to begin with. There were tufts of feathers making it resemble a badass chicken. All it needed was a do-rag. Clarity chuckled as Bad to The Bone played in her mind.
Doom waved his spear. “Go on, get. Unless you want the business end of my spear.”
The beast turned tail and ran. Clarity stood with her mouth gaping. “Well that was—interesting.”
Uneventful and lacking luster.
She gazed up at Doom. “No wonder you can fight these things. It looked as dangerous as a cow. A really cute cow.”
“Don’t kid yourself. There are very dangerous beasts in my world. Some are beautiful, until they’re chewing on you.”
Clarity cocked her head in the direction of a noise. Muffin continued to growl; her hackles rose. Teeth bared, she was a fierce creature. Clarity was glad she brought chocolate.
“Something else is out there,” she whispered.
“Stay behind me and stay close.”
Doom pressed her to his back with an arm around her. Muffin crept forward. Beneath her fur powerful muscle rippled as she took each step. The pads of her huge paws left indentations in the soft dirt beneath her feet. Clarity wrinkled her nose. Muffin could produce the same noxious smell of a wolverine. The small open space gave way to dense foliage the deeper they went. Clarity’s ill-fitting booties slipped on the few moss covered rocks, her ankles bumped against thick roots. Doom’s arm pressed against her was hard and secure. Each muscle undulated mimicking the bulwark.
A small pool of water came into view. An involuntary intake of breath made Clarity cough. The dog lifted his muzzle from the water it was lapping. The tail wagged then stopped when Muffin growled. Clarity slipped from Doom’s grasp and shoved the bulwark.
“Clarity, come back.” Doom hissed the warning.
“It’s only a dog.”
“A what?”
“A dog. Looks male. Hey big boy,” she crooned.
Normally afraid of large dogs, this one was a glimpse of home.
Cute as hell
. The dog’s tail made a tentative motion. He was a big mutt, perhaps Rottweiler crossed with Saint Bernard and maybe even standard poodle. Clarity moved closer. Doom made a grab for her arm but she shrugged him off. As she got nearer she crouched and held out her hand.
“You are a long way from home aren’t you? Come here baby.”
The dog was on all fours, five feet from her and made a motion to go to her. Clarity screamed when Muffin snatched her by the back of her shirt pulling her back. In the same instance, a monstrous being jumped from the water. A massive mouth opened to reveal rows of sharp teeth, Clarity could see down its throat. The monster struck down and closed over the unsuspecting dog.
The head of the snake-like beast lifted its neck to swallow its prize then stopped. Black eyes on either side of its head blinked, then bulged. The beast opened its mouth and propelled the dog so far and so hard it almost knocked Doom to his knees when it collided with his chest. The beast gave a strangled cry and crashed to the ground bouncing once. The living and dried foliage beneath it settled. The creature lay unmoving.
“Um,” Clarity mumbled. “What the hell just happened?”
No one moved as they all gazed at the sight before them. Muffin snuffed and released Clarity who landed on her ass. Doom dropped the dog and strode to her. He gave her a quick check to make certain she wasn’t hurt.
“What the hell was that?” she demanded, gripping his arm in a daze. “It looked like a gulper eel got busy with a pound of steroids.”
“Just another type of eel we have. These like the bottom of small ponds in summer, and during winter they use small feet to travel over the land to larger bodies of water.”
“It looks dead.”
Doom inched closer for a better look. “It is dead.” He inspected the inside of the beast’s open mouth. “Huh.”
“What?”
Clarity sidled up to him. Doom pointed in the beast’s mouth. Clarity scrunched her nose at the smell. A pile of dog shit sat on its tongue. She glanced back at the dog who sat a small distance from Muffin wagging his tail.
“Scared you shitless eh?” Clarity said and chuckled. She then glanced at Doom. “This dog must be from Earth. I bet Earth toxins killed that creature immediately. Because the dog has been altered over so many thousands of years, his mouth is toxic to this planet.”
The dog hunkered down as Clarity approached him. She let him smell her fingers before petting the top of his head. He rolled to his back exposing his belly. Muffin was immediately interested, sniffing him everywhere.
When Doom took Clarity by the arm, the dog jumped up to follow. “Go on,” Doom commanded attempting to shoo him away.
“Go where? He has no home. He’s alone. I want him. I bet the kids would adore him.”
“Clarity, who knows what noxious diseases this thing has. It killed a monster with his shit.”
Clarity stooped to pet the dog’s head. “Bubble-gum won’t be a problem. Will you big boy?”
“Bubble-gum? You want to name the beast Bubble-gum? I have seen a bubble, and I have seen a gummy sticky substance on trees. So in actuality, you want to name your pet Invisible Goo?”
“My grandmother had a mutt named Bubble-gum. Sweet, soft, always wanting to please. It’s a perfect name.”
Doom shook his head and grumbled under his breath as he strode off. Clarity smiled at the dog who sat on his haunches beside Muffin. An idea began to form in her mind. Not every female wanted an alpha. She then chuckled.
“Match making between a bulwark and a dog.”
She trailed after Doom. The sun was rising higher as the morning waned. The scenery, lush foliage, blue skies, pounding waterfalls, were the essence of a gentler time. The dog and bulwark weaved back and forth between the pair making Clarity smile. Doom appeared none too happy. He was watchful and wary. Clarity kept a foot between her and Doom until Clarity heard a distinct whistle. Both she and Doom stopped in their tracks. Goose bumps dotted her flesh, turned icy with dread. She moved to press against him. The animals began snarling, their hides were puffed from neck to ass.
A feeble roar turning to a small chirp sounded and Clarity glanced at Doom. “Should we run or hide?”
The decision was made for her when she heard the unmistakable sound of a child yell. Clarity zipped past Doom. He followed hot on her heels. As they broke through a clearing all became motionless. A young boy of eight was holding a spear swinging at a hybrid. The massive upright creature was obviously amused. To the boy’s left was the T-rex they encountered earlier. The beast was roaring, dancing back and forth snapping at the hybrid. Little arms made feeble scratches at the air. The T-rex seemed more vulnerable than the boy. The boy was a whirlwind of motion. His weapon smashed into the hybrid’s knees and bounced off. The hybrid swung at the boy and he ducked. The little T-rex moved in closer to offer aid.
Clarity wanted to scream when the child placed himself between the dinosaurs. It occurred to Clarity the boy was defending the T-rex. Bubble-gum had seen enough and raced into the foray teeth bared to aid the boy. Muffin followed. The hybrid was no longer amused, being attacked from all sides. With the added reinforcements, the T-rex developed balls and bit the hybrid’s arm. The hybrid snarled, swung, down the T-rex went. The boy bellowed in fury, stabbed the spear into the hybrid’s belly, the force of the blow so fierce the stick broke. There was no mark as the weapon toppled to the ground.
Finding her feet, Clarity raced to the boy. The hybrid had an arm raised poised to strike the child. Bubble-gum lunged for the hybrid’s throat. Muffin snapped an ankle into her mouth yanking the hybrid down. Doom was bellowing for them to stop the assault. For any hybrid killed they would take the lives of five villagers.
The hybrid shoved his clawed hands at the mouth of the bulwark. The T-rex recovered and bit into the hybrid’s back. Doom tossed the dog and regained control over the bulwark. He lifted Clarity off her feet and grabbed the boy by his shoulder, trying to retreat with them. The hybrid was up and glaring. Whistled clicks and arm waving followed and Clarity could see the hybrid was talking,
talking
to them.
“No one needs to die today,” Doom insisted.
The hybrid glanced at the T-rex and pointed. The boy screamed in rage.
“You can’t have him he’s mine.”
The hybrid pointed at the boy. Doom pulled him closer. “He’s human. We met your quota.”
The hybrid’s claws were in motion but pulled back. Clarity could see hands beneath the skin and she shivered. A body within a body. He was using his Neanderthal hands to speak with. He wanted to kill the tow-headed boy. Up close Clarity could see the tiny impression of a slight cleft lip on the boys’ face, a small nostril in the shape of a heart, the other normal. Deep brown eyes flashed with fury when he gazed back. He was a handsome young man. Emotion dazzled his image. A sturdy lad with a surprising muscular build but there was no doubt he was from Earth, possibly her Earth.
A whiz caught Clarity’s attention as an arrow flew by. The arrow slid into the hybrid’s face between his nose and mouth. At first, Clarity thought the arrow would fall like the boy’s spear, it didn’t. The hybrid fell to his knees then to his side. Weak hands pawed the arrow without dislodging it. The beast quieted, the chest stopped rising and falling. Inside the chest she saw movement of the inner skeleton. That motion ceased as well. It was dead. Heart pounding, Clarity turned to see a young girl of perhaps fifteen. The girl was wild. A feral child? She was dressed all in fur, high moccasins, a hide flap around her hips. Her hide vest sported pockets, closed with small pieces of leather threaded through holes. She stood tall, her bow firm in her grasp, another arrow ready. A leather strip of hide held back a tumble of dark hair.
“Set him free,” she demanded of the boy.
Not feral, but wild nonetheless.
“He needs to come to the village where it’s safer, you have no idea what you’ve done,” Doom said.
“I did what you and your people are too afraid to do. You’re all a bunch of filthy cowards. Release my brother. Or you’re next.” She settled another arrow into her bow and pulled back. Her hand perfectly steady near her cheek strung back the bow with two fingers. She was definitely familiar with her weapon.
“My village will suffer the consequences or another village once this hybrid is found,” Doom yelled.
“Throw the bastard in the falls.” Her contempt was palpable.
The boy struggled free of Doom’s grasp and ran to the girl, followed by the small dinosaur. The boy stuck his tongue out at Doom, so did the T-rex. The trio took off. Clarity stood gaping. She went to the hybrid and pulled up on the arrow. The arrowhead was crafted from bone. Sharp, large and well made. Squinting, she thought she detected a smear of blue. The shot took skill. After examining the beast, she smiled.
“Well, look at that, a hybrid Achilles’ heel, only it’s on his face. We won the battle, we may just have figured out how to win the war.”
Chapter Eight
“What are you thinking?”
The hybrid was heavy, between Muffin dragging him and Doom, the hybrid was muscled over a cliff into a falls that would hopefully take his body far. If they were lucky, a carnivore would make short work of the carcass. After disposing of the hybrid’s body, they returned to Doom’s home.
Clarity was sitting on the edge of his bed; Bubble-gum was fed and sleeping after eating as though starved for weeks. Muffin was sent to guard the perimeter. Clarity appeared lost in thought. Her nose scrunched and her fingers tapped at the fur beneath her. Doom’s heart was still racing. Killing a hybrid was huge in so many different ways. He was terrified and yet, exhilarated. The hybrids could be killed from a distance with a simple weapon. He wondered if Clarity could make that weapon the girl had. Something told him she could—and then some. Clarity wasn’t nearly as rattled as he.
“You saw the menace on the hybrid’s face, and for a little boy. I doubt a Neanderthal had so little compassion. They must have at one time possessed empathy. A dinosaur kills to eat. It has no feelings for food; it would be like us mourning broccoli. There was rage on the hybrid’s face. Hate. A creature that thinks, strategizes, breeds with an emotional entity must be an emotional roller coaster.”
“I wonder how many others are out there, humans, or lone villagers, hiding from us and from the hybrids. If you don’t belong to a group that gives into demands, would you be safer?” A
yes
niggled in his mind. Smaller bands of villagers, still-roaming nomads, while Doom’s people satisfied
their
quota? Is that why the hybrids wanted more every year? The idea made him furious. Were there others out there having children?
“I got a good look at those children,” Clarity said. “They weren’t overly filthy. The boy was dirty, but he’s a little boy. The girl was comfortable with her bow and arrow.”
“Is that what that weapon is? You know of it?”
“Yes of course, and she knew where to strike the beast. Those hybrids have a weakness. Why haven’t you capitalized on it? Did you know they had a weakness?”
No.
Doom was feeling frantic. Hope, anger. Scared shitless.
“For every one of us there are fifty of them perhaps more. They won’t bother with two or more small children. If we start a war, they’ll finish it. Sooner or later, that hybrid will be missed. When they go looking for him, and if they find him, there will be hell to pay.”