Chapter Two

When I finally roused enough to force myself free from the sweetest slumber I can recall in my twenty-four years of life, it took a bit of struggling to remember where I was.  I sat up on the bed and swung my feet over its edge.  They barely touched the floor.  I didn’t recall being so small in it before, but then, I’d been pretty messed up with drugs and injuries.

Injuries.

I remembered my ribs and felt for the bandage beneath my tunic.  It was gone. I pulled the tunic up to inspect more closely.  Searching the cave interior with my eyes, I was disappointed to find no mirror. I checked myself out as best I could without it. There was no sign of any damage that I could see, nor was there any pain!  How had I managed to heal so quickly? It had been quickly, hadn’t it?  I couldn’t tell, since I’d lost all concept of time.

I made note that my rescue was the second miracle to happen since I’d been captured by those grotesque creatures; the first being my rejection in the food line. I said a small silent prayer of thanks. I was pretty sure I’d already done so, but I wanted to thank my god-like savior again with a clear head. I sensed his presence and that he’d been coming and going, but I saw no signs of him at the moment.

I hopped off the bed with more vitality than I’d felt in a long time.  What was in that wonderfully delicious stew? I wondered as I padded over to the fire.  It was still going strong with signs of recently being tended.  I looked around.  I was alone. 

Feeling energized and curious, I decided to brave the outer limits of the cave. I needed to know where I was so I could make plans on getting home. I really hoped those beasts hadn’t teleported me to some obscure location, or worse…planet!  Although I knew it could be done, I had no experience with teleporting.  It would be difficult for me to get back on my own.  Would my altruist be willing to continue his aid and help me get back?  Did he even have the ability?

The air felt crisp and cool against my exposed flesh as I stepped out into the moonlight.  I estimated it was after midnight.  I listened for sounds of life around me, but all was quiet.  It looked like the whole world was sleeping.  All except me, that is.

I noted the fullness of the brilliant moon. This meant that I’d been in the cave healing and sleeping heavily for about two weeks. I really owed my benefactor a debt of gratitude.

The cave was on the edge of a forest.  Tall pines mingled with gnarly oaks and maples. It was a perfectly normal looking forest that gave me no hint at all as to where I was or what era I was in.  An owl screeched its presence and startled a small squeal out of me.

“Be careful.  We don’t want to give away our hiding place,” said a rich, sultry voice through the night.

I jumped to look behind me to find my handsome savior with a load of firewood balanced in his arms as if it weighed no more than a sack of feathers.

“Where are we?” I asked.

“Safe for now,” he replied as he turned to enter the cave, “unless you keep that howling up.”

“It was a little squeal,” I muttered as I followed him back inside.

“Haven’t you ever heard the saying ‘the forest has eyes?’” he chided.

“Is that the same as the hills have eyes?” I said sarcastically.

I was referring to the movie, of course. It was a way of testing things.  If I’d gone back in time, he wouldn’t have a clue what I was speaking about.

“I saw that film,” he said as he dropped the wood next to the fire. “I didn’t much care for it.”

Okay, so I was still in my own era.  That was excellent, but I still had questions such as what was a Dragos?  I remembered that word from my nightmare as if it’d been branded on my brain.

“Can I know your name?” I said with more self-confidence than I really possessed. I felt it best to be polite rather than burst into a line of questions about my whereabouts and the creatures that abducted me and then left me for dead.

“Jack,” he said, matter-of-factly.

“Nice to meet you Jack,” I said as sweetly as I could.

“Is it?” he chuckled with a tone that could only be described as sarcastic and walked back out of the cave.

I was really growing tired of the way he just up and left as the mood struck him.

“Wait,” I commanded with more intensity than I’d intended.

It left me a little shaken.  I did my best to hide it from him.

He stopped in his tracks, but didn’t turn around.  I watched his shoulders tense and then loosen again.  It was as if he was struggling with what to do while he remained with his back to me.

“Please don’t go yet,” I said in a gentler tone that I was only able to accomplish after some serious breathing exercises. “I… I’m very confused and lonely and… well I’m a little frightened.  I was captured by…”

“By the Dragos,” he interjected. “I pulled you from their refuse pile.”

The tone of his voice left me uncomfortable. I’d angered him.  I wasn’t sure what I should say.  ‘I’m sorry for barking at you and thank you for all you’ve done’ was the most obvious, yet it didn’t seem appropriate for the mood, so I said, “I owe you my life,” instead.

“You think so?” he almost growled.

Although I was taken aback by his aggressive tone, I refused to be deterred.  I was determined to smooth things over.  I needed to show him my gratitude; for my sake, if not for his.  There was no doubt in my mind that I would have died had he not pulled me from that abhorrent pile of human remains.

“Yes,” I said steadily.

“Be careful…. I just might take it,” he half whispered before bounding out of the entrance.

Suddenly my legs refused to hold me.  I collapsed in a heap.

The thick carpet acted as a barrier between me and the cold earthen ground.  I could smell the earth in its fibers, yet it looked fairly new and fresh. I would have pondered on how long the cave served as Jack’s plush sanctuary had I not been overwhelmed with his parting comment.

Did I hear him correctly? Did he threaten to take my life? Had he saved me from certain death at the hands of the Dragos only to kill me himself? If I hadn’t heard his words with my own ears, I would never have entertained such a thought. He seemed like a perfectly normal man.  True, he was a little uncommunicative, but, considering where he’d found me, I assumed he’d seen some trauma of his own. Maybe he also narrowly escaped being food for those beasts.  Or… horror of horrors… he was a cannibal and scavenged the remains off the bones of the refuse!

I shook my head.  Now I was being ridiculous.  If he was a cannibal, he’d have surely eaten me over the course of the last few weeks; not feed me. I forced myself to giggle. It was amazing how the mind could dream up such ridiculous stuff and make it seem real in a flash.

I took a closer look around the interior of the cave that was now my sanctuary.  This was clearly someone’s home or -at the very least-  place of refuge. If Jack hadn’t set it up, I was sure he’d used this place for his own.  Yet he’d barely spent any time there since I’d arrived. Did he have another dwelling nearby?  That didn’t seem logical, but then, nothing about what had happened so far seemed logical.  Dragos weren’t real. They were creatures from fairy tales told around campfires for the purpose of scaring your fellow campers.  Since when did creatures in fairy tales come to life?

Several days passed with no words spoken between Jack and me.  When I saw or sensed him coming, I feigned sleep in order to avoid speaking with him.   I needed time to process the fear his comment instilled in me.  It had to be the better part of a week gone by before I started to get restless.  I’d completely lost track of time. I had no idea how long I’d actually been in that cave.  When did I arrive? I estimated I’d been there a total of three weeks, but was I correct? I kept falling in and out of sleep; staying awake only long enough to fill my stomach with the ever present stew -that I never grew tired of and couldn’t seem to get enough of- and then right back into slumber land I went.

“You’ve been here for six weeks, not three,” said a feminine voice from a distance.

Startled, I jumped and quickly looked around, but saw no one.

“Over here dearie,” the voice cooed.

I couldn’t decide if it was a friendly coo or not.

“You’re rather rude, aren’t you?” I stated bluntly.

“You’re an expert on rudeness?” the owner of the voice said, clearly annoyed.

“It doesn’t take an expert to recognize rude,” I replied bravely.

 It didn’t matter that this was my first and only visitor other than Jack.  Sneaking into the cave and remaining in the shadows was rude and I intended to make that clear. 

“You’re an ungrateful bitch, aren’t you?” the voice said.

“To whom am I being ungrateful and for what?  I thanked my rescuer. I see no need to be polite to someone who sneaks in here, reads my mind, and then speaks from the dark recesses of the cave instead of showing himself,” I spat.

“Herself, you twit,” the voice spat back.

“You sound like a man,” I lied. 

I’d actually meant to say ‘her’, but, in my nervousness, I got confused.

“You look like you just escaped Auschwitz!” the voice blurted out.

I had no response for that because I was sure it was true.  I stood in stunned silence for a while and then burst out laughing. I mean, seriously…I was arguing with a bodiless voice. 

“Touché,” I breathed between peals of laughter, “You’ve got me there.”

Before my startled eyes, a glowing translucent ball emerged out of the shadows and slowly grew to enormous size.  The larger it got, the opaquer it became. When it reached a size large enough to accommodate a body, a tall, slender, but shapely brunette stepped out and stood not five feet away from me.

I stood mesmerized by the overlarge almond shaped eyes that were perfectly positioned on her small, creamy bronze, oval shaped face. Her pixie type nose looked at home between her smooth, arched brows and full, ruby lips. Had it not been for the pointed ears on the sides of her head, I would have labeled her perfect.

“I’m not perfect either,” she chuckled good-naturedly while pulling on her ears and lifting her chiffon gown to display grotesque and hairy feet.

“It’s an odd combination,” I mused as I slowly admired her slender curves and perfect complexion.

“Not where I come from,” she smiled, seemingly unaffected by my comment that most would consider rude.

“I’m from New York. The state, not the city.  That’s on earth,” I replied without thinking.

Between the lizard beasts and this odd looking person, I’d come to the conclusion that I’d left earth for some other planet, but I was surprised to hear myself say it aloud.

“Me too,” she chimed. “Earth, that is.”

“How can that be?” I asked with genuine surprise.

“Now that’s typical,” she snorted as she walked to the large, comfortable looking chair by the fire.  “You humans are all the same.”

“I’m sorry,” I said and then chastised myself silently.  What in heaven’s name was I apologizing for? “It’s just that I’ve never seen anyone from earth that looked like you, so I don’t understand how you can claim your look is not an odd combination.”

“You can’t help it, I suppose,” she sighed. “It’s just that I hoped you would be different.  I mean, it’s not like Jack to take in just any stray human.”  A sparkle of amusement tinted her large eyes as she continued, “It’s especially not like him to let them live.  You must be too skinny for him too.”

“He eats people?” I gasped as my hand flew to my throat.

My fears were being confirmed.

“Ha, ha, ha, you’re so funny,” she chortled, but offered nothing else.

My visitor seemed to know her way around the cave quite well.  She produced some herbal tea and two cups from a cupboard I hadn’t even thought to investigate. We spent the next few hours sipping tea and getting to know each other.  She told me her name was L’oana, a name quite common to her kind.  She equated it to Jane or Ann in my language.  When I asked her what her kind was, she said, “Earthling” as if I’d insulted her.  I let the topic go for a while and just enjoyed her bubbly conversation.  It’d been what seemed like an eternity since I’d had the luxury of enjoying light hearted conversation over a cup of herbal tea.  I wasn’t in a hurry to give it up.

At some point over the course of our discussions, L’oana grew more comfortable with me. I discovered that my new female friend was well over a century old. She took great pains to explain to me that she belonged to a raced called Squachula.  Although they lived upon the planet earth, they lived in an alternate dimension than that of humans.

I learned that, like the Dragos, Squachula had a life expectancy of approximately two-hundred years. This meant she was what we would consider middle aged.  I compared her youthful, light hearted actions and appearance to that of a middle aged human and smiled.  No wonder we were considered an inferior species.

L’oana enlightened me on the variances of Squachula around the planet. Apparently they differed in race just like humans differed.  Some were of highly superior intelligence and skills while others bordered on primitive.  She confided that, over the centuries, there were times when they interbred with other species, including the humans, which added to the variances in race. Her race was a product of such interbreeding.

L’oana was not only light hearted, intelligent, and beautiful.  She was also highly skilled in the art of teleporting from one dimension to another.  She often made trips from inner earth to outer earth; which was how she met Jack. 

I learned she was a missionary of sorts. Like humans, Squachula were prey for the Dragos and, therefore, like humans, they wanted them eliminated from their planet. L’oana traveled between planets, by way of teleportation, to assist in the task of weakening the Dragos until the time came that they could be fully driven out.  This was a dangerous mission that only a few were allowed to participate in.  Although she made light of it, I knew she was more than she was letting on to be.

I mentioned to L’oana the fact that, for centuries, there were sightings on earth of a large, man-like, ape-like beast in various locations of earth.  Some called the beast Big Foot.  Some called him the Abominable Snow Man. Some called him Sasquatch.  All were basically names for the same type of being.  She nodded, smiled, and proceeded to tell me that they were of the Squachula breed, but significantly removed from her clan.  She equated it to the Chinese of the human race verses the humans from the continent of Africa.  They were human, but significantly different in size, shape, coloring, and features.  One thing that was similar was their ability to move from one dimension of the earth’s etheric layer to the other. 

I learned that earth was made up of four vibrational dimensions that housed physical inhabitants.  For the most part, the planet looked and behaved the same in each one.  They even housed similar, if not identical, plant and animal life.  The truest difference was the variance of species of intelligent beings in each level. 

The dimensions eventually melded into one within the core of the planet where the vibrations were denser.  It was in this area that the Dragos who teleported to earth from other planets dwelled. Their location allowed them to travel into any outer level with ease to capture and accumulate the life they depended upon for sustenance. They were an evil, lizard type humanoid that migrated from another part of the galaxy some millennia past when their own planet got so overpopulated that food became a scarcity. Earth and Kurr weren’t the only planets they dispersed their pioneers to, but they proved to be one of the more desirable for the Dragos to inhabit.

I’d had the misfortune of being abducted while walking down a remote section of road in the wee hours of the morning. It turned out that road was one of their favorite locations for acquiring food since it was fairly isolated and easy to remain undetected. I heard discussions during the early hours of my capture that the mountains of Arizona and the Arkansas hot springs were other prime locations.  L’oana gave me a detailed list of earth’s hot spots for abduction. I burned it into my memory bank and vowed to heed it when and if I ever got back home.

I questioned her method of dealing with the Dragos.  Did she fight them head on or was it a sneak attack?  To my disappointment, she refused to discuss the topic.  I’d gotten all I was going to get about the Dragos out of her for the moment. 

I noticed her energy level was fading.  She was no longer as bubbly and vivacious when speaking.  It was clear she needed a rest.   Since I was feeling a bit weary myself, I suggested we take a brief rest.  When she acted offended at the concept of my thinking her weak, I emphasized that I was still in the stage of recovery and would appreciate a little down time.  This appeased her wounded pride and she eagerly obliged by leaving the cave, stating she’d return in a few hours to continue our conversations.

As I stretched out onto the mattress, that I assumed Jack abandoned in order to accommodate me, I thought of my new found acquaintance.  I’d never met someone who wasn’t human before. It was an odd experience, but a pleasant one. I sensed she hadn’t been completely honest with me. I didn’t believe she was from earth and was probably a native of the planet she said I was on at the moment; Kurr.  Even so, I liked L’oana. I had very few female friends back home; mainly because we lived in such a remote area and people were not in abundance.  I was looking forward to L’oana and I becoming good friends.

As I lay on my back, with my arm resting over my eyes, my mind wandered to thoughts of Jack.  I’d seen very little of him since he’d brought me there.  He’d entered a few times to deposit firewood, stoke the fire, and stir or freshen my ever present stew with fresh herbs or meat.  He said minimal words to me.  In fact, I didn’t recall him saying much of anything to me since he’d frightened me into thinking him a cannibal.

Of course it was still questionable what he was. After all, didn’t L’oana make that odd comment about him leaving me alive?  Had I survived the clutches of the Dragos only to die at the hands of Jack?  If that was the case, if he truly planned on killing me, what was he waiting for?  Was his dragging things out as a sick form of torture?  L’oana said I’d been in the cave for six weeks or so.   Why would he forfeit his home, monitor the fire, and keep my food well stocked if he planned on killing me?

I slid my hands to over my stomach and hips.  Had I gained a little weight?  The tunic and pants he’d presented when I’d first arrived allowed room for it.  It sure felt like I had.  I cupped my tiny breasts.  They felt like they too had increased in size, if only a little. Was that it?  Was he fattening me up for the kill?  My heart reacted to the thought so powerfully, I thought it was going to escape my chest on its own and run away.  The pain in my ribcage was excruciating.  I was having a heart attack!   I didn’t need to worry about being killed and eaten by anyone.  I’d be dead in a matter of minutes from a failed heart.

The raspy sound of my gasping for air that echoed off the tapestry covered stone pounded at me like a hammer against a dull, rusty nail.  It brought back memories of my aunt’s mini-farm and her incessant attempts to recycle the old barn wood; pulling and prying at century old nails while doing her best to keep the wood from splitting under the nail’s screeching resistance.

“What’s wrong?” said a deep male whisper from seemingly nowhere. 

The voice sounded more in my head than in my ear.  It was familiar, yet I couldn’t quite place it.

I sat up in a panic and looked around for the source of the voice but saw no one.

“Come out!” I demanded.

“I’m right here,” Jack said calmly from the cave entrance. “What’s wrong?”

“How did you know?” I whispered. 

His ability to come and go so quickly and silently was unsettling.

“What’s wrong?” he insisted.

I backed up as far as I could on the narrow mattress while I searched for an escape route.  There was none.  The only way out was the entrance and Jack was blocking it.

“I don’t like to keep repeating myself,” he growled. “I asked you a question and I expect an answer.”

“Nothing!” I burst out, “I’m fine.”

“Your heart is ready to explode. What frightened you?” he persisted.

I held his gaze for a few seconds that felt like an eternity, while I debated what to do.  I fought the urge to fall into his serious emerald eyes.  There was something about them that pulled me in, hugged me, and then debated about letting me go.  Or at least that’s how it felt. 

I shook my head and decided to tell him the truth.

“You frighten me,” I said in a voice that was barely above a whisper.

“I don’t understand.  Haven’t I been good to you?  Why would I frighten you?” he asked.

 He looked genuinely puzzled.

“You made a comment about taking my life a while back and then L’oana said…,” I began.

“L’oana!” he bellowed. “When was that she-wolf here?”

“Not long ago,” I winced.

“I should have known,” he hissed as he stomped back out of the cave.

I wasn’t sure if I should still be frightened for myself or perhaps transfer that concern toward my new found friend.  She seemed like such a fun and agreeable sort.  I couldn’t imagine why Jack would be so unhappy to discover she’d paid me a visit.

He’d called her a she-wolf.  I thought it odd, but it wasn’t long before it was made clear. 

L’oana dashed past me with lightning speed; followed by Jack who was traveling equally as fast.  I had to rub my eyes to make sure I’d seen correctly.  When I was in focus again, I gasped in horror at the sight of L’oana pinned against the thick tapestry wall.  She was hanging onto dear life with Jack’s hand clamped around her throat.  Her head was tipped to the side and his teeth were elongated, ready to sink into her tender flesh. 

He was a vampire!  That couldn’t be, could it?  I thought vampires were products of folk lore.  Of course, I didn’t believe in life on other planets and lizard people either, until I was kidnapped by them and brought to a planet called Kurr.  I wondered what else in fairy tales was not really a tale, but fact.

I screamed for Jack to stop with every bit of air my lungs contained, filled them back up, and did it again.  Eventually –and thankfully before he’d sank his teeth into her beautiful, perfect flesh- my screams penetrated his thick skull and he looked over at me. Seeing my terrified expression must have brought him back to his senses because he retracted his fangs with surprising speed and released his captive.   

She raced to my side and huddled behind me as best she could while breathing heavily. I patted her arm reassuringly while I glared at him defiantly.  It was clear to me he was not human.  Real or not, from what I could see he was a vampire. Surprisingly, I wasn’t frightened.  In fact, I was relieved.  At least he wasn’t fattening me up to eat my flesh.

“What’s your problem?” L’oana said from behind me.

“You stay away from her!” Jack bellowed.

“Why is she so special? Why haven’t you killed her?” L’oana hissed.

I didn’t like the tone L’oana was using.  It seemed far too hostile when referring to me and my possible demise.  It actually sounded as if she resented the fact that Jack had nursed me back to health instead of draining me of my blood.  This was a twist in personality that I didn’t like.

“I warned you,” Jack hissed.

“I don’t understand,” I interjected. I was shocked when I looked at L’oana to see the fiery red that glowed in her eyes.  Her lovely face was distorted to the point it was borderline unrecognizable.  The animal in her was coming through loud and clear.  “What are you?” I gasped.

“She’s trouble,” Jack said.

He reached for my arm and pulled me off the bed with such force that I propelled into his chest. My muscles tensed with apprehension about being held so closely by a blood sucking creature.  When I could finally move past my fear, I noted he felt surprisingly warm and supple.  Whenever I’d read or watched shows about vampires, or listened to the tales of them from the neighborhood story tellers, they were always described as being cold, hard, and corpse-like.  Had I not witnessed his fangs with my own eyes, I would have never believed Jack to be anything but a human.

“You’re warm,” I thought aloud.

He chuckled and wrapped his arms around me protectively while saying, “You’ve been listening to the story tellers.”

“Did they tell you he’s of the devil?” L’oana shouted.  “He’s evil.  Don’t be fooled by his warmth.  It’s the fire of hell that burns in his body.  That’s what you’re feeling!”

Jack’s body stiffened.

“How did you find us?” he demanded.

“Ha! Do you really think you can hide from me?  Do you really think you can hide from them? You fool!” she said in a tone that sounded almost animal.

“What are you?” I asked again.

“You are looking into the face of the demon’s woman,” Jack explained. “She neglected to camouflage her grotesqueness.   Usually she appears in human form to humans.”  He jutted his chin in her direction, “You surprise me, L’oana.  Can it be you’re slipping?”

“The demon’s woman?” I gasped. 

My confusion was clearly apparent.

“His queen if you please,” she hissed. “And he’s no more a demon than you are, Jack.  You’re just jealous because you and I didn’t work out.”

“Watch what you say, L’oana,” he said.

I watched L’oana coil her body in a snakelike fashion as she transformed from the beautiful woman with odd ears and feet to a reptilian androgynous creature with an incredibly long forked tongue that darted in and out with lightning speed. I threw my hands over my mouth to stifle the scream that I couldn’t help emitting and buried my face as best I could into Jack’s chest.  I’d spent hours talking to this creature and actually considered her a new found friend and ally.

“Be gone with you or feel my wrath!” Jack said between clenched teeth.

“Who is she to you?” L’oana hissed. “She’s a scrawny thing and a poor excuse for a woman in any species.  Why do you protect her so?”

Peeking through my fingers, I was mesmerized by the sight of this snake like creature moving its mouth and tongue in a manner that formed clearly understandable –if not lispy- words.  In fact, I was so engrossed in the scene before me that I almost missed his response.

“She’s not your concern,” he bellowed with an authoritative tone.

“But, she’s yours?” L’oana hissed.

“She’s my ward,” he said defiantly.

“Your what?” I wailed as I pushed my head back to look up at him.  How preposterous was that statement?  I’d never set eyes on him before in my life. How could he claim that I was his ward? 

My mother and father were killed in a car crash when I was still in diapers.  I was raised by my mother’s sister, Jenny.  Three years my senior, her son, James, acted as my protector throughout the years.  How could he possibly claim me as his ward?  It just didn’t make sense.

Jack rested his chin on the top of my head as he hugged me close. Even in my distress, I couldn’t help noticing how natural it felt.  I found myself breathing in unison with the rhythm of the beating of his heart.  It was an odd realization.  It was like we were an extension of each other.  How could that be?  I barely knew him, yet I felt like I’d known him forever.  It was unsettling.

I pushed myself away from him with a force I didn’t know I possessed.

“Let go of me,” I said with surprising bravado.

I spared a quick glance at L’oana -who had returned to human form and was now laughing hysterically at the situation- before my focus returned to Jack.  He seemed undisturbed by my refusal to be held.  Instead, he also looked amused.  I would have been annoyed at the smirk on his beautiful mouth, had I not been held captivated by his deep, alluring eyes. 

After what seemed like an eternity, I managed to regain control and pulled myself to full height before stating as firmly as I could, “You have some explaining to do.”