Survivor Reborn (Kieran Grey Psionic Hunter) Read online

  He looked like he expected me to hit him. I realized then that this body cared for him. Not as much as the love for Marsala, but close, very close. It hurt a part of me to see him like that. I had already given up on fighting with the new body. It had a mind of its own and at times I was stuck along for the ride. I took his hands pulling him closer to me. I leaned over and kissed him on the cheek, sending another wave of confusing feelings and thoughts through my male mind.

  “Thank you for being honest with me. I do not agree with your methods, but I am pleased with the results. If you had not pushed as you did, it may have taken me months to learn about my abilities. I will forgive you for being a total ass on one condition, you owe me dinner. Not just a ration cube either. A real, live, fancy restaurant dinner.” Being basically destitute, I always looked for a way to get a decent meal in my old life. It was my standard price for payback.

  He smiled at me. Muffled laughter filled the hall behind me. I turned to see Marsala and Emmy staring out of the now clear window where they’d been spying on us. Emmy made a kissy-face at me.

  Ugh! That’s twice in less than an hour that she caught me in a somewhat romantic position with one of Kieran’s old boyfriends.

  Emmy came out of her office followed by Marsala. He had to twist and bend to get out of the door, just opposite as he had to get in.

  “We really should not keep Yuric waiting any longer. You go on ahead, I will meet you shortly.” Marsala turned down the hall walking away from us.

  “Wait! You have something so important you can’t join us?” I reached up and grabbed his arm from behind, stopping him in his tracks.

  Emmy placed her hand on my shoulder, turning me to look at her. “The fastest way to the Demonstration Armory conference room is through the office section elevators. Marsala is . . . unable to go that way. He’s simply too big. He wouldn’t fit inside.”

  I was suddenly feeling sorry for him. His size had many advantages, but it was also his curse.

  “Well, what way is he going then? Can’t we just go with him instead?”

  “I must go to the cargo elevator on this level, then through the Bestiary to reach the large elevator to the Demonstration Armory. Most everyone avoids the Bestiary, it is not the most pleasant route.” Marsala pulled away from me.

  “The Bestiary is where all of the rare animals the Archive is studying are kept. They’re behind a thick type of bulletproof glass so they can’t get to you, but it is a fairly disturbing place.” Tanaka came up beside me.

  “It’s like a zoo then?”

  Tanaka thought a moment then nodded while saying, “Yes, but on a much larger scale.”

  “Well let’s go through the zoo together then. Yuric will just have to wait for us to join him,” I declared with a tone that said I’d made up my mind and wasn’t changing it.

  Everyone hesitated, then agreed. We turned back down the large corridor toward the cargo elevators. The hall was wide enough that we could all walk side by side. I stretched up and took Marsala’s arm, then took Tanaka’s as well. Tanaka then took Emmy’s arm. We walked arm in arm, in arm, in arm. For some reason, I felt like skipping along singing, We’re off to see the Wizard, but I just settled for smiling to myself instead.

  Chapter 6

  The doors of the elevator opened. Sounds and smells assaulted the senses. It sounded and smelled just like a zoo. There were three halls each behind glass doors off the elevators. Emmy and Tanaka took off straight down the center hall single file through the doors. I followed them. Marsala stayed behind me. The hall was just narrow enough to keep us from walking side by side comfortably.

  I looked at the glass walls surrounding us on both sides. Behind the glass was a variety of insects. From regular bugs to extremely huge, disgusting creatures the size of a large dog I’d never knew existed before. They sent shivers up my spine just looking at them.

  Tanaka was right, this is disturbing.

  I focused on walking straight by staring at the floor. There were white stripes painted on the floor, each only a couple of feet from the walls, like guide lines. I ended up watching Emmy and Tanaka’s feet in front of me between the lines as we passed through the jungle of bugs. They stopped suddenly before a sliding glass door. I looked up at them. They both looked afraid of something.

  Emmy turned to me. She looked gravely concerned. “Kieran, beyond this door are the arachnid holding cages.” Just great, spiders. Did I mention that I really hate spiders? “The best way through is to follow the stripes. Keep your head down, only looking at the floor between the stripes. No matter what you hear or feel around you, just continue on to the next set of doors. It is best if you don’t run though. Or, if you want, you can just close your eyes and we’ll take you through.”

  “Why all the concern?” She was beginning to worry me.

  “You don’t like spiders, do you? Well, Kieran was afraid of them as well. Deathly afraid! You’ve shown certain qualities of hers that you have inherited. You may have her fears as well. Her fear along with your own could be too much for you to handle this next corridor. Nothing can get through the glass at you, but I want you prepared for what is ahead of us.”

  “I will carry you, if you want.” Marsala draped his hand lightly over my shoulder.

  I looked through the glass doors at the hall beyond. On the left were sections of rainforest like areas. The right was sections of one big desert. Beyond was another set of glass doors and another hallway.

  The spiders are all behind walls, albeit glass walls, but I can do this, can’t I?

  “I’ll be fine. Let’s go.” It was as brave of words I could come up with. And thankfully my voice didn’t shake either.

  Tanaka shrugged then pressed on through the door. He kept his head down, walking briskly, just short of a run. Emmy copied his movements. Then it was my turn. I walked up to the doorway, then stepped across the threshold. Nothing happened. I let out my breath, which I hadn’t realized I’d been holding. Then I walked on. Out of the corner of my eye, I could see something moving under the sand to my right. Against the recently given advise, I looked up, seeing nothing but sand. Curiosity got the best of me. It usually did. I looked to the left.

  There were several small spiders in separate cages along the walls behind the glass. Some I recognized, most I did not. The largest one was only about five-inches across, legs and all. The next panel to the right held four large tarantulas. Each about the size of both of my hands together.

  Emmy must’ve been telling me stories about the giant spiders.

  The next cage was much larger than the last sets combined. It held dense jungle foliage. The plant life shook slightly. I didn’t see any spiders. Why are the leaves shaking? My curiosity got the best of me and I stopped walking. Turning, I moved closer to the glass. I couldn’t see anything living among the shaking leaves.

  “No! Stay away from the glass!” Marsala started towards me.

  Emmy and Tanaka turned and started for me at the same time.

  What’s everyone so worried about? There’s no such things as giant spiders. Is there?!? Besides, nothing could break through the glass anyway. Right?

  I turned back to look in the cage again. The leaves stopped shaking. I could hear Marsala screaming at me in the back of my mind.

  Why’d the leaves stopped shaking?

  It was as if the world was suddenly moving in slow motion. I leaned in towards the glass. I was trying to see through the leaves. Marsala threw his arms out at me.

  Why is everyone so worried?

  Everything seemed to go quiet. Nothing moved, no one breathed, at least I didn’t.

  Why did the leaves stop shaking?

  Just as Marsala’s fingers brushed my shoulder the plants came alive. Yellow and black exploded towards me.

  Fear took control. I threw up my shields as I fell, pushing everything back. Tanaka, Emmy, and Marsala were thrown away from me by my shields, knocking them all to the floor. Fangs scraped against the glass as the monst
er arachnid slammed into the invisible wall. The spider was the size of a small car, yellow and black stripes covering it’s body. The monstrosity appeared to be trying to dig its way through the glass after me.

  My body reacted to the threat, I drew the gun from my back and fired. Three shots that would‘ve hit the center of the beast, flattened harmlessly against the bulletproof glass, leaving only small dents in the tough barrier. The bullets did nothing to deter the monster as it continued to try and dig its way out to me. I raised to my knees, leaning against the wall opposite of the colossal spider. Its fangs dripped venomous liquid on the glass as it tried to eat its way through.

  The rest of the cages in the hall came to life. Other spiders, some the size of a large tank, came to investigate. None of them could get through the glass. That didn’t stop them from trying though. They each took turns trying to break through the invisible wall that separated us, slamming into and chewing against the glass. Suddenly it was as if I was the best looking meal the starving wretches had ever seen.

  Fear was rising inside me making it hard to breath. The air around me was quickly going thin. The walls themselves seemed to close in on me.

  Clicking and movement of something large was suddenly behind me.

  I looked over my shoulder slowly. That ever so slow knowing turn. I knew a monster was there. But, nothing on earth could have prepared me for it.

  The giant scorpion raised to tower above me. Hissing and clicking, it snapped huge four-foot long claws at me.

  I turned, not sure whether to fire or not.

  The bullets won’t go through the glass, THIS FUCKING GUN’S USELESS!!!

  The gun fell from my fingers clattering on the hard floor. Terror had taken away the strength to hold onto it anymore.

  The scorpion’s tail crashed into the glass hard enough to shake the entire hall. I fell backwards trying to dodge the blocked attack. The poison spike scratched deep against the glass, creating a sound that made my spine cringe.

  It reared back to strike again, at least three others appeared from the sand. They all began to try to stab at me through the unbreakable glass.

  I scooted back on the floor. Hands and feet scrambling to get me as far away from the monsters as fast as they could.

  My left hand had been sliding along the crease where the floor meets the wall, until my hand passed through something.

  Even through my shields I could tell it was silky but sticky. I only knew one thing in the world that felt like that. The spider web had gotten tangled around my fingers on my shields just off of my skin.

  It wasn’t but a fraction of a second later that I felt the movement on my hand. Feather light, the feeling was faint through my shields. I knew instantly what it was.

  The tiny–normal sized–spider crawled across my hand. I screamed. I screamed, batting at the tiny monster on my hand.

  My shields were protecting me, but I didn’t care. I had to get it off of me. I slammed my hand against the wall again and again. The small spider was smashed between my shields and the wall in a greasy smear.

  My body felt as if it suddenly had spiders crawling all over it. Millions of them covering every inch of my skin, crawling inside every nook and cranny. I batted at the invisible monsters my mind had created.

  Fear told me to run.

  I scrambled to my feet, running away from my fear.

  I ran, right past Emmy and Tanaka still dazed on the floor, through the door out of the nightmare.

  I was away from the spiders, but I still ran.

  I prayed the bulletproof glass held the creatures away, and I ran.

  I could hear people screaming at me from a distance, but I ran.

  Then, just before the next door, the corridor turned sharply to the right. My feet tripped in the narrow heels trying to make the corner. I slammed face first into the nearest glass wall.

  Deep hissing filled my ears. I opened my eyes slowly. Praying that I wouldn’t see anything.

  A snake’s head filled my vision, not only because of the closeness of it being only a foot away, but because its head was generously larger than my entire body. The cobra’s hood fanned out instantly doubling the snakes size. I backed up from the glass.

  More hissing behind me.

  I turned.

  Then turned again and again.

  The walls closing in tighter and tighter.

  The world was swimming.

  I started shaking uncontrollably.

  I have to get out, I need out!

  “HELP ME!!!” I screamed at the top of my lungs.

  I continued to scream, wordless.

  I was running out of air.

  Then I couldn’t scream anymore.

  I collapsed to the floor.

  The world was going black.

  Brown, hairy, incredibly long fingers reached for me.

  “I’ve got you. . . .” the gruff voice said.

  It was the last thing I heard before everything went black.

  * * *

  The smell of saltwater was the first thing I noticed as the world came back to me. I slowly opened my eyes. Emmy looked down at me with concern, her face filling my vision. She had my head in her lap down on the floor, dabbing a cool wet cloth against my face and neck. That look of concern on her face shook me.

  I never had anyone look at me like that before. Like they were afraid of losing me.

  “You are safe now. You are safe with us.” Marsala placed his hand on my legs, patting them lightly.

  “Feeling better? Here, open your mouth.” Tanaka held a hydro pack in front of my eyes. I opened my mouth allowing him to place a drop of hydro on my tongue.

  The hydrating gel made me feel better almost instantly. Like a tall cool glass of water on a hot day. I struggled to sit up. Emmy helped me. We were inside a large aquarium room, completely submerged underwater. The dome-shaped room allowed me to see the thousands of fish swimming all around us. Assorted tropical fish from all around the world darted happily in and out around coral structures that stretched up halfway on the walls. It was the most breathtaking fish tank in the world.

  Suddenly my tired mind started playing tricks on me. Above a section of coral deep in the water, a teenage girl’s face astonishingly appeared, her hair flowing wildly around her in the currents of the water. She shyly ducked away when I saw her. That one brief glimpse was all I saw of the teenager.

  What’s that girl doing out in the water without a mask on? Did I even see her, or was it my imagination?

  I felt so exhausted again, then I suddenly noticed the touch of the others. My shields had fallen when I passed out. It was just like Emmy had warned me. Just thinking about it brought my shields back up, pushing away the hands touching my body. It was fast enough that I felt like apologizing for pushing them away.

  The gun I had dropped appeared in front of me handle first, held by those long hairy fingers. I looked up at Nikolai. It was impossible to read any emotion on the werewolf’s face. “I believe this is yours.”

  “Thank you. I’m sorry, for everything back there. Sorry everyone.” I took the gun, and after replacing the used clip with the fresh one at Tanaka’s insistence, placed it back in the holster at my back. I felt so ashamed. I had let my fear control me. I couldn’t let that happen again. It put everyone else at risk of being hurt. These people were Kieran’s friends, now they were my friends.

  I will NOT endanger them again!

  “You reacted well,” Marsala spoke softly like a concerned parent, still patting my legs through my shields. “When you sensed danger, you threw up extra shields. Then you acted to protect yourself. When that did not work you were smart enough to run away to save yourself. Do not be ashamed of your actions.”

  “Yeah, you only did one thing wrong really.” Tanaka had the same tone as Marsala as he spoke. “The only problem was you left your teammates behind. We never leave anyone behind, ever. You’ll do better next time. Just remember to take us with you, okay?”

  I f
elt good enough to stand finally. Once I had my legs firmly beneath me, I walked over to stand in front of Nikolai. The werewolf kept his head bowed, like I was his master. Even with his head down he still towered over me. I raised my hand to touch his face. He cringed back, expecting to be struck.

  “I just wanted to thank you for helping me.” He kept pulling back from my touch. I suddenly had an idea why. “Are you afraid of me Nikolai?”

  He hesitated then stepped back from me to keep out of arm’s reach. “Yes.”

  “Why? Have I done something to you in the past?”

  “You were forced back, you do not remember your life before do you?” That was the cover story we were using, it would’ve looked bad not to agree with it. I nodded to him. He kept his head low as he spoke, “The you that was before hated dogs. All forms of dogs. You had made it very clear that I was not welcome around you.”

  I thought about that. I did have a feeling of hatred towards dogs. In my old body I didn’t care for dogs, I was more of a cat person, but I did not hate them. Now I did hate them.

  Why do I hate dogs so much? Had Kieran been attacked or something?

  “I’m sorry for anything I may have done to you in the past. I don’t know what I did, or even what I should say other than, I am sorry.” He raised his head looking at my eyes for the first time. I just had to know something. “Nikolai, even though I was . . . mean to you in the past, you still came to my aid, why?”

  “You needed my assistance. I could not stand by and do nothing.”

  I closed the distance between us. Taking his ropy hand I shook it, then gave him a quick hug. It seemed like the girl thing to do, and I couldn’t stop myself no matter how hard I tried, even though it was an odd sensation to hug a werewolf. “You are a good man Nikolai. Thank you for helping me. If you ever need anything of me, please ask. I always try to help my friends.”

  He looked at me from behind his glasses as if I’d sprouted a second head. “You really are a new you. I accept your friendship.”