Vulcan's Woman (16 page)

Wisteria lifted Birmon and stood, capturing Vulcan’s eye. He
waved her on and waited until she approached before they headed toward the row
of huts. Tyran lived near the end and when they stood outside his doorway she
realized it sat next to Jade’s. “Tyran, I need a word with you,” Vulcan stated
through the doorway.

“Come in,” Tyran replied.

Vulcan pushed the flap aside and entered, pulling Wisteria
in behind him.

Tyran sat near his fire pit with a stick and a white square
in his hands.

“I need to know what’s going on,” Vulcan said, his voice
demanding but controlled.

Wisteria cowered, lowering her eyes to the ground, and
petted Birmon’s back.

“Regarding?” Tyran asked.

“These wandering mutants.”

Tyran set the objects aside and rose to his feet. “I’m not
sure, sir. I can only confirm a mutation of human DNA so far in the previous
specimens I’ve collected. The egg samples I retrieved earlier lacked any living
organisms, so it’s impossible to match to said specimen. I’m currently at a
loss. We need to confiscate an egg from that litter.”

“Have you talked to Sumner?”

“Yes. He’s aware.”

“We’ve just encountered two more. All characteristics are
the same. Green blood, dark eyes and scaly skin. They were two of Wisteria’s
people.”

“You’re sure?” Tyran’s eyes widened as he stepped around the
fire and approached Vulcan.

Wisteria nodded. “My brother and a young woman.”

“Damn it. I’m sorry,” Tyran rattled under his breath. “Do
you have time now to speak with the commander, sir? I think the sooner, the
better. He needs to hear this and you need to know what we’re dealing with.
Unfortunately I’m not at liberty to disclose any details.”

“So you’ve known all along?” Vulcan asked, raising a brow.

Tyran nodded then pulled back the flap. “Yes. I’ll tell you
this much. If I had embryonic samples from those dinosaur eggs, I bet I could
identify the unusual genetics in the mutant’s specimen. This way please.”

As they passed through the camp to the forest, Wisteria
spotted Bronto and Ivy. They’d moved beside the supply hut and were sitting
alone near the back. They appeared content and pleased with each other’s
company. She wished she had the option to join them rather than scurry in
silence to the weapons shelter where the men planned on talking with the
commander.

Tyran was already inside, presumably lighting torches since
soft light glowed halfway up the steps. Vulcan walked in ahead of Wisteria,
holding a hand on her hip while she cautiously lowered her feet to the stairs
one at a time.

When she reached the ground Tyran pulled the chair aside and
sat down in front of the computer. Before he’d pushed the button to turn it on,
a loud
boom-boom
echoed over their heads.

“What the―” Tyran stated, glancing at the vibrating shelves.

“Shhh.” Vulcan glanced upward. Then they heard it again.
Boom-boom
.
A slight pause.
Boom-boom
.

People screamed and shouted.

“Let’s go!” Vulcan ordered.

Tyran ran up the ladder first, then Wisteria, followed by
Vulcan. When they reached the top, Zypher was running toward them, knocking
branches aside. “Vulcan, sir!” he hollered. “Come quick. We’ve got trouble.”

Wisteria held tightly to Vulcan’s hand while he pulled her
in the direction of the camp. She had Birmon tucked under her arm and held on
to him so he wouldn’t bounce free. Zypher and Tyran raced ahead and squatted
behind a huge tree on the outskirts.

The closer Wisteria and Vulcan drew, the clearer she heard a
horrendous, eerie roar. It was louder than Birmon’s mom’s squall. High-pitched.
Scarier. Women were screaming and men shouting. Somewhere within the commotion
was her sister.

“Vulcan, wh-what is it?” she gasped, drawing air into her
chest as another roar shattered the air. “Ivy is in there.”

“I don’t know,” he replied, speeding their pace. Just as
they neared Zypher and Tyran, Vulcan halted and sank to his knees, pulling her
down beside him. “Don’t move.”

“Can you see?” She set Birmon down and placed her hands on
Vulcan’s back, trying to look over his shoulders. “What is it? Where’s Ivy?”
she shrieked. Her heartbeat thumped. Her chest hurt. “Can you see her?”

She rose higher and peered through a small space she’d found
between branches in a sheltering pine tree. She distinctively saw tribesmen
carrying torches and inching toward the forest opposite the huts, swinging the
flames side to side.

“Ack.”

“Birmon, hush,” she whispered, swooshing her hand. He waddled
near her feet then dashed beneath the trees and into the yard.

“Rrrrraaaaggghhh!”

Suddenly a loud
boom-boom, boom-boom
of footsteps
echoed. The ground vibrated. The tribesmen began shouting, some tossing their
torches and running off as an enormous monster stomped into the yard.

Wisteria’s mouth dropped open and her eyes bulged. She
couldn’t hear Birmon squawking through the roar as he shuffled toward the huts.
Wisteriagasped, throwing her hands over her ears to block the horrific
sound.

The enormous brownish-gray-colored creature stood on two
muscular legs with clawed feet. Its massive head leveled at the treetops. Short
limbs extended near its chest beneath a thick neck. Its tail stood straight and
stiff, narrowing to a point. From the distance its skin looked scaly and bumpy.

When it spotted Birmon it took a large step forward, its
jaws open, exposing tall, sharp teeth.

Wisteria swallowed and ducked behind Vulcan, holding her
breath while suppressing a scream.
Run, Birmon. Run!

Birmon dropped to his belly and hid beneath his wings.

“Holy shit,” Vulcan murmured in disbelief. “It’s a fucking
T-Rex.”

“Do something,” she squealed.

“Caw-caw.”

She glanced skyward. Birmon’s mom circled the trees above
their heads, her huge wingspan casting shadows over the yard. All of a sudden
she dove at the monster, batting it with her wing. Other than twisting its
head, the monster hardly moved. With an ear-piercing squaw she swooped low,
swatting him again, but it only made the creature mad. It roared, swinging around,
trying to whack her with its tail. She ascended in flight, barely escaping its
wrath.

Wisteria slapped a hand over her mouth and her eyes widened
in horror as its jaws snapped at air. Jaws nearly the size of her body. Its
head lowered slightly. Though its nostrils didn’t reach the ground, it was
sniffing and heading toward Birmon.

Birmon’s mom dove, scooped Birmon into her mouth and flew
toward the sky. The monster lurched, its snout lifted into the air, nearly
snapping her talons.

Tyran yanked the bowed weapon off his shoulder.

“Don’t do it,” Vulcan warned. “That arrow won’t do shit
besides piss it off further.”

“If it’s a shifter, sir, it’ll die.”

“What the hell are you talking about?”

“You need to speak to the commander for specifics.”

A
swooshing
soundblasted through Wisteria’s
ears. The monster wailed. Its big, circular eyes glared in their direction as
the ineffective stick lay in the dirt near its feet.

Wisteria glanced at Vulcan. He was glaring at Tyran, who’d
aimed another stick at the monster. Zypher ran off in the direction of the
huts.

Wisteria stood, fisting a handful of Vulcan’s hair. “It sees
us.”

She jumped backward from its line of vision and landed
inside a bunch of prickly pine branches.

Just as Vulcan reached forward to yank the weapon from
Tyran’s hands, Tyran pulled the stick back then released it. It sprang free,
whizzing through the air. It bounced off the monster’s neck, barely nicking its
skin.

“Rrrrraaaaggghhh,” it roared as if in pain.

Wisteria gasped and clamped a hand over her mouth.

Vulcan grabbed her arm and pulled her from the tree.

The monster shook its head side to side, roaring and
smacking its mouth open and closed. Its claws dug into the ground, kicking up
clouds of dust. Suddenly it stopped moving and studied the trees off to its
side. In one leap it reached the forest and stuck its head inside.

Branches snapped. A man screamed at the top of his lungs.
Then the monster resurfaced, holding a tribesman in its large mouth. His legs
dangled over one side of the creature’s teeth while his upper half hung over
the other. The man hollered and screamed, punching the monster’s snout. Then it
clamped its jaws together, crushing the man’s body. His bones crunched and skin
split open. A spray of blood burst into the air and trickled to the ground.

Wisteria whimpered and squeezed her eyes shut then turned
away, fighting the urge to vomit.

“Damn you, Tyran,” Vulcan seethed. “Get to the weapons and
ammo. Fast.”

Wisteria’s chest exploded in fear as Tyran darted past them.

“Bring me the Barrett,” Vulcan shouted.

Vulcan positioned Wisteria behind a huge tree and stuck her
between his body and the trunk. Her head spun. And her heartbeat thundered. And
her body trembled. And she wanted to scream.

“Chieftain,” Tyran hollered moments later. He tossed Vulcan
a long object then ran into the camp, yelling, “Get down! Get down.”

Vulcan stepped to the camp border, holding the object
against his shoulder. Suddenly a loud bang echoed through her ears. She covered
them with her hands and dropped to a squat, peering through thick brush and
tree limbs.

“Rrrrraaaaggghhh!”

The monster wailed.Another bang followed. Then
another
.
And another.

It stumbled forward, its head nearly blown off and its chest
covered in blood. It teetered and then hit the ground with a thunderous boom.
The tremors reached Wisteria, vibrating along the bottoms of her feet.

Voices and gasps filled the air as the tribe ambled from
their hiding spots, eying the monster cautiously. Vulcan led Wisteria from the
forest into the clearing, halting when their feet landed on the dirt ground.
“Zypher, Trice,” he shouted, “secure the women and children in the shelters
then set torches around the camp perimeter. Repeat the process on this side.
Tyran?”

“Right here, sir.”

Vulcan spun around, took two required steps, grabbed the
front of Tyran’s furs and shook him. “What the hell were you thinking? Didn’t I
tell you, you’d piss it off?”

“Sorry, sir. I told you one possibility of what could have
happened.”

“Yeah, that an arrow would kill a shifter. However, you
neglected to explain why and what it has in common with an eighteen-foot T-Rex.”
Vulcan released Tyran and stepped back. He appeared mad enough to kill him. “Go
help Zypher and Trice.”

“If I can get samples of the Rex, Chieftain, I may not need
to confiscate any eggs,” Tyran said with urgency. “And you really should
contact the commander immediately.”

“Make sure it’s dead. Take what you need then chop it up and
burn it.”

Wisteria wrapped her hands around Vulcan’s arm and squeezed.
“Ivy?” she hollered, glancing at people scurrying about, grabbing supplies.
“Ivy, where are you?”

“I’m here, Wisty,” she replied, crawling from the back side
of an oak tree behind Vulcan’s hut. She scrambled to her feet and dashed across
the camp, throwing herself into Wisteria’s arms. “I was so scared.”

“I know.” Wisteria petted Ivy’s hair. She couldn’t tell who
trembled more. “We all were.”

“What was that thing?”

“A Tyrannosaurus,” Bronto replied, stepping from behind the
same tree.

“What is a Tyra…tannasaurus?” Wisteria asked, glancing over
her shoulder at Vulcan.

“Bronto, take Ivy to the shelter. Wisteria,” Vulcan said,
holding out his hand, “come with me.”

Vulcan took a torch from a tribesman as they passed him
while en route to the weapons shelter. His guts were in his throat. That animal
could have caused major damage. Good thing the government had chosen the
Barrett as part of the artillery for this mission. In conjunction with the
dinosaurs, it was now obvious why they’d sent such a powerful rifle.

After Vulcan helped Wisteria down the steps he darted
straight to the computer and turned it on, tapping his thumb on the table while
waiting for it to boot.

It took forever. Longer than normal, but that’s how things
unfolded when in an urgent situation. Being housed fifteen feet underground
interfered with reception and not even the high-tech equipment worked fluently
at one hundred percent all the time.

It finally sputtered to life and the screen lit up
bright-blue. Wisteria stared between the computer and the shelves while he
activated the direct-communicator and waited for Sumner to appear.

At least ten more minutes ticked by before the commander
responded. “Sumner here.”

Wisteria jumped up and backed into the wall, staring through
huge eyes at the gray-haired commander as if he were another monster.

“It’s okay,” Vulcan assured her. “This is the man I told you
about. Come sit down.”

“Who do we have here?” Sumner asked as his eyes followed
Wisteria back to her seat.

“This is Wisteria.”

She moved closer to the computer screen, observing it
carefully. “How did he get in there?”

Vulcan grinned. “He’s not in there. He’s communicating with
me from Earth. It’s part of our modern technology.”

“Wisteria,” Sumner said, “maybe you can come and see our
technology for yourself. Would you like that?”

Vulcan’s gaze shot to the computer screen. “No. I’m not
bringing her back so a bunch of twisted scientists can poke and prod her for
research purposes.”

“I didn’t mean―”

“She’s not a spectacle.” Those info-thirsty hounds would
dissect a doe to theorize why she had no cock. He laid his hand on Wisteria’s
knee and felt it tremble. “Commander, talk to me about Helixis. And I want the
truth. It’s time you come clean about this mission. We’re encountering some
strange creatures. Mutants. A chameleon species. A two-headed serpent.
Dinosaurs. Did I mention the eighteen-foot T-Rex stomping through our camp?”