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Claude’s body throbbed with pain as the alien beast advanced toward him. He tried his best to stay strong, but he was running out of energy. His whole body ached, and he stumbled backward, leaning against a large boulder. He wanted to flee from this monster and its deafening roars, yet his legs were shaking too much to move. For the first time in a long time, Claude experienced helplessness. He wanted nothing more than to run away, which was easier said than done.
Putting his hands on his thighs to catch his breath, he glanced around. There was no mistaking this place, The Tahoe National Forest. It was where he first spotted the enormous beast. Hell, that seemed a lifetime ago.
The air was foul as the creature with massive horns on its gnarled head breathed through slanted nostrils set in a cavernous nose. Six beady black eyes were randomly littered across its forehead, much like a spider’s. Instead of a single mouth, there were three separate holes, one on the chin and two on the jawline. Each rounded orifice hosted a massive row of fangs.
The creature’s knobby head sat atop a compact, powerful body, its skin resembling the underbelly of an alligator in a sickly green-and-mustard-yellow shade. The thing’s two boulder-sized arms protruded from its hips and ended in pinchers. Four wings stretched outward from its back as spiky bones dotted along the membranes.
The monster wore no clothes except for a holster wrapped around its waist.
Claude couldn’t identify the weapons dangling as they clanked and swayed with each movement. The only thing he could do was take shallow breaths. The animal brought a cloying stench that made it hard to breathe, even in the fresh mountain air. It smelled like shit wrapped in a decaying dead fish with a sprinkling of skunk spray.
His heart raced as he watched the creature move with an otherworldly intent, stomping and thrashing trees in its pursuit. After the first time he’d seen it, he’d learned its reputation.
It was a semi-intelligent being, bred to attack and kill its target with single-minded focus. It was called a Goraxag, one of the deadliest creatures in the galaxy.
Back then, the damn thing was decapitated. Was this a different one sent to kill him? Well… shit. Who’d he piss off that bad?
No time to figure that out now. The fucking thing was set to kill him. So far, he’d been lucky and dodged it, hiding in the nooks and crannies the forest provided. He’d attack, but with what? He didn’t have any weapons. And he doubted throwing rocks at it would do any good. If he could just grab one of those things off its belt, he might have a chance.
A dumping crash behind him made him jump. The creature’s gigantic split-toed reptilian foot kicked the boulder he’d been hiding behind.
Claude scrambled and jumped over a small cliff. He pressed against the dusty ledge, gnarled with rocks and exposed tree roots.
Son-of-a-bitch, this was it. Any second now, that creature would jump down and trap him before ripping him apart. And there wasn’t a damn thing he could do about. He closed his eyes and visualized Amata’s beautiful face. His only regret was he took so long to seek her out, so he could woo her in the manner she deserved.
“Are you taking a nap?”
Claude’s eyes flew open. Instead of facing death in the woods with a Goraxag intent on killing him, he found himself nestled in a cozy leather chair in the perfect man cave.
Rich brown wood covered the walls and floor, while festive area rugs in beige and deep-brown hues decorated the space. One wall had a huge entertainment center complete with surround sound, while on the other side of the room was a billiard table. A full kitchen in gleaming stainless steel boasted every known gadget that any chef would be proud to have. A long bar with plenty of stools for friends to sit on and enjoy the libations was reflected in the glass door refrigerator behind it. Above the bar was a steel plate with man-cave rules claiming, “WARNING, manly man doing manly stuff”.
Across from him was a massive coffee-brown sectional with a lone figure relaxing with one arm across the back while the other held a brown bottle of dark ale. The hybrid alien Adapa, Prince consort to Queen Inanna of Akurn, took a drink. The damn man didn’t look like he had a care in the world.
“Where am I?” Claude frantically glanced around. “What happened to the Goraxag?” When he first started working with Adapa and his sons, he experienced their powerful psychic and massive telekinetic abilities. But that didn’t explain how the guy knew Claude was in trouble in Tahoe and needed help.
“This”—Adapa whirled his forefinger to indicate the room—“isn’t real. We’re in what’s called a Dreamwalk.” He took another swig of his ale. “What do you remember?”
Claude pressed his fingers to his temple. “I’m not sure. The last thing I remember was that crazy woman pointing a gun at Amata. I reacted.” He rubbed his chest. “I can’t recall much else, except for waking up in the middle of the forest with that damn thing determined to rip me apart.”
Adapa gave a curt nod. “That’s how your mind coped with being in a life-threatening situation. In reality, you’ve been shot, and the bullet damaged your heart beyond repair. Your human doctors, as well as my brilliant wife, have done their best to save you. I’m afraid there’s nothing more they can do.”
Everything within Claude stilled and hardened. “I’m not sure if I’m glad you’re so blunt, or offended you are. Tell me, if I’m dying, why are you here?”
“Well, now, that’s the interesting part. As you may or may not know, my wife is a gifted scientist.” Leaning his head back, he drained the bottle and then put it on the end table. “For centuries, she searched for a cure for me and came up with several procedures. None of them worked for me, but she believes there’s a chance one will work for you. I’m here to tell you about it and see if it’s something you’d be interested in.”
The man proceeded to tell him about the nanotechnology Queen Inanna had developed.
“Okay, let me get this straight. The queen has developed what she called nubots. Medical technology humans are still decades behind on. But she’s convinced if she injects me with them, they’ll go in and repair the damage to my heart. Have I got that right?”
“Yep, that’s about it.” Adapa’s dark eyes crinkled at the corners, matching the smirk on his annoying face.
Yeah, there was always a catch.
“Humph. Go ahead. Tell me the rest of the story.”
“While she’s not sure what side effects they’ll cause, the one thing she is sure of is they’ll not only repair your heart, but everything else in your system. So, they’ll correct at the cellular level anything that isn’t at peak performance.” Adapa tapped his finger against the backrest. “She’s positive you’ll end up looking and feeling like a man in his early to mid-thirties.” His stare never wavered. “And she also feels the nanos will continue their repairs indefinitely.”
Claude sat back and contemplated what Adapa said. “So, you’re telling me not only will my aging process reverse, but I’ll be young forever?” The implications were astounding. But the one thought that made him catch his breath was knowing his lifespan would at least match Amata’s. Damn, if he understood the man correctly, their positions might actually be reversed. One day she’d die of old age for an Akurn, and he’d continue to live.
