Storiesonline.net ------- A Fevered Dream by TonyG Copyright© 2010 by TonyG ------- Description: This is a story without beginning or end. It is a brief glimpse into a world that has to be accepted as it is, as it is not explained. As per the title the Dream came to me when I was running a high fever. I hope you enjoy it. Codes: fant ------- For the most part there was nothing out of the ordinary about the scene, for the most part. It looked like a rustic painting you might see in any family-type restaurant. You know the type of restaurant I mean. They are the ones that Moms and Pops really do own and operate. You probably have even seen similar depictions. A stretch of split rail fence, one that separates a green overgrown pasture from a tree line, possibly at the edge of a woods. One of the things that caused the scene to look unnatural was that the man was standing on one of the fence posts. His shoulder length blond hair was being tossed about by a light breeze. He wore cowboy boots, blue jeans, and a denim shirt. Over these were a duster also being tossed about by the wind. Crossing his back was the empty holster for a rifle and a sheathed katana. The rifle for the holster was held in his left hand. His finger was on the trigger, though at the moment the rifle was pointed toward the ground. The man's face was unlined, yet there was an aura of age about him. It was his eyes though, that told you this was no ordinary man. They were emerald green with a halo of gold around the circumference of the green iris. If that wasn't unusual enough on the very next fence post stood a woman. She was the polar opposite in attire. She was dressed in battle armor that looked similar to the Samurai of the 1600's. The only difference was the chest plates of the armor were shaped to accept her womanly figure. The blond hair that hung out the back of her helmet fluttered in the breeze while she faced the cowboy unmoving. The half mask hid her facial features and all that could be seen was her eyes. Oddly, the irises of her eyes were also the startling emerald green with a golden halo. In her right hand she held a katana, and near her side stood a dog twice the size of a Rottweiler. Her attention was fully on the man she was facing. In the end it was the man who broke the silence of the curious scene. "We don't have to do this, Jay." "I do not know who this 'Jay' is", the woman responded, "and it matters little to me. There is a bounty on you, and I intend to claim it." With this said she raised her sword and readied herself for attack. The man made no move to defend himself. Instead he shook his head and said, "I call you Jay for that is the name I gave you as a child. You earned it because you found my name too difficult to say and called me Kay, which is the first letter of my name. Because of my irritation over you calling me Kay, I took to calling you Jay in retaliation. Surely coming here hasn't stripped everything away from you. Look at your companion, can you not see it for what it truly is?" The woman hesitated and looked down at the animal at her side. There was an oddness about it and yet something familiar and frightening. It was similar to the familiar chord that the name the man had called her had struck. She tried to seize on these thoughts, but they were brushed aside by something that felt alien to her. Sadness seemed to settle on the man as he said, "I hoped we wouldn't have to do it this way, Jay." The woman lunged at him with sword raised over her head. Kay, using the rifle like a pistol raised the barrel and fired from the hip. The bullet stuck his sister's chest at point blank range. Her momentum was not only arrested, it was reversed. As she fell backwards, she vanished. The beast that came with her backed up several steps. Kay took advantage of its lack of attention and quickly worked the level of the rifle. He deftly caught each shell as it was ejected and tucked it into a loop on his belt. When the gun was empty Kay reached into the duster pocket and removed new shells. These were special and he quickly slid three into the gun and chambered one. It was a good thing, because the beast had refocused on Kay. "I think its time we finished our business," Kay said as he turned the gun toward the beast. "Yes, it is," the beast replied in a rumbling growl. The beast made no move to advance, but instead was undergoing changes. It was just as Kay suspected. If it had remained in dog form the lead bullets might have stopped it, the emphasis on might. He was now very glad he had taken the precaution of bringing the wrought iron shells and had already switched to them. The beast had grown three times it's original size and was standing on its back legs making it well over nine feet tall. It was broader than any bear Jay had ever seen. "We thought your sister would end this for us," the were-beast growled. "She turned out to be ... a disappointment. I was here to ensure that her individuality remained suppressed. Now I find out that 'here' isn't where we thought ... or it is, and we misunderstood it." The beast began closing the distance as it spoke. Kay brought the rifle up to his shoulder, and readied himself to fire. ------- She couldn't believe it. The man claiming to be her brother had shot her. She had been assured that it wouldn't happen. Of course that was before she found out that the man was supposed to be her brother. Pain flared in her chest as she felt herself falling backwards. The pain hit her again, but she hadn't heard the gun fire again. That's when she heard the word 'clear' and the pain flared in her chest again. The electrical shock did more than start her heart. It had caused her to remember ... remember everything. She knew who her brother Kay was, now, though she hadn't seen him looking so young ... for how long? Jay then got the feeling that she was floating. Curious she turned over and saw the body she had risen out of. The doctor that had shocked her was watching a monitor, probably to make sure her heart continued to beat. What caused her to falter in her observations was the age of the woman she had just risen out of. That couldn't be herself, could it? Not that emaciated old woman? Only the long silver hair, and painted nails, let her know it was a woman on whom she was looking, at all. The body was so emaciated, that the breasts were barely discernable. Yet, like a bolt out of the sky, realization hit her. That was she. This was reality. Wherever she had been before ... that was ... it was what? That was where logic broke down. Was it a dream? Was it the next plane of existence? Was it her mind's idea of Hell? What the Hell was the name of that movie where everyone was living a dream, so they could be used to generate electricity. For some reason the answer to that question seemed important to her. She tried to push it aside. After all, if she was looking down on herself, she certainly couldn't be off somewhere generating electricity. But, what if it was someplace like that? Could she go back? That beast was the one that had stolen her memories, and set her against Kay. She had left Kay alone with it. ------- In the same rumbling growl, the beast said, "That puny little weapon will do you little good." Then the rumbling changed pitch and tone. It took Kay a moment to realize that the creature was either laughing or chuckling. "Now, had you brought a grenade launcher or an RPG, I might actually be concerned. But that antique has little chance of penetrating my hide. So I make this offer, put down the gun and I will make your death as quick as possible. Resist and I will show you new definitions of pain." Kay was squeezing on the trigger when the beast suddenly threw it's head back and its arms wide and let out an ear shattering bellow. Yet it was making no move toward him. A moment later he understood the cause of the bellow. Out of the beast chest was the tip of a sword. A samurai sword if he wasn't mistaken. Then he heard his sister's voice. "You stole who I was from me. Then you tried to manipulate me into killing my own brother, you lying sack of shit. I don't know who, or even what you are, but your going to pay." She pulled her blade free and spun to the side. The creature reached for her and pulled back a bloody stump. The arm that fell to the ground melted away, but the beast was already regenerating another. Making sure his sister was out of the line of fire, he aimed at where he hoped the beast's heart was. Of course, it wasn't there and the beast let out another bellow of pain as the iron bullet ripped through it. This time the damage wasn't healing as quickly as the removed arm. It was healing but at a slower rate. The iron content in the blade must be minimal. The beast now turned it attention on Kay. Another mistake. Jay moved in and removed its left leg at the knee. She barely danced out of the creature's long reach before he grabbed her. Kay did a forward somersault off the post and landed lightly on the ground. He quickly chambered a fresh round and moved closer to the beast that was in the process of regenerating its leg. "You and your kind made a mistake. One you will never have the chance to pass on. You should never have brought my sister here, to this place of power. All you managed to do, was gain me an ally, and you a formidable foe. Oh ... did I mention that I guessed your weakness. I would have thought my first round would have told you that." The creature lunged at Kay, but it was still missing part of its leg so Kay dodged its attack easily. This time Kay aimed at the one place there could be no confusion about. He fired a round right into the beast's head. For some unexplainable reason the Iron round caused the top of the creature's head to explode. There was enough of the skull left that as the creature shrunk in on itself it began to take on a more familiar shape. Soon both Kay and Jay could see that the beast had once been human and was becoming so again. Kay turned to Jay and said, "You should go back now." Jay removed the half mask and shook her head. "I can't now. They tried, but there was no reviving me after my heart stopped that last time. I don't know what this place is, or what it is that you do here, but is there any way I can help?" "I can't tell you everything, 'cause I know so very little, myself," offered Kay. "What I can say is that the fact you made it back on your own, tells me that you can stay. Right now, though, we have to get you some iron blades." Edited By TeNderLoin ------- The End ------- Posted: 2010-04-22 ------- http://storiesonline.net/ -------