Endlessly by C.V. Hunt Page B

her.
    “It is drawing closer. You hear it more
clearly. It’s coming closer and closer, and you are completely
safe. It’s so close you can reach through the fog and touch it.”
She raised her hands, and stretched close to the fire. Jason was
literally on the edge of his seat.
    “You run your hand across it. It makes
a noise. Do you feel fur, feathers, scales? What do you
feel?”
    With her eyes still closed she moved
her hands. The flames throbbed like glowing pulse beats. Ash
reached high, as if she were touching something large.
    I consulted Jessica’s book, and said:
“This is you. This is what you are. Now the fog will clear,
revealing what you have been feeling and hearing.” My heart roared
in my ears. It was as if her transformation was for me and me only.
My chest tightened. I sensed something from Jason—a threat? “The
fog is falling away faster and faster now. What do you
see?”
    Her face was upturned and her eyes were
still shut. Her mouth fell open.
    I turned and saw Jason standing,
staring at her. He saw me, but his attention was on her. He was as
riveted as I was. I felt paralyzed. I tried to relax. After what
seemed like an eternity I stepped toward her silently. She was
still frozen. It hadn’t worked.
    Disappointment flooded the void within
me. What would I do? Call Jessica? The idea made me choke. I
touched her shoulder and whispered: “Ash?”
    Suddenly I saw sky. My ears rang, and I
heard Jason screaming. I sat up and felt a sudden sharp pain in my
head. As I touched the spot I felt a horrible pressure building in
my skull.
    Then I saw it: a massive foot with
large talons protruding from where her fingers had been. Its scaly
blackness reminded me of a snake. I blinked my eyes. It was bright,
and I had lost my sunglasses. It had four feet. I wasn’t completely
sure if I was seeing double or not. Between pressure and sunlight I
could barely open my eyes. I followed the feet up to muscular legs
and a huge, cat-like body covered in black scales. They had an
unusual sheen.
    I got to my feet, and saw that its back
was as high as my head and humped. My pain ebbed. I was recovering.
Something big was swinging—a tail. The neck was five feet long, and
the reptilian head had fin-like spines running over it. Two horns
spiraled from its forehead. Its eyes were solid red.
    As soon as I made eye contact with it I
fell backward. Flashing images threw me into convulsions. I heard a
scream, and saw Ash morphing into the child, Sara. Finally
everything stopped. I lay on the ground panting, my back arching. I
sobbed, but there were no tears. Vampires can’t cry.
    A sound like a cat’s purring brought me
back to my senses. I rolled onto my side, trying to catch my
breath. Jason was screaming, but I couldn’t hear the words. I
squinted, shielding my eyes from the sun. That’s when I heard what
Jason was shouting: “A fucking dinosaur! She’s a dinosaur! Run! Run
before she fucking eats you!” He aimed his gun at her.
    Then it happened. Two lumps on the
creature’s back opened, giving way to two bat-like wings. Thin
black membranes stretched between the spines.
    Now I knew the truth.
    Jason’s hands shook so hard he could
barely keep hold of his gun.
    “Put the fucking gun away, Jason!” I
shouted. “She’s no dinosaur. She’s a dragon.”
    “Holy Shit!” Jason breathed. He lowered
his gun, and stared wide-eyed. “Is she gonna eat us?”
    No! I’m not going to eat
you! Verloren are you okay?
    Jason and I both froze. His eyes looked
like they might pop from his head.
    “You heard that, right?” I asked. He
nodded.
    We’d heard Ash’s voice, but the
creature’s mouth hadn’t moved.
    “Ash?” I asked.
    Yes.
    “There’s some kind of reverse mind
reading going on,” I said. “We can hear what you’re
thinking.”
    Yes. I can read your minds
too. So…how the hell do I change back?

Chapter 10
    WEREWOLF PROPOSITION
     
    “Like you’re sucking in your stomach
muscles, but do it with