Feral: A Dark Sci-Fi Romance Read online

  Feral

  Sara Fields

  Contents

  Note from Author

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Epilogue

  Acknowledgments

  About Sara Fields

  Claimed by the General

  A Gift for the King

  A Gift for the Doctor

  A Gift for the Commander

  Kept for Christmas

  Wedded to the Warriors

  The Warrior’s Little Princess

  Her Alien Doctors

  Taming Their Pet

  Sold to the Beasts

  Mated to the Dragons

  Conquered

  Mastered

  Abducted

  Ravaged

  Copyright © 2018 by Stormy Night Publications and Sara Fields

  All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher.

  Published by Stormy Night Publications and Design, LLC.

  www.StormyNightPublications.com

  Cover Design by Korey Mae Johnson

  Image by Shutterstock/miljko

  Note from Author

  This book is intended for adults only. Spanking and other sexual activities represented in this book are fantasies only, intended for adults.

  Chapter One

  Earth—2172

  Cosima

  There it was. Right fucking there. I was so close.

  The infamous Echelon 67.

  Sitting outside on the perimeter, listening to the trees and brush sway and the birds chirping around me, it didn’t seem too foreboding. It looked like just a normal nature preserve, safe from urban development, people, and pollution. It seemed harmless, a serene escape, but I’d been told it was anything but. I chewed my lip, thinking over what I knew about it already.

  Echelon 67 was a top-secret government facility or at least, that’s what the conspiracy theorists have been saying for years. It was rumored that countries from all over the world had operatives stationed here. A lot of the information circulating out there was conjecture and straight-up gossip, but it was my job to find out the truth.

  One thing was for certain. This place was deadly.

  There had been a handful of deaths, both men and women. The newspapers called them animal maulings, but I’d seen all the pictures. I knew even a bear couldn’t do damage like that. The people in the small towns surrounding the area blamed it on aliens, whispers of escapees bound to destroy the world. Some even believed a UFO crash landed a few hundred years ago or so and that the government had covered it up, using Echelon 67 to investigate the phenomenon. I hadn’t believed a word of it. I figured it was just some sort of military cover-up for some sort of human testing of some kind. I didn’t exactly know what, but I was going to find out.

  A twig cracked in the distance and I jumped. I remained still for a long time, watching and waiting for anything more to happen, but it never did. Out there in the wilderness, I was strangely alone. Not a camera, soldier, or even a single drone reacting to my presence as I’d expected. It was oddly suspicious. Maybe this place wasn’t special at all.

  I palmed the laser gun at my waist, a new Smith and Wesson model that had an automatic sight and built-in mini silencer, with almost zero kickback. Most journalists didn’t carry guns with them, but I did. I wasn’t taking any chances. The wind rustled the brush once again.

  I took a deep shaky breath, gazing out into the wilderness. I couldn’t make any more guesses based on what I knew already. I had to know more. I had to get down to the bottom of the story and figure out exactly what was happening in Echelon 67. Alien cover-up or not. The world deserved to know the real story. We deserved to know if we were in danger and I was going to be the one to find out, the one to break the story.

  The breeze picked up around me and I rose to my feet, my eyes searching along the thick metal wire fencing. It had taken some time to reach where I was and now the sun was beginning to drop in the sky. Fortunately, I’d found a hole in the electric fencing around the compound, probably cut by someone trying to break in years ago. I heard an automated hovercraft high overhead and ducked down, hoping my specially made body temperature-blocking clothing would hide me from any heat-sensing tech on board.

  It passed by without pause and I sighed with relief. It must have worked.

  Quickly, I ducked inside the thick brush, using the tree cover to shield me from view. I pulled my hat lower on my head, feeling the chill of the breeze around me. I shivered, not entirely sure if I was cold or just a little anxious. My heart pounded in my chest and my blood rushed through my veins, my nerves keeping me on edge. A branch cracked nearby, and I almost jumped out of my skin, but it just turned out to be a squirrel scurrying along the ground.

  I sighed and shook my head.

  Fuck. Get your head together, Cosima. Jesus.

  I squinted into the distance, trying to find some semblance of a path that I could walk down, but found none. Pushing one branch after another aside, I wandered carefully into the woods. I felt like I walked for hours, but when I checked my comm, it had only been a half hour and I’d trekked about half a mile. I wasn’t anywhere near the center of the compound and the sun was already beginning to set in the mountains. I may have severely underestimated the journey into the area. I chewed my lip, looking nervously from side to side, ready to run at a moment’s notice, expecting an entire busload of soldiers to rush out at me at any second.

  Nothing.

  Just me, the squirrels, and the bugs in the woods.

  And the potential human-murdering bears.

  I rolled my eyes at my jumpiness and trudged onward, leaves and branches scratching against my camouflage khakis and tearing holes in my beige top. The temperature was beginning to drop, so I unpacked my dark jacket from my backpack and shrugged it on. I looked above and saw stars beginning to wink into the night sky, the moon hidden by the treetops. I knew night would come very soon, so I also dug out my night vision glasses. I pushed them up my nose and clicked on the power and was suddenly awash with light. The woods around me looked just like it was the middle of the day, it was so bright.

  Hours more passed as I descended into the forest beneath the mountains, deeper in Echelon 67 than I’d ever thought I’d go. I reached the edge of a small clearing and peered inside, seeing a small domed building that kind of looked like a greenhouse or a conservatory, except from what I could see, there were no plants inside. The door looked to be slightly off its track, so I wandered closer, narrowing my eyes slightly trying to see anything that might put me on high alert.

  Nothing moved. It was dead quiet. Not even the chirping of bugs bit through the air now. It was the type of quiet that screamed danger.

  That should have been my first clue, but still, I trekked on.

  I moved closer, tiptoeing toward the structure and still, nothing jumped out at me. I ventured one foot closer and then the next, before I reached the sliding door. I guessed that it was once activated by a retina scan, but it looked to be long broken. I gripped the door, pushed it a little to the side, and slipped into the small building.

  My eyes drifted around me, clean white tile beneath my feet and tables that reminded me of many of the labs I used to work in. There was also what appeared to be an entrance to a stairway, as well as something that looked like a portal straight out of a science fiction movie.

  Bl
ack and purple light glimmered in a round sphere and I ventured closer. I grabbed a piece of cardboard on the floor and walked as near as I dared, taking the sheet and pushing it partway into the portal. It pulled the cardboard in and at once, it disappeared.

  Shit. That was cool.

  I hadn’t known any technology like this had existed. I wondered where the portal would go, or if it was even safe, or if it would alert someone to the fact that I was here in this little building hidden deep in the woods. I chewed my lip, trying to decide what to do. My eyes slid to the stairs, and I elected to take them instead, figuring it was a safer and surer option. I took one stairwell down and then another until I reached a single door about three stories beneath the ground. It was slid partway open, the power cut off, so I edged inside. This part of the building seemed to be composed of high-powered, expensive scientific equipment. Sequencers and proteomics mass spectrometers lined the walls, as well as machines that I had no idea what their functions were. This was the dream laboratory of any scientist, that much I could tell.

  Researchers around the world would kill for the use of some of this equipment.

  There was an office off to the side of the room that I walked into next. Inside, I found an old-fashioned desk made out of recycled metal, smooth and definitely created in the style of desks one hundred years ago. I opened the drawers, noticing that the locks were electrical and long dead.

  Whoever ran this laboratory before liked to read scientific literature on paper. Weird. I hadn’t seen anything like it in my lifetime. The world today was almost entirely electronic, dependent on holographic screens projected from wristbands and massive computerized touch screens. Everyone was connected at every minute of the day. There was no need for ancient technology like printers and paper.

  I was surprised to see bundles of it in one of the drawers and one very thick folder on top. Manila. Extra weird.

  ‘Alienus Bestia’ was the label on the very front.

  What the fuck did that mean?

  When I flipped it open, I gasped at the contents. There were pictures printed out. What looked like a meteor impact location in the middle of the woods. Images of fire and destruction, but most important, the unmistakable shape of a deep crater and at the center, some sort of spacecraft. Not human. Like no technology I’ve ever seen on Earth before.

  The printouts were dated. September 1, 2025.

  My mouth dropped open. Holy shit. This couldn’t be real.

  I flipped through more of the pictures, finding more figures and images of dead bodies that looked humanlike, only some of them were a coppery red color. It didn’t look like any human skin tone I’d seen before.

  I found the abstract toward the top of the pile and began to read.

  Over a hundred years ago, an alien ship crash-landed on Earth’s surface, in the northwestern corner of Washington State, bringing with them evidence of technology that human civilization has never seen the likes of before. Efforts are being made to study and harness this alien technology. No alien lifeforms survived the crash as it was later discovered that they could not harness Earth’s atmosphere for survival, but their genetic material endured.

  I paused for a moment. Nothing like this had ever been recorded in any history book, in any news story. This was a monumental discovery. I swallowed my astonishment and continued reading.

  Sperm, eggs, and stem cells were harvested and modified with human DNA. As a result, scientists were able to recreate a sustainable alien lifeform that can survive on Earth. A new species was created here on Earth for the very first time.

  Holy fuck. I’d known something funky was going on here, but this was way more than I had anticipated.

  It was discovered that Alienus Bestia exhibits superior strength and heightened sensory capabilities as compared to human controls. They also synthesize amplified levels of epinephrine, more commonly known as adrenaline, and can sustain high concentrations of the hormone for extended periods of time.

  The paper continued on for pages. With a quick scan, I learned that efforts to harness the strength and power of the aliens had varying levels of success, with goals to use them for war efforts, for the creation of a special branch of the military. The grants funded by the military, governments from around the world and private industries. I had proof of everything right here.

  Autopsies. Medical reports. Genetic sequencing. Everything.

  I had the story of a lifetime in my hands.

  The government was creating their very own line of super soldiers and humanity would have no defense against them. None.

  My heart pounded with excitement. Then I heard the squeak of a boot scraping against tile. I froze.

  The lights turned on and I gasped with fear. Suddenly, I heard yelling. Lots and lots of yelling coming from far down the hall, from where I’d come from.

  I turned to hide, but by the time I scrambled under the desk, it was already too late. Someone grabbed me by the hair, hands curling around my ponytail and forcing me backwards. I yelped at the sudden pain and felt a gun pressed to the side of my head.

  “Who the fuck are you?” a male voice sounded angrily. His tone was gruff, used to being obeyed, and I felt my stomach drop to my toes.

  “I’m no one,” I answered shakily as my arms were wrenched behind my back. Something that felt like rope tied around my wrist, modern-day handcuffs that didn’t have a key or a way to escape. I knew how they worked, and I tried to breathe calmly. A single continuous strand, no ends. No way to get free unless my captor wanted to free me. I began to feel more terrified than ever.

  I’d gotten into plenty of hairy situations before as a reporter, but never quite like this. The barrel of a gun had never been pressed to the side of my head. I’d never broken into a secret government compound before either, so there was that. I tried to think positively. I’d get out of this. I had to.

  I stared into the face of a bearded man, outfitted in black combat gear. I realized then that I was surrounded. Another ten men stood with their guns pointed in my direction. Fuck.

  They needed this kind of military power for a simple break-in? Insanity. I couldn’t even load my laser gun with enough power cartridges to kill them all, never mind the thick body armor they were wearing. It seemed they were overly prepared for the likes of me and I wondered if this was normal. Someone grabbed the gun from my holster though, shoving it aside so that I couldn’t even get to it. I heard the metal click and skid away and I felt my hope go with it.

  Would they kill me? Ship me off to some top-secret prison, never to be seen again?

  “You’re going to regret ever coming here, sugar,” the man said with a shake of his head. “Better off dead, I tell ya. You couldn’t have picked a worse possible time to go alien hunting than right now.”

  I shivered.

  What the hell did he mean?

  Radios squawked around us.

  “Second perimeter clear. No sign of Subject #574 or Subject #725. Consider armed and dangerous.”

  “Subjects #696, #694, and #074 found dead.”

  I tried to make sense of it, but I couldn’t. What did the numbers mean?

  All around me a flurry of activity was taking place. I’d definitely walked in during the middle of something big, that much I could tell. Every single man’s expression consisted of collected calm, yet I saw fear behind their eyes. Everything about it screamed of some sort of danger. What was going on?

  How was I going to get out of this? Would I even make it out alive?

  The bearded soldier ripped the folder out of my hands and shook his head in annoyance.

  “Wait! Give me that back,” I begged, but he ignored me with a shake of his head.

  “Fucking Dr. Kapoeta, the old coot, always needing to print out his work. Only doctor we’ve ever had that insisted on owning one of those old-school printers. Should have burned everything after he died three weeks ago. Deputy Gordon. Plant an incinerator bomb in the office and take care of this mess. Make sure there�
�s nothing left,” the man in charge barked. One of the military operatives nodded and stayed behind as one of them pushed me forward toward the door.

  My mind was whirling with questions as the soldiers led me out of the lab, up the stairs, and back out into the woods. They didn’t speak to me and I was too nervous to ask any more questions. They moved fast and silently, keeping formation the entire time. They loaded me up onto a flying hovercraft that quickly rose up high above the treetops and shot forward. In minutes, we arrived at the center of Echelon 67, where a much larger dome was waiting for us all. Behind us, a ball of flame exploded and rose up into the sky, the heat radiating out toward us. I shivered, feeling the warmth, and then I turned to look at the small dome I had explored. There wasn’t much to see in the night air other than fire, but I had a little time to focus on the loss of my evidence. All of my proof gone up in flames. Dammit. Now what would I do if I ever made it out of here?

  When we landed outside the larger dome, I was roughly forced off the hovercraft and toward the building. I fought every step of the way, but I quickly realized I was fighting a losing battle.

  As they led me inside, I saw something flash in the bushes. A pair of red eyes, like a blazing inferno, stared at me and I shivered with anxiety. For a long moment, I forgot to even breathe.

  What was really going on here in Echelon 67?

  I had very little time to think as they shoved me inside. White hallways opened up to large central rooms, including additional portals that shimmered with black and purple light. I chewed my lip and tried to shift my shoulders, already sore from being tied up with the rope. Every time I moved, the ropes grew tighter, like a Chinese finger trap. When I stopped struggling, the ropes relaxed, and I sighed in frustration.