The Princess of Planet Xeronis

The traps work

It was such a strange thing for Ben to be dreaming consciously consecutively every time he had lain down to sleep. This did not look like it was going to stop anytime soon for as long as he was stuck in Xeronis. So Ben found himself standing beside his bed outside his sleeping body.

His dreams recreated the Xeronis world for him to explore and his dreams were predictive of the future. Ben had always used his dreams on Earth as a safe place to overcome fears and to experience magic in an otherwise not magical world. But Xeronis had magic and the magic here was responding to his dream-walking and providing information.

What could he learn today? Ben was curious so he stepped outside his room. He looked around and headed down to the first floor. He wanted to head straight for the ground floor but the dream pulled him backward gently and set him before a lever in a wall.

"Oh, you want me to see this?" Ben said to no one in particular but he often said his thoughts out aloud when communicating to the dream.

"What's this do?" Ben said and then he pulled down the lever. Immediately chain gates slid down from the ceiling along the passage and locked free access of the passage.

"Interesting."

Immediately Ben was pushed upwards and he had to go through the ceiling like a ghost and he was taken to the end of the hallway of the second floor where he found another lever. Of course, Ben pulled it and saw its secret. A large iron hidden in the wall immediately shot out with blinding speed and extended its length only stopping an inch from the window. This was designed to knock out even a bull and push it out of the window and fall outside.

"Who designed these things?"

Then immediately Ben was pushed upwards to the third floor but this time he was brought to a button in the wall. When he pushed the button the floor where he stood retracted from under him as a portion withdrew into the walls. Ben was falling in free fall and he turned to see that a floor portion on the second and first floors had retracted as well creating uninterrupted fall distance. Something else had emerged on the ground floor as well. Ben could not see clearly what it was but as he kept falling and getting closer and closer to the ground spears arranged in a circle facing upwards like spikes became visible.

Ben tried to halt his fall but it was not working. He was going to fall upon the spears so he braced himself but the dream ended when he was an inch away from being impaled.

Ben got up from his bed with a jump. He had forgotten that he was dreaming.

"This house is so not safe," Ben said.

There was howling outside so Ben switched on his bed lantern and came to look out the window. There was an obvious commotion outside so he decided to go and take a look. He put on his shoes and left the room.

The two bright moons outside cast their light in through the windows and curtains.

"Matthias," Ben called as he descended the stairs. No one answered back so he called again, "Matthias!"

The house was empty. He then moved to the doors which he pushed slightly open and squeezed outside. He met with the cold air but no sign of the dogs.

"Matthias...!"

He looked out into the woods.

'Where did they run off to?'

He stepped out to the open keeping his gaze into the dark woods where he had seen a shadow move.

"Is that you Matthias?" he said seeing the shadow advance. He then began to question why he had come outside as he could hear a rising growl. The shadow was of a dog so he held his ground and only did his blood go cold when he saw the shadow rise to stand erect like a man. The figure stepped from under the trees to bathe in the moonlight and Ben could feel his knees go weak.

He was looking at a creature, a dark and heavy furred wolf that balanced perfectly on two legs. It stood seven feet tall and it had round shoulders that testified of its strength. This was an unusually large wolf.

The erect wolf did not advance any further as they both eyed one another. He sniffed in the air as if he were reading Ben and Ben got to observe shining scars on his body, scars that even the fur could not conceal.

The beast took another sniff and then suddenly he looked up at the nearest moon and released a loud and long terrifying howl.

'Wolf's call', Ben saw danger.

When other two or more howls called back, Ben whirled around and charged for the door. The wolf was expecting this so he leapt after Ben and got down to chase after him on all fours.

Ben darted inside, swung round, shut the big doors, and pressed hard against them to keep the beast outside. But the doors were knocked hard with the strength of a charging bull. The impact forced open both doors and threw Ben paces back. He crashed on his belly dazed and before he could rise, the beast stood above him. It lowered its muzzle and saliva dripped from his grinning teeth to wet the floor before Ben's eyes.

Ben lay still, paralyzed with fear.

With his ear to the floor, he could pick up vibrations that told him that numerous feet were charging towards them. He was done for.

The beast raised his head and instead of seeing his friends, five dogs pounced on him. Their force drove the beast back and Ben saw the opportunity to crawl away from the canines that were trying to tear each other apart. The dogs sank their teeth into the beast's sides and back and it fought to shake them off.

Ben got to the base of the stairs and looked back to see the wolf grab one dog and continue to swing him against the door. Then he was reaching for the dog on his back.

"Go upstairs!" Matthias was suddenly standing before Ben.

"What does he want?"

"Go upstairs they follow a scent!" Matthias was firm so Ben ran up the stairs.

'They...?' He did not like the sound of that.

He heard glass shatter as another wolf forced his way inside through the windows. He rolled and then stood before Matthias who growled and attacked him.

The first wolf threw the dogs back and his eyes flew to rest on Ben who stood halfway up the stairs, watching the show while horrified at the same time.

This wolf charged him again and Ben flew up again and ran in the passageway of the first floor. The wolf threw himself up with all his might and sent himself digging his claws on the ledge of the first floor directly in front of Ben who skidded to a stop and turned round to run the other way. The beast climbed over and followed Ben into the next chamber.

The other dogs then came to the assistance of Matthias and the second wolf was quick to see his disadvantage. He threw Matthias paces back, slammed one dog who was still in the air aiming for his throat, and then he raced outside through the open doors.

"After him!" Matthias ordered the other dogs to pursue the wolf. The wolf turned around the mansion and then he leapt onto the walls, digging his claws into the brick. He then began to climb up. But the dogs could not follow and they could only bark up at him.

As Ben ran for his life he saw a lever in the wall up ahead.

'Please work,' he could only pray as he lunged for the lever and pulled it down. Chain gates dropped from the ceiling and created cages along the narrow passageway and the first wolf that was pursuing him knocked uselessly against chain and steel.

'They work. The traps work,' Ben was relieved.

As he then continued in the passage, the windows immediately behind him shattered as the second wolf who was climbing the walls outside knocked his way into the mansion.

Ben did not stop for introductions. He raced up the stairs his mind in a frenzy. A third wolf burst in and he sprawled and rolled and stood on fours as he looked at the ascending human.

The two wolves looked at each other and then they pursued after the human.

Ben leaned hard against the lever he came across. He was conscious of the danger he was in. He was being chased by two ferocious wolves after all. The wolf in the lead was suddenly knocked out of the mansion by the iron in the wall and he broke through the glass in the window and fell like a rock. But the blow was not enough to kill him. Meeting the trees on his way down allowed him to use his claws against a tree trunk and break his fall.

As Ben got to the third floor, he felt the wolf gain on him and this made him turn around and receive the beast in his arms. The wolf was too heavy for him so he fell on his back and he had to hold the beast's throat to prevent him from taking a chunk out of his face. Sharp teeth knocked into each other not more than three inches from his face as the wolf pressed down upon him.

Ben looked up a pace away and he saw a thick broken leg of a wooden chair. His other hand hurried to reach for it and brought it back hitting the wolf in the face, continually. The beast retreated back and Ben got up. The wolf recovered and swung his hand against Ben who dodged and his claws dug into the weak walls. Ben picked a large potter vessel on a stand and broke it on the beast's back. The wolf swung his hand again and his claws slashed Ben's back who had turned to flee. Ben screamed as he felt his back burn as if he had been cut with razors and he crashed to the floor.

The wolf grabbed him and sent him knocking into the walls. He was turned around and the beast's large hand wrapped around his throat.

But the beast did not finish him off. Instead, he began to shrink in size a little as his fur began to disappear. The wolf shifted his form and became a man.

He had long dread-locked hair and dark skin.

Ben said nothing.

"You...?" the man said as he released Ben.

He sniffed in the air like a dog, "Been in the company of someone lately, someone important?" he asked.

Ben did not say anything. He was just looking at him trying to process what he had just witnessed. The beasts that were chasing after him were actually men?

"Tell me and I promise not to hurt you."

Ben nodded.

"Where is she?"

Ben remained quiet.

"Tell me...!" he threatened. Just then Ben pushed him back and he hit the button on the wall causing the floor to retract with blinding speed. The dread-locked man tumbled down.

Ben hurried to look through the hole and he saw the man fall through the opening in the floors, shift his form into that of a wolf midair, and then land onto the concrete of the ground floor on his back. There were no spears to impale him since rust and rot had dissolved them long ago. The wolf however rose in a limp. He then hit the windows to fall outside, but the dogs swarmed upon him.

Then the wolf let out a dying wail.

The first wolf leapt out of the mansion escaping the chain gates by entering one room, and he landed in the woods where he met with his mate. The two were too late to save the other wolf from the dogs' jaws.

One of the wolves shifted and became a man with heavy locks and a little beard. "Brother...!" he cried with his hand outstretched as if he could reach him from there.

The wolf on his side got down on fours and let out a loud howl into the air. He then turned and disappeared into the woods.

"We'll come back for you!" the wolf-man cried out looking at Ben who stood on the balcony.

'It's not my fault.' Ben could only think as he felt a shudder up his spine.

The man transformed back into the beast, howled, and then darted back into the woods leaving behind a horrid silence.

Ben was shaking. He had fought twice for his life on this planet already and he did not want to fight anymore. He wanted to go back to Earth, now.

Then he was running downstairs to come to meet the dogs in the hall. He stopped to look at Matthias.

"Thank you," Ben said simply.

"It's not safe for you to stay here anymore," then the dogs headed outside.

Matthias stopped to look at him for a little while, and then he too headed outside to guard the mansion for the rest of the night.

Ben reached for his back to feel the scratch marks of the wolf's claws. There was no blood, only bruises that hurt and a torn shirt. Then he sat on the stairs. He did not think that he was going to sleep anymore. Not with all that had just happened.