13 MMA Bears One - Part 2

As she wandered between the trees for a time, Lacey thought to herself that she could have just told the police officer what was going on; that she was being pursued across the country by a violent husband who wanted her dead. But she just did not want to take the risk. Miles had influence wide and far, and that included many law-enforcement officers around the country in his back pocket. She was sure that if she fell under police protection that, somehow, she'd meet with an accident, or miraculously be found hanging in a cell.

After walking for 30 minutes or so away from the town, Lacey found a small clearing between the otherwise tightly knit collection of trees. The sky above was cloudless, which would mean no rain at least. Lacey smirked to herself, she'd take any little victory she could get at that point.

Sleep did not come easily, but eventually, propped up on some soft grass beneath a large oak tree, she finally drifted off to sleep.

During the night, Lacey had some vivid dreams. Of noises around her in the woods, the cracking of branches under feet, and the panting of a large animal nearby. At one point, she opened her eyes in response to movement. She knew there would be animals in the woods, and at that point the deep primal fear of what lives in the world's forests started to filter up through her subconscious. On the other side of the clearing, behind two trees, Lacey was sure for a moment she saw something. Two shimmering eyes in the night, watching her. Indeed, she had the feeling that there was something in the woods moving in a circular pattern around where she slept, and this created an understandable sense of apprehension. As dawn finally approached, the eyes in the woods were no more, and Lacey could rest for another hour or two before she had to head back into town.

She collected her things together after a time, and looked around the woodland. She was very hungry, but she could not risk using any of the money she had left, in case when she reached the other town that hotels were equally This at of her budget.

As she slowly walked down the trail back towards the town, she saw in the morning light a collection of bushes with large, plump, juicy looking berries on their branches. She plucked several of them off in her hand and held them there. Even though Lacey was a city girl, she wasn't so naive. She knew that there was a chance that the berries could be harmful in some way, but she was so very hungry, having not eaten over two days. The berries looked delicious. But as she was staring at them, finally surrendering to the hunger and deciding that she would try just a little piece of one, a voice spoke from nearby:

"I wouldn't eat them if I were you," a powerful and assured voice said.

Lacey turned round to see a tall figure leaning against a nearby tree. The man was handsome, there was no doubt about that, but a little dishevelled. His long here touched his shoulders and his stubble hid what was otherwise a kind and friendly smile.

But it was his eyes which shocked Lacey immediately.

She'd heard about shifters before, everyone had. There had always been stories about people being able to change into animal forms, werewolves, that sort of thing. But until the Second World War no one had thought them true. But most knew now without a doubt that the stories were very true, and that these secret groups which could change into beast form, finally revealed themselves at the end of the war to the entire world.

But they by and large still kept themselves to themselves, and there was at least some goodwill towards them from the outside world, as secret regiments of bear and wolf shifters fought behind enemy lines during the Second World War, helping to defeat the Nazi oppression.

For the most part, however, shifter societies kept to themselves, and to outsiders their ways were covered in mystery. They lived among their own, ancient tribes, a clan system which was closed to the uninitiated, and so little was known about their social structure.

But of course, as is common with human nature, there was also a fear of difference among the peoples of the world. The idea that a human being could turn into a huge animal capable of impressive feats of strength, complete with sharpened claws and teeth which could tear through flesh, struck fear into many people.

Most, however, would never actually cross paths with a shifter, due to their closed society, and so the world left them to themselves. But there Lacey was, out in the woods, talking to one. It was the eyes which gave him away. Under certain light, the eyes had a golden glint to them, and Lacey had heard that as the beast side took over, if they were enraged enough, their eyes would pulse with a vivid golden color.

Lacey flinched, and instinctively stepped back away from the man. "Please, just leave me alone…"

The man smiled. "I'm not going to harm you, there's no reason to be afraid. I'm just saying that those berries can be quite hard on the stomach of one who hasn't used them before. Of one so, fragile…"

Lacey didn't like that at all. She'd been hunted across the country by a vengeful husband, and she was tired of men telling her what she could and could not do. In a moment of utter defiance, she threw a couple of the berries into her mouth chewed them down and then swallowed them quickly, keeping her eyes on the man at all times. They tasted bitter, but not entirely unpleasant.

"I'm made of strong stuff. You needn't worry about me; now, if you would kindly just leave me alone, I would appreciate that." Lacey turned her back on the man and took a step further down the path.

"As you wish," the voice said from behind.

Lacey turned quickly to see that the man had vanished, as quickly as he had appeared.

She walked for 15 minutes before she felt the pain. It started with a gargling sound from her stomach. It wasn't the first time that her stubbornness had led her into a difficult situation, but Lacey was always resolute. She could handle a little upset stomach, but what she struggled with was a sudden lightheadedness. The woods around her began to spin, she staggered. She stumbled. And before she knew what was going on, she collapsed into a large bush.

Within seconds, she knew she was moving. Although it was not under her own locomotion, and it was no hallucination. She looked up through blurred vision, and saw that she was in the arms of the man who'd warned her against eating the berries. He was moving quickly, implausibly fast. Taking her deeper into the woods.

Despite her delirious condition, Lacey feared that her situation was about to get worse, although she was in no fit state to put up much of a fight of this man were to take advantage.

* * *

Opening her eyes slowly, Lacey found herself in a large cabin. It was built from wooden logs, no doubt from the forest itself. Although it was not entirely uncomfortable, populated by handmade pieces of wooden furniture, rugs, and a stove fire keeping the place nice and warm, the remoteness of the place worried her deeply. Who would know she was there?

Lacey tried to move.

"I would rest for a while longer, my friend." The voice had come from the corner of the room. Lacey turned her head slowly and then, in the comfy surrounds of the cabin, she saw who had spoken, sitting comfortably in an armchair. It was the man who she'd met in the forest.

"Where am… Where am I?" Lacey asked, a mixture of confusion and curiosity filling her mind.

"You're safe. You're in my cabin, which sits in the woods just outside of Wild Cove."

"Oh… My head…" Lacey sat up, righting herself.

"Yes, it seems you took a reaction to those berries. Most people just get an upset stomach, but occasionally it can cause lightheadedness, and in your case, delirium." The man stood up, carrying with him a large mug of coffee, which he offered to Lacey. As he approached Lacey was struck by his broad shoulders and looming height. "Here, drink this, it will help."

Lacey sipped the coffee, half expecting it to be drugged but her thirst overcoming those suspicions. It was rich and flavoursome, and in some way homely. But she was worried, this man was a stranger to her, and in her weakened state, she was vulnerable.

As if sensing the very thought which crossed Lacey's mind, the man introduced himself: "My name is Gage, and you have nothing to fear while you are in my company." He smiled, his grin wide and kind.

"Nice to meet you, Gage… My name is Lacey. I'm sorry to have caused you any problem, and thank you for looking after me, but I better be on my way." Lacey tried to pull herself up, but in her weakened state she was struggling.

"I think it would be best if you stay here for a few days, until you get your strength back. You were quite unwell during the night. Please, just relax and rest, and when you're strong enough I'll show you the way back to town."

Lacey was too weak to argue, and while she tried to stay awake as long as possible, unsure of her surroundings or her host, she finally fell back to sleep, partially glad to be somewhere warm and able to rest from her constant struggles.

Two days passed, and in that time Lacey grew to know Gage better. And indeed Gage himself, who was always a solitary person, enjoyed Lacey's company very much.

Lacey was struck by Gage's gentle ways. She'd always heard that shifters struggled with their animal sides and could be fiery, and perhaps even dangerous when their beast form took over. As her strength returned they talked about many different things, but both had topics which remained untouched. Gage wished to know why Lacey was wandering through the woods, why she had slept there, and Lacey wished to know more about being a shifter, and why Gage wasn't living with his clan.

But it was the boldness of Lacey's personality which shone through first. On the third night, when her strength had returned to normal, they shared a hot pot of cocoa together, laughing about a story Lacey was telling, which involved her when she was a little girl, getting her hand stuck down a street drain because she had dropped her favourite marble. The fire fighters had to help free her, but, Lacey being Lacey, she had returned the very next day and tried to retrieve her marble once more, her hand getting trapped all over again.

As Gage laughed loud and deep, Lacey took the opportunity to uncover more while he was caught in the throes of enjoyable conversation. "Were you born a shifter?"

Gage's laugh quickly diminished, and for a moment the two sat in silence. "Yes… I was. Though at times I wish I'd been born as a pure blood."