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THRILLDABEAST BOOK 1

CHAPTER 1

He sneaks through the wilderness, every tree a neighbor; a friend. He has names for things that don’t sound anything like the names we have for things.

He watches from behind the tree line. Confident he can do this. He’s been watching; he knows it’s time. He’s been waiting; it needs to happen now.

He takes off at full speed, has to be ready to…

STRIKE! The big rock with his left foot
SNAG! The tree vine with his right hand.
PULL! With all his might.
RELEASE! Soar like a bird!

EXTEND! EXTEND! 
Now TWIST! ROLL!

“Perfect!”*
(*In Bigfoot language)
A perfect, two big-footed landing on the back of the cruising yacht with the water skiing girl behind it. (She goes out every day but, she’s SO lame!)

THRILLDABEASTgrabs the ski-rope, pulls her in (safely) (somehow) with one tug, and she FLIES through the air. Catching her, he lets her down on the deck with a wink and a kiss. He grabs her water ski, looks at it, galnces at his HUGE feet, and throws it over his head with a laugh. Looking left, he leans over and rips off the bench seat that Connor was sunbathing on. He grabs the rope and slams onto the water. SLAP!

Buffy screams, and Penelope tells Roger to drive faster and shake the monster. (Little do they know, that’s exactly what he wants). The speedometer says 70 knots, and THRILLDABEAST is killing it! Flying through the air, acrobatically landing jumps over the humongous wake left by the massive engines that are ROARING!

THRILLDABEAST roars even louder!

Just then, Kate, the 17-year-old little sister of Roger, comes from below decks, wondering what all the ruckus is about. She emerges just in time to see THRILLDABEAST land a jump that almost takes him over the boat! She freaks out. She’s never seen anything like it, but, as the tomboy/athletic one of the family, she is blown away at what she’s watching and can’t look away.

The rest of her family continues to scream and yell. Penelope has finally reached harbor patrol on her cell. Meanwhile, THRILLDABEAST sees trouble up ahead, as the boat is running out of real estate! There’s going to be a collision with the pier any second!
He looks left, he looks right, and he decides his best course of action to dismount.
He has to STRIKE! This last wave….
SOAR!
EXTEND!
EXTEND!
(Uh-oh! this is gonna hurt!)

CRASH!

ROLL!

He’s upside down, discombobulated and almost disfigured, but with one eye open and a half a smile, he yells HELL YEAH!!*(*In Bigfoot language).

In the background, we hear sirens and commotion. Roger and the crew are dealing with harbor patrol, and looking at all of the damage that the yacht has done to the marina.

Kate, however, has left the scene, and grabs a pair of binoculars off of the police boat. She looks up into the woods. What the heck just happened to her life?! This may be the best vacation yet. (IF she can lose these morons she came with.)

CHAPTER 2:

Kate has a problem.
Kate is old enough to know this is not REALLY her problem.
Kate is young enough to NOT know this MAY BECOME a problem.
Kate is old enough now to know that she LIKES the feeling she gets when she NEEDS to solve a problem.
Is it REALLY a problem?
No, it’s not a problem.
Was there any real danger?
No, it seemed like no one was in real danger.
The only danger was the panic that set in. It was her own family’s fault.

She walks onto the deck of the yacht, where everyone is trying to look cool, but she knows secretly they are all freaking out. Penelope is texting her friends, Miranda is posting online, and Sheridan is trying to call newspapers and media outlets for exposure. Roger is trying to get the guy from the insurance company to fix the bench, that was not only ripped off of the boat but is now waterlogged.
“This should be easy.” Kate thinks.
“Hey guys, I’m going to head down to the beach and try to clear my brain. Anybody want to come?“ she says.
She knows no one will come with her.
They’re all a bunch of 20-something rich snobs who would never congregate with the unwashed populous. Everyone rolls their eyes at her, and she just gives a polite wave. Walking down the stairs, she finds a place on the pier where she can set up without anyone watching her. She pulls out her binoculars from her knapsack and stares into the wooded area that surrounds the lake. Scanning the trees looking for landmarks. Places to mark off on her map that she is drawing. There are three bays to the lake. It’s July 17, and only 14 more days until they go back to Toronto. She needs to be organized.

Somewhere in the great woods of Second Bay, THRILLDABEAST sleeps and dreams. What a great day yesterday was. Everything he would have ever hoped. How could he do that again…. soon??! He dreams of the skateboard park and the big tube. He dreams of parasailing! He dreams of the basketball court.

Just then, his dreams are interrupted abruptly by a large foot.
“uh-oh”

CHAPTER 3:

Kate walks through the woods, marking trees with a K using a pocket knife.

THRILLDABEAST’s Mother stands over him, looking very Motherly, and very upset at him. She saw what went on yesterday, and she is none too happy about it. THRILLDABEAST is a teenager, and thusly, thinks everything is cool, and nothing is wrong. his mother is worried.

His mother starts to cry. THRILLDABEAST is now the man of the family that his father is gone. He promises her that nothing will ever ever happen to her, and if someone EVER tries to do to her what they did to Dad. they won’t live to see the moonlight again. She barely hears him as she cries. He hugs her. He’s a head taller than her, his shoulders, broad and strong. We see his face turn from caring, and then his head turns toward us, and it’s an instant, menacing snarl.

CHAPTER 4:

Kate has found a nice rock to sit on and have her lunch. She brought granola bars, a bottle of water or two, and some beef jerky. She’s marked her map all through First Bay. The map shows she’s right at the crease where First bay meets Second bay. She looks over to her left, into Second Bay’s woods, wondering if she could keep going. She decides to stand up and put her backpack on. She looks over into the woods of Second Bay one last time, takes a couple of steps, looks up to the sky, sees that the sun is going down, and decides tomorrow is another day. She turns around and walks away.

Just then, 100 yards away, a tree slowly bends down, and the large figure of THRILLDABEAST slides down the branches and lands heroically on his feet. He hides behind a large tree trunk and looks over into the First bay woods. He sees the figure of a young girl walking away. He looks worried. Then, the snarl comes back.

End, book one

THRILLDABEAST BOOK TWO

CHAPTER 1

Kate reaches the end of the woods, and takes a drink of water out of her bottle. She pulls the cell phone from her backpack where it was mounted to capture what was going on behind her while she walked out of the woods. She’d tried to make as much noise as possible, and left some VERY spicey beef jerky on the rock she’d sat upon.

She touches a few buttons on her phone and her eyes go from slits, to dots, and then to the size of car tires!

She’s seen something…something happened….

She gets up, and RUNS! Backpack slinging behind her while she goes as fast as she can down the road towards town. She wants to look behind her, but, she also DOESN’T want to look behind her.

She reaches the first gas station/convenience store at the edge of town and goes in to use the bathroom and hide. The door to the ladies room is locked (of course!) so she tries the Men’s room. Locked! Damn! She walks out the side door, and sees the Garbage corral. Heading over there, she sneaks through the crack in the wall of the locked area, and sits on the Milk Crate by the wall. She breathes a huge breath, and grabs her phone out of her hoodie pocket. She opens the video, and starts from the beginning.

It’s bouncy because of the way she walked, even though she tried to be steady. There’s the tree coming down like an elevator! There’s the huge feet and the massive dark brown/orange mass of hair she thought she saw for a second before she panicked and ran. Just then, she must’ve taken a slight turn due to the terrain, because the video moves slightly off subject, BUT THERE IT WAS! She HAS to get home and upload this to her computer!!
Then, she smiles, and quietly says “This is AMAZING!”

CHAPTER 2

The canopy of the Pa’Cha trees forms a shelter from sight and sunlight, but can’t block out the noise. They’ve been arguing for what seems like hours, but it has only been about 10 minutes. Unironically, that is the same amount of time that THRILLDABEAST  has been awake. His mother is emotional, with a look of fear, and also a slight look of disappointment. Or, was that disgust? Like any normal teenager, THRILLDABEAST’s face is a mix between an eye roll and disbelief.

Mom: (*translated from Bigfoot language): “Why do you do such things? Why put us in danger. No one to protect us. Why do you do such things?”

THRILLDABEAST: Mom! it’s not that big of a deal!

Mom: It IS a big big deal! You know the ways! You know what you did was wrong!

THRILLDABEAST: It didn’t feel wrong! It felt great! I enjoyed myself!

Mom: You enjoyed yourself!? So…. you enjoyed yourself, so, now I have to live in fear! After all we have talked about, after every lesson you have learned, you put your life in danger…. you put MY life in danger! All of the others.. now in danger!

THRILLDABEAST: NO! THEY ….those who stole our land and force us to hide….THEY are in danger!

Mom: M’halo! Stop this talk right now! That is not the way!

THRILLDABEAST: The WAY is what got Dad killed! How is THAT the WAY!? I’ve worked hard to make sure none of that will EVER happen to you! I’m bigger than Dad was, I’m stronger than Dad was, and I DARE any of them to threaten you or me in our home! They won’t live to see the MOON that night!

Mom: M’halo…my son; your Father would not want to hear you speak this way. He loves you very much from afar…. Very, very far, …yes, but, do not go that path.

THRILLDABEAST.: You KNOW it’s coming mom. You knew since the day it happened, that one day I would grow. One day, I would grow strong, and inside me there would be an anger at what happened. It will never go away. You, me, and the others deserve to live free! Free of fear, and free to enjoy the WHOLE woods. Not just THIS woods. Our ancestors once ruled the whole woods, and now we are hiding! Cowering! No more!

Mom: (hugs her son, puts her head down into his chest and cries) It is not the way. M’halo.

CHAPTER 3

The SUV pulls in to the hotel parking lot. Three people get out. Two men, one woman. Dressed in what could be either tactical gear or workout gear. Either way these are not desk jockeys. They enter the hotel room, and set up shop. One has the satellite hook up, the other has the wilderness gear, and the other has the map. She starts to talk into her ear, the other two respond with the tactical Roger. The tall man finishes with the map on the wall. Marks a spot.. marks another spot, and then tapes up the photo print-out from Penelope. It’s a shot of TB boogie boarding. He’s having a great time. The man stares at the photo with a worried look and says,

“OK, Buddy. We’re coming. Hope you’re happy.”

CHAPTER 4

Kate stands on the dock with her arms crossed. Roger, Penelope, Sheridan, all surrounded by TV Crews. Kate is not happy with what she’s seeing. She storms below deck and grabs her backpack. She screams, “MOM! I’m heading to the skate park!”

Kate grabs her board and her helmet and jumps over the rail. Landing on the pier like the superhero she wishes she was, she straps on her helmet, and starts to race down the pier with a fierce look of determination. Her backpack is not on her back, but, worn on the front for some reason, and she reaches into one of the pouches. As she speeds nearer to the throng of reporters, she throws a handful of bread slices towards the huge seagulls that rest on every post. Then, she throws the rest of the bread in the air above  the reporters and her family. The birds dive in, causing a ruckus. Screams emit from the pile. Kate blows by, jumping over the rail, and sliding down it with a perfect dismount onto the walk. Her smile is huge!

CHAPTER 5

THRILLDABEAST’s smile is huge! He’s now escaped the clutches of his worried mother, and is out for the day to fulfill his promise. In front of him, through the trees, he sees a basketball game. Preteen kids; boys and girls. Every once in a while, a ball bounces astray, and he wishes he could grab it. He wants to play! Finally, the ball bounces his way, and is coming… fast! He’ll only have one chance.

He needs to… SPRINT!

SCOOP up the ball!

Instead of bouncing it, he presses it on the ground, and, using his arm as a polevault to extend his extremely long body, does a roll in mid-air; tucks, and grabs the ball with two hands and comes down on the rim for a SPECTACULAR jam! The ball goes through the hoop with such force It hits the ground and EXPLODES.

THRILLDABEAST dismounts from the rim and lands on the ground. He looks to the sky, and howls the word AWESOME* (in Bigfoot language). He looks at NONE of the basketball players, smiles, and just speeds away into the woods. The children stand stunned, their backs to us.

One of them walks close to the woods, and says, “Sick!”

CHAPTER 6

The Woods.

The three agents scattered throughout the landscape, with the tallest in the long shot in perspective. The ‘Other man’ has the gun that looks like a flamethrower we saw in the hotel room. The woman, closes to us, has goggles on. Heat sensing goggles. The tall guy has an iPad/Tablet. The Other man speaks first.

“Moose.“

“Bear“, says the woman.

“Moose“, says Otherman again. “I’m telling you, they come out of nowhere, and, yes, you see videos of them moving really slow, but, they’re like a horse that has spiky tennis rackets on its head. They’ll kick a hole through your chest.“

“Lucky for us we have the tranquilizer guns.” says the woman.

“You’d better be a good shot, or, that moose is going to swat those tranquilizer darts away with his tennis rackets.” Says Otherman.

Just then, the Tall man with the iPad checks in on his com link,
“What are you guys talking about over there?”

“Wimbledon” says the woman.

“I’m telling you” says the Otherman.

“Well, we could be in danger, so get your mind on that instead.“ says the Tall guy.

“I’ve got nothing on heat sensor.”, says the woman. “Let’s move on”

“Roger.,” Says both of the guys.

SCENE CHANGES TO THE YACHT

“Roger!“ Says Sheridan. “…don’t you think we should go water skiing today? I just got this new line of swimwear sent to me from FashioNutta! I was thinking we could get some good shots of me skiing for the ‘Gram!“

Roger is watching the repairman fix the bench on the yacht

“OK but we’re doing it in Third Bay this time. Traffic is getting crazy out there.“

“Third Bay? Nobody goes to Third Bay!” says Sheridan.

 “I know!” Roger yells looking at the sky with a huge eyeroll.

“Well, when can we go?”

“As soon as these guys finish this bench!”

“We’re losing daylight. Roger, If we’re going to monetize on this  “event“, we need to react fast! Hurry up, boys!”

At that same moment, one of the workers looks at a plane going by with a banner that says “BIGFOOT ARE REAL”. At the same moment, the other worker is watching Sheridan walk by in her skimpy bikini (as she recites her dialogue above).

One worker looks up at the Bigfoot sign and says “… you think they’re real?”

The other worker looks at Sheridan in her bikini and says, “They’re definitely not real.”

THRILLDABEAST BOOK 3

CHAPTER 1

Today is the day.
He knows the day by the position of the moon. The smell of the woods. The look the old fox gave him yesterday. The way his Mother is responding to the day. No food. No foraging. No water. No bathing. There’s more on her mind than her own life, and even her son’s life, today.

It was on this day 8 moon cycles ago that his Father was lost to them. He will never forget, and he has always wanted to make them regret they ever trespassed into the woods.  The invaders.

THRILLDABEAST comes to this cliff every year on this day to be alone, and to tell the tale. He scales the rocks no one else would dare and paints in the ways of the ancients. He tells the story of his Father, and how they took him from the world.

The first painting was when he was 9 Moon Cycles. It is a large proud painting of a proud Father. The artwork is crude to him now, but, he will leave it and not redo it. It is from a time and a place of hurt and love that he can never recapture. He has progressed in his life , (as has his artwork), each cycle.
The second painting is one of a Moon and the sky with his Father in the sky among the stars. That is where his Mother had told him you go when you are no longer in the woods. The third painting shows an intelligence jump, and also a sense of the oncoming anger. The ceremony.
The fourth painting is of the Moon again, but, this time it holds a picture of his parents.
The fifth shows him in the trees he loves so much, his world among the branches, menacingly looking down upon the ones who invade.
Then, there is last year’s painting; It is a howl, a snarl, and a warning. It is teeth, and claws, and, yes, there is blood. He is not shocked by any of this….he’s been getting angrier every year. They, the invaders, take more and more every year, and he swears they will not take any more before he gets his revenge. He paints anew, hanging effortlessly from the cliff by one huge hand. Just as the scene pulls back to see what he has started, the noise comes.

Turning to look down the ravine, he sees nothing, but he, and most likely everyone in the area, hears the noise. Instantly letting go of his grasp, he falls to a safer landing place below. (Some 30 feet below. Itself an amazing feat.) He jumps from perch to perch, blindingly fast and with such incredible athleticism that it’s hard to comprehend. Headed towards his home, the worry begins to creep in. His Mother is in danger. It can only be the invaders, and they are going to pay dearly.        

SNARL.

CHAPTER 2

Agent Evens reads the surroundings through her heat sensing goggles. She looks East and West, checks her data bank for anomalies and then checks the placement of her colleagues in the field. She does this over and over again.              

Agent Schecktler checks his Ultrasonic Monitor. The synthesized signal is perfectly balanced, and his battery has a 75% charge. All systems are good to go. The Tablet screen is brighter than he’d wish. He feels like a target holding a lighted bullseye. He checks the location of his field agents and is reassured. Visual contact with Agent Evens is made. She signals no danger present.   

Agent Ameca is weapons-ready-go. He’s been loaded since early this morning and refuses to check again. His concentration is upon the trees, mainly the high branches. He’s looking for movement more than color. He’s watching Agent Evens give signals to Field Commander Schecktler, and waits patiently. The noise is what bothers him….it’s not so much the volume as it is the tone. He feels the pain in the tone, and while he gives props to the Field Commander on creating it, (from a synthesized AI amalgamation of Baboon and a Hungarian Opera Singer no less), he feels it’s striking the terror neurons just a bit too hard. It was a quick job, and it works, but they’re going in blind. Noone knows what kind of power and rage set the subject commands. It’s a gut feeling, but, Ameca senses trouble. The gun is ready. So is he. Let’s do this.

CHAPTER 3

Trees as high as the sky bob and weave with the weight he throws around. THRILLDABEAST stands 7 feet and 9 inches tall and weighs 415 pounds at this stage in his life. He will grow into adulthood in four more Moon Cycles. His diet ensures that he is a tight mass of muscles and boundless energy. The trees are strong, and they are his friends. They sense the urgency he rushes with, (even though they also know this isn’t a natural noise he’s reacting to). They push back when he bends the trunk because they know he needs the speed. He’s actually flying at some points on the journey. He learned how to do this from catching the squirrels as a youth. There were so many of them, and his Father taught him how to gauge the bend of the branches when the squirrels would launch to another tree in their attempts to escape his grasp. One day, he decided to climb the tree and surprise the squirrels. The trunks down low did not bend as easily, but higher up, they were practically like a slingshot. There were many falls and injuries, but all young inhabitants of the woods got hurt. It was how you learned. THRILLDABEAST learned to ‘surf’ the high trunks of the trees, and feel when the tree was about to snap back to it’s form. He would then use the momentum to leap in the air. The first flight was so beautiful. He had climbed a high cliff before, but, this was very different; very special. That first flight had a first landing as well, and it wasn’t as beautiful, but, he learned. Now, at 15 Moon Cycles, and almost 10 Moon Cycles of Tree Surfing, he was unstoppable. He could travel anywhere in the woods at a high rate of speed and most of all of the life around him would just watch with amazement. Especially his Mother.

“MOM!*” roars THRILLDABEAST. (In Bigfoot language)
His face is snarling as he cruises through the branches. He knows he’s almost there and now he begins to think about what he’ll find. The noise is horrible, and he can’t help but think that for her to be in THAT much pain, she must be at the point of almost death. The thought at once both terrifies and enrages him. He comes down the last tree trunk to land and face his worst fears. He is met with nothing but a strange black thing he knows is one of the invaders toys. He’s seen them at the Basketball court with a form of rhythmic sound emitting. This one still wails, and he confusingly reaches down to pick it up in his huge claw and crushes it without any effort. The menacing snarl emerges once more. He turns as he senses an unfamiliar odor and is blinded by a explosion of light to his eyes (which are so attuned to darkness they have evolved into powerful receptors) and he screams with pain. He’s off balance, and that’s when Agent Ameca fires his cannon.           

CHAPTER 4

Kate has been behind the huge rock at the top of the ridge for hours. She came out here today to find and warn the beast everyone is looking to capture. She knows how insane that sounds, but she saw his face when he was water skiing that day, and knows he was happy, and not a monster. Everyone else was in a panic, but she had come up from below decks late and only caught the show. She wants to help him escape the reporters. The cameras. The Sherriff’s office. Sheridan. Everyone.

Upon reaching the hill’s downward slope, she noticed a light she knew shouldn’t be shining under the dense canopy of the trees. She hoped it wasn’t a reporter and was maybe just some kids her age hiding out and drinking their parents’ beer and having a little cookout. She ducked behind Snoopy Rock, (because it had the big beagle nose like the Peanuts character) and watched with the binoculars. There were three of them, and after a short time, they split up and found a place to set up camp. One of them pulled out a gun! A huge gun that looked like a missile launcher from a Shooter Game! There was a woman in the group, and she put on a VR headset and did a circular scan of the surroundings. Kate quickly ducked behind Snoopy Rock, hoping to evade her view. The taller man went to the middle of the opening and placed a black box with a handle on the leafy ground. He walked away with an IPAD or something, and suddenly, touching his ear, sent a signal to the other two and then waved his hand. A low, guttural moan started to sound from the box, which Kate now knew to be a Bluetooth Speaker. It began at a lower volume, and then slowly got louder, until it was so loud, she could probably run home and they wouldn’t hear her rustling the leaves. She didn’t go, though. She stayed, knowing full well what they were up to. They were after the beast. Kate was now more afraid than she was of finding the beast herself. Wow! The noise was AWFUL! It made her want to cry. She needed help. Who could she get to help her? Everyone else wanted the beast for their own reasons.          

Kate decided she had to do something. She was still quite young, at 18, and had been known to do some impetuous things before, but, with the noise building and the scene evolving in front of her, she knew that in a matter of moments, there would be a fight for someone’s life and freedom. Heck, it could be those agents who might be in danger from the beast. She didn’t know which way to turn, so, she decided to stand up and create a diversion, even if it got her in trouble.
She climbed up Snoopy Rock, and just as her head was about to emerge from the top of the rock and expose her to the man with the gun, a dark shadow engulfed her, eclipsing any ambient light she had to see her surroundings. Amidst the wailing noise from the speaker, and her whirling thoughts of danger, she turned to face……             the beast!       

Except something was different. She remembered him being taller, and his hair being spiky and dangerous looking. This beast’s hair was softer, and eyes gentler and kinder.  That being said, it was only a second’s thought before she realized this was STILL a beast, but she was too scared to react. Then, from inside her head, in the middle of her ears, came the sound of the word “PEACE” and the beast’s eyes emoted the same sentiment. “What just happened?”, Kate thought, but, again, she had no time to react, as the large hand of the beast took her arm and led her away from the scene.

CHAPTER 5

BOOM!

The cannon erupted, and a wide netting flew through the air towards THRILLDABEAST.              
He was snared! His claws could not rip the metal mesh of the trap, nor was his strength able to shred the fibers. The sound had stopped from the speakers, and now, the only sound was a violent shrieking from inside the net. Agent Ameca took out his tranquilizer gun, and began to hurriedly, yet, warily, approach the beast. Agent Evens stayed back to capture the full view of the event, and Field Commander Schecktler, free of any technology other than a cell phone, walked to the other side of the netting and grabbed the control remote attached to one of the strands. THRILLDABEAST tried to reach back at him but the net began to shrink around him. He howled and yelled. He was now afraid and knew he was in trouble. Agent Ameca reached out with the tranquilizer gun, aimed and fired. The dart hit the beast on the thigh. Then another dart hit his other thigh. One dart bounced off of the netting, but a fourth shot reached his shoulder.            

“MOMMMMMMMMMMMMM!” he shouted*             
(In Bigfoot Language)           



BOOK 4

CHAPTER 1

The Sherriff’s vehicle rolls up to the gated entrance. He sees the gate is open and a confused and concerned look comes across his face. He gets out of the truck and puts in a quick call  to the HQ about his whereabouts. Just then a sound catches him off guard. He sees a vehicle coming out of the woods, and unsnaps his holster. Touching the comm button on his left shoulder, he alerts the station of the situation while walking behind his vehicle. A rusty brown Volkswaagen Mini Bus with the full Westfalia kit on top emerges from the trees, bounding over the bumpy branch and gravel access road. He sees the standard camper outfits on the driver and passenger, and loosens up a little on his revolver, but only just a little. Taking a few steps from the patrol unit, left running just in case, he raises his left hand in a slightly friendly yet firmly aggressive gesture to bring the vehicle to a complete stop. The van driver hits the brakes and waves back. Sheriff Foster breathes a little easier, but still hasn’t let go of his weapon.

“Hi Folks….Sheriff Everett Foster, Forest Patrol.”, he says as he steps to the passenger side where the woman is seated. She seems like the lesser of a threat, and he’s just checking off boxes in his mind on being safe and getting home in one piece tonight.

“How can we help you, Officer?” says the driver. The woman smiles and takes off her sunglasses, revealing a pleasant, agreeable face with happy eyes. It’s just then as he gets closer that he senses the smell of Marijuana and sees the trails of smoke coming out of the Camper Window atop the bus.

“Investigating the loud noises and some perceived wildlife disruption in the area. Reports flooding the Station about a half hour back. You wouldn’t happen to have seen or heard….”

“Oh, we heard!”, laughed the driver, “that’s why we’re getting the hell out of here! Place was crazy for a bit, and we swear we heard howling…..We came here to relax, man. After the past week, and now all the reporters, cameras and rubberneckers, this place is a drag to be around.”

“All right, I understand. Well, you all can rest assured I’ll be getting to the bottom of the issues we’re having lately. Did you happen to see anything strange on your way out of the woods? I’m gonna head on in there.” said the Sheriff.

“Nothing on the way out, no….but, then again, we weren’t looking for trouble, if you know what I mean.” the driver said.

“Be careful, Officer,” the woman quickly said with a look of concern.

“Thank you, Ma’am. I appreciate that.”, he says back.

The van slowly starts back on its journey out of the dirt road, bouncing and bobbing over the rocks and puddles. The Sheriff watches as it heads onto the paved roadway and gets a sense of the weight the van moves on those little tires. The Father in him wants to stop and tell them to check the air pressure before they hit any highways, but the Lawman in him says that’s a problem the units in town are keen to look for in a Camper Van. Hopefully, they’ll be ok.

He jumps in his Bronco, turns on the flood lights, and pulls into the woods at a good rate of speed. The truck is brand new, and he’s lost valuable time due to the Van.

As his vehicle disappears, we can now see the Camper Van in the distance, chugging down the road, getting smaller in the distance, just about to come to the big bend in the road before the downhill slope ahead into town. Just as it makes the turn, the Volkswaagen starts to wobble and waver, then, shimmers in color and structure, eventually revealing the Agents inside of their SUV. It starts to pull away at a high rate of speed.

“Agent Schteckler reporting to base; all operations successful; heading to close up shop here and make the rendezvous point. Package is secure; all Agents intact and unharmed. Well done, team.”

“Well done….” says Agent Ameca, staring at the beast just inches away from his feet.

“Nice Sheriff.” says Agent Evens.

“Lucky guy.” says Schteckler. “He wasn’t ready for what we saw in there.”

CHAPTER 2

The Black SUV speeds away down the hill, and we see the top of the vehicle and the tree branches above it. Ha’na is moving at an incredible rate of speed through the trees, and there’s a small backpack hanging off of her shoulders for dear life. Only, it’s not a backpack. Its Kate, and she’s quietly trying not to freak out.

Ten minutes ago, Ha’na, THRILLDABEAST’S Mom, led her away from the scene of her only son’s kidnapping by some of the Invaders. She used some kind of mind manipulation, or mind meld, or something very science fiction-y to communicate her plan to Kate. Kate thinks now how crazy this is going to sound to everyone.

Ha’na is keeping up with the speed of the SUV, but only just barely. There are moments where they lose sight of it completely, only to then emerge from a patch of trees almost on top of it. Ha’na knows the woods better than Kate could have imagined. It’s almost like the trees and she are talking to each other. Every time Kate thinks they’re going to crash and die, somehow, there’s an opening just ahead and they’re ahead of the agents.

It looks like they’re slowing down, and Kate looks over Ha’na’s head to see why. The road is going to turn left at the light ahead. Ha’na pulls Kate off of her back like a baby and lightly puts her down next to her. She holds her hand and says “FOLLOW” with the Martian Mind Meld thingy and Kate runs down the hill to the street. She hears nothing behind her, and she looks back to see Ha’na is gone. How does something that large move so fast?

Kate runs after the SUV and knows she’s not going to be able to keep up if they make all the green lights. She sees the opportunity up by the Car Wash. Kids on bikes. She’s gotta do this fast. She runs up to them at full speed and knocks a boy off of his bike with her hip, and the bike barely leans over before she’s gone. The boys are all shocked by what happened, and they stand stunned. The victim of this robbery then screams “HEY!!!” and the boys realize it’s the pretty 18 year old Skater Girl they’re all in love with from the Skate Park that just robbed their good friend of his bike. They all look at each other with expressions of “whoa” and “what do we do?” A few of them are completely fine with what just happened because she’s the best thing that’s happened to the Lake this Summer. The bikeless kid jumps on the pegs of his friend’s BMX bike, and they’re off! “GET HER!” He yells. The chase is on, and they have NO IDEA what they’re getting into, but they’re boys, and there’s a super hot babe involved, so they don’t care one bit.

CHAPTER 3

A shiny new Tesla Cyber Truck drives down the main street of the town at a rate of speed one could describe as ‘parading’. Sheridan sits in the passenger seat deeply immersed in her Social Media addiction. She’s wearing the newest offering from RavishWear, sent to her the other day after a new personal record 300,000 streams of her FashionNutta bikini line. The boxes just keep coming, and what’s a girl to do? (If everything looks so good on you, you need to show it off.) (Actual quote.) Roger is driving. That’s all he seems to do, but, hey, the Cyber Truck was free. He just has to drive it with Sheridan in the passenger seat once a day and smile. He doesn’t have to say anything. Just drive and smile. Fine by him.
There’s complete silence in the truck, except for the sound of Sheridan’s audio clips being edited over and over, until finally Roger sees something up ahead.

“What… hey, is that Katie?”, he says to Sheridan, knowing full well she may not be paying attention, and partly hoping she isn’t.

Sheridan sits up out of her slouch position and looks out the front windshield. Sure enough, she sees her boyfriend’s little sister on a BMX bicycle going as fast as she can down the street on the right side, hair flapping in the wind. Just then she hears a noise behind her and looks in the rearview mirror. A pack of 6 or 7 young kids on BMX bikes are weaving in and out of traffic. One bike even has a kid standing on the back wheel somehow. Sheridan has instantly forgotten about Kate and is now seeing a good opportunity for a fun Reel. She rolls down her window to get a good video when the truck veers hard to the right, throwing Sheridan left onto the center console. She refuses to wear a seat belt because it leaves marks on her perfect skin, and also covers up her outfits when she’s sending Snaps to the girls.

“HEY!!” she yelps. “Roger! What are you doing?!” She gets herself back together and sits back in her seat.

“I’m following Katie. She just went down this side street on that bike. She doesn’t even have a bike. I wanna see what’s going on.” Roger says calmly as he watches attentively to Kate’s speed and position. She hasn’t seen the Truck yet, so he’s trying to hide as much as possible.

Roger looks in the mirror and sees the swarm of children on bikes take the turn as well. Weird, but everyone wants a look at the Truck since it was delivered, so he kinda gets it.

Kate pops a curb and flies across the sidewalk, going through an entrance lane and into a Hotel parking lot. Roger has to wait for the light and cars in front of him until he can follow, and he hopes he doesn’t lose her. The gang of kids blows right by the truck on both sides, and Rog hears one of the little miscreants say, “What is this thing, from Minecraft?’ as he laughs at the way the thing looks. Roger is not happy.

CHAPTER 4

The SUV pulls into the parking spot directly in front of the Hotel room. Agent Evens launches herself from the passenger seat and heads for the door.  A quick glance to the side catches a teenage girl on a bicycle racing straight towards the SUV.  Agent Ameca is also out of the vehicle and facing the twin back doors. He doesn’t see Kate approaching.

Evens has a split second to make a decision. Threat or no threat. She also sees a swarm of pre-teens on the same kind of bikes about 40 yards behind the girl. “Now we’ve got a situation.”, she thinks.

“Cary!” she yells, pointing at Ameca, facing her with one door of the back open. He freezes and looks around the side at Evens, but, for some reason Ameca looks up to the hotel roof. Evens is puzzled. Ameca’s eyes widen.

BOOM!

Broken glass explodes from the front windshield of the SUV. Something fell from the roof onto the truck? Evens runs into the hotel room and grabs her weapon. She assumes the incoming fire position at the door’s left. Ameca has been blown back ten feet by the concussion of the crash. He gains his senses quickly, but then hears the screams of children to his rear.

“…..this is all going wrong…” he thinks.

Scrambling to his feet he turns around to protect the children from the nightmare in front of him. He is immediately rewarded with a blow to the head from Kate’s backpack!

WHAM!

Now, he’s in trouble…he tries to gain his balance before the next blow can reach him but reels in shock from a piercing shriek that suffocates all sound around the area. The angry scream of a Mother whose child is in danger, willing to lose all sense of logic and grace in order to save him. Evens looks out the door and sees Ha’na atop the SUV, roof caved in, glass destroyed. Ha’na rips the roof off the vehicle like its tin foil.

“Where is Schtekler?!”, Evens thinks?

Agent Evens takes her eyes off the unbelievable scene evolving in front of her and locates her Field Commander unconscious in the front seat! Evens has no choice but to call for help.

Ha’na is in a state of rage she wasn’t sure she had insider of her. In the woods, she instinctively knew Kate was holding her back and let her go on her own. Ha’na has tried to control her animal instincts since her son was born, thinking that he should be more like his Father. Wise. Thoughtful. She was the wild one in the relationship, and he brought her a peace she has tried to pass down to her son. That instinct started to boil into a mad rage once she began the chase to save her son’s life. The young girl was too fragile to survive the speed needed for a surprise attack. She could smell the vehicle and knew exactly where Kate was as well. They had been together only moments, but she was like a beacon of flower scents and dried cow tongue. The jump to the Hotel roof from the treeline was easy, and now she only had to watch out for the weaponry she saw them using on her son.
They would not be catching her so unaware.
They would not have the chance to use them.
They would pay.

Ha’na throws the top of the SUV to the side and sees the young girl attack the man who shot ser son.

“This girl is brave!”, she beams, thankful for the support and distraction.

 She sends a wave of intense emotion to Kate, and then looks down into the truck to see her son wrapped in a netting. He sleeps, but not peacefully. More humans start to appear in front of her. Smaller ones, also distracting the attacker with high pitched noises and yelps. Ha’na reaches down into the vehicle and tries to pull her son up and out, but he’s too heavy for the truck’s roof to bear both of their weights. The sides begin to curve and crumple. She slips down into the cabin, regains her balance and tries again. He moves but just barely.

“Too heavy when he’s asleep!”, she worries. She needs to wake him!

She sends a frantic call to Kate’s mind.

Kate has never struck another human with such force before in her whole life. She can’t believe she did it, and instantly regrets it. She felt the power of Ha’na during the run after the truck, but, seeing the violent intensity of the way she crushed and tore apart the vehicle had made her act in kind. (Well, as much as she could seeing how she only weighed 104 pounds.) There was no time to think, only act. She saw this man, with the short brown hair and earpiece, shoot the beast with tasers or something and he could do the same to Ha’na!  Or her!! She gets ready to strike the man again when the sound of screams appear behind her. The kids from the bike gang followed her down here and are now within about 25 feet and are freaking out!

“$#*+!”, she screams.

She looks up at Ha’na who is struggling to pull her son out of the truck’s cabin and sees that THRILLDABEAST is tied from underneath to the floor so he can’t escape. Kate dives inside and begins to unravel the ropes.

Agent Ameca never saw this coming. He agreed to this job so he could get more experience in the field and advance his future as a Nature Conservationist. He’d worked hard to become one of the best and made sure he was the first to be called when there was an endangered species issue anywhere in the Northeast. Now, he was fighting a gang of 10-year-olds on bikes while the most dangerous, (and amazing), creatures he’d ever come across were attempting an escape back into the woods. His head was still reeling from the blow to the head from the Bicycle Gang’s leader, a teenage girl with long curly auburn hair and a backpack full of fury.
He races towards the children with his arms out.

“MOVE!” GET BACK!”, he screams. “LET’S GO! MOVE! MOVE!”
The kids are naturally drawn to the action in front of them and are stubbornly standing still as they watch in amazement.

Kate finally unravels one side of the rope and Ha’na feels the tension let loose just a little. She heaves and THRILLDABEAST lifts up into the air just enough to see his arms dangle a bit.

“WAKE UP!”*, she screams at him!
(*in Bigfoot language)

Kate felt that in her mind! She heard it in her ears, too, which means that she’s trying to reach her son with the mind thing.

“WAKE UP!!”, Kate yells, and tries to do the mind thing, as well. She doesn’t know if it worked or not.

Ha’na felt a wave of desperation and urgency come flooding though her soul. Kate had reached out to her son, and the feelings of awe and surprise made Ha’na look to Kate with a sense of pride. She raised her eyebrows and stared at Kate with a sense of purpose. Kate understood. They both gave everything they had at that moment, directing energies to their one purpose.

“WAKE UP!!!!!!”

The blast of strength and emotions from the two became one force, and THRILLDABEAST immediately moved as if he was hit with electric current. His eyes were opening slightly, and he let out a gasp that looked like a great yawn. He got up on one humongous elbow and felt a ringing in his brain. Had he fallen off the cliff while he was painting the picture for his Father and Mother? Had he eaten too much of the sweet tree roots his Mother warned him about? His leg was sore, and so was his shoulder. He looked out at the commotion in front of him and saw a human girl. His sight was still fuzzy, but, as he began to focus, he recognized her as the one from the woods. What? Why? His eyesight began to get clearer, and he noticed he was wrapped in a trap. The girl reached in and started to cut the netting with her weapon. He felt a tug from above him. He fell back down after the tug, and looked at the girl once more, furiously cutting at his restraints. Adrenaline began to rush through his veins, and he let out a noise that, while not a roar exactly, was easily on the road to rage. The girl backed away, and he heard a noise behind her. He shifted and saw another human. He felt his leg and shoulder ache, and the male human met his gaze. It came back to him immediately.
That man hurt him.
That man is the reason he ached.
That man….is in BIG trouble.
The netting gave way, and with a fantastic shrug of his powerful shoulders, he was free of the trap. He rose to his knees. He was in a manmade box of some sort, and he looked out at Ameca with a snarl and very bad intentions. Kate had to run. She saw his anger, didn’t blame him, and knew she was in the wrong place right now. THRILLDABEAST reached out to gain his balance, and then stepped out of the SUV. He had one foot on the ground and the other wedged on the SUV sidewall ready to attack. The roar he let out was one he’d been holding back for years. It made a small child behind Ameca close his eyes from the ferocity and volume. Ameca whirled around to see the beast was free, and guarded the children as best he could. THRILLDABEAST raised his hand in a position to strike, claws bared. Muscles rippled and began to move forward.

Kate couldn’t look.
It was all going in slow motion to her, but also too unbelievably fast to do anything about. Just as the roar reached its loudest, the huge claw started to swing, but was caught from behind. Stopped a second before it could reach Ameca. Ha’na was still on the truck, or what was left of it, and she held her son’s wrist with all her might.

“NO!”*, she shouted!

He looked back to see his Mother. His anger still at a high level, he tried to pull back from her. Didn’t she see what they had done?

“They are trying to hurt me!”, he barked at her with no compassion for who he was speaking to.

“NOT THE WAY!”*, she shouted again.
“NOT THE”,

BLAM!!

Ha’na fell back to the left. Her shoulder and chest had been struck by a bullet sending her reeling. She was down.
“NO!!!!”, yelled Ameca.
“NO!!!!”, yelled Kate.
“NO!!!!”, yelled Her son.

Children screamed and scurried.

Evens came out of the hotel and surveyed the scene.
“Ohmygodno….” She whimpered.

Agent Schteckler was now awake and had blood from glass cuts all over his face. He saw Evens next to the truck and got out to see what she was seeing.

“Oh no…ohnoonnononno…’
He grabbed his cell phone and began to dial.

THRILLDABEAST BOOK 5

CHAPTER 1


Sherriff Foster turned the key and the Patrol Vehicle lit up with fog lights, emergency warning lights, and side spotlights by the rearview mirrors on both sides.  He pressed in the clutch and put it in first gear. The truck moved forward about 30 yards into the woods entrance over the gravel and puddles on the dirt road and then did an immediate stop. Now there were brake lights as well. Then reverse lights. A hasty three point backwards K-turn followed, and the lights went dark.

Immediately after the VW Bus pulled away, the veteran lawman realized what was bothering him. The smoke from the cabin had no smell. The man in the backseat looked like a beatnik hippie, and the two people up front seemed like they were from San Fransisco and owned a Health Food Store or something of the like. But the smoke wafting upwards through the sunroof should have smelled. Even tobacco would have been a smell he would recognize. These days, since the legalization of recreational marijuana, Patrolmen are educated to know the difference in the odors of all substances. The second you see smoke your first instinct as a member of the Police force is to identify the substance. This smoke had zero odor. That was the first tingle he got from the camper van. The next was the way the truck pulled out of the entrance and hit the pavement. Something very, very heavy was in the back of that vehicle, but the tires did not reflect the weight when it reached the seam where the rubber hit the road. The final straw was the woman’s sunglasses. She was sure to remove them the moment he came to the window, and he had thought she was just being complacent in order to show obedience, but he recognized the brand. They were Phast’s latest “smart glasses”. Able to browse the internet, watch HD movies, or play video games all while the wearer had the glasses on with no TV screen or monitor needed. Sherriff Foster’s son, Timmy, had asked for a pair for his last birthday. Mrs. Foster and her husband deliberated upon the purchase for a few days. They knew he would either break them, or lose them, or worse, trade them to his friend for an item he wanted THIS week, and the glasses were so LAST week. The were almost a thousand dollars, and that was a lot of money. Too much money for that group in the rusty camper van, and a purchase that didn’t make sense with the rest of the van’s interior surroundings.
It was an intuition, and he always followed his hunches.

He hit the road at a high rate of speed and was in pursuit. He did not know what he was in pursuit of, exactly, but he’d be ready to apologize or incarcerate, either way.

All he wants is to get it over with before he goes home tonight.
It was meatloaf night. Yum.

CHAPTER 2

“Unit Leader to base, copy”.
Sherriff Foster always went by the book, and this day was no different. Station to station, base to base. Steady wins the race. That’s what his mentor told him when he was honing his instincts as a member of the armed forces.

“Base copy, what’s your position Unit Leader?”, answered the dispatch.

“Mears Turnpike, mile marker 23, coming into town. Following a lead on the disturbance in Second Bay this afternoon. In pursuit of a Vokkswagen Camper Van, brown with some rustation. Three passengers. Should be catching up with them in a minute or so.”, explained Foster.

“Roger Unit Leader. Requesting backup?”, said the dispatcher, following procedure.

“Negative, dispatch. No backup necessary. Seems non-violent in nature. I’ll call in with details soon.”, he said matter-of-factly. “Unit Leader, out.”

“Roger, Unit Leader’, dispatch ended the transmission.

Foster came around a large curve in the road by the cliff and saw a black SUV ahead where he knew the VW should be. He crinkled his nose in surprise. He didn’t see anyone pass the entrance to the woods as he was getting in his truck, and was pretty sure he didn’t lose ground to a Twenty Five year-old four cylinder van with a weight distribution issue.

The vehicle took the left at the light and put on it’s right blinker, obviously heading into the Hanson Hotel parking lot which also housed a Car Dealership in the front of the lot. He sped up and took the right at the light, knowing the back entrance to the lot was quicker than hitting the line of traffic at the stoplight outside the hotel. He pulled in fast and gunned it trying to catch the SUV before it parked, but as he got the truck straightened out from avoiding the first yellow speedbump, he caught something out of the corner of his eye. A flash of brown and tan seemingly flew from the trees onto the roof of the hotel about 50 yards to his right. He slowed immediately to a crawl and leaned into his passenger seat to get a better look.

“My..God…”, he uttered quietly.

The figure was moving at breakneck speed across the roof. Sherriff Foster gunned the patrol vehicle to get out front of it as fast as he could. He pulled around the side of the hotel, weaving through parked cars and tractor trailers that blocked his view just enough to frustrate him.

“Dammit!”, he yelled as he lost sight of the huge mass of hair and muscle. “Dammit!”

Finally, he emerged out of the maze of vehicles and saw the SUV had beat him into the lot. They were way over in the other part of the hotel. He started his way over there, noticing the woman in the passenger seat with the sunglasses.

“That’s her!”, he thought.
She ran to the door of the hotel, and the back left door also opened. A male with dark hair got out and walked around the back to open the door. He had the best opportunity now to see what was in the back of the truck. He should call this in, but he knew it was too much to handle for a conversation and he wasn’t quite sure he believed what he saw anyway.

The Sherriff’s truck sped through the lot and he had a clear lane to the right of the vehicle when the hairy brown figure stood on the roof above the SUV.

BOOM!

“Holy!’, exclaimed the Sherriff.

He stopped the truck immediately and started running. His left hand instantly slid to his holster and unclipped the strap. The sheer force of the impact on the black SUV was incredible. He had called in the pursuit of the vehicle as non-violent in nature, but he had no idea this was going to get crazy like this….
The monster tore the roof off of the SUV and the Sherriff pulled his weapon.
The maze of cars around him served as a shield and a hindrance. He couldn’t take his eyes off the action ahead of him, so he used his right hand as a guide while going as fast as his 49-year-old feet and legs could go. Sliding around a trunk, he saw a girl on a red bike just like his son Timmy’s.
Details…details. Let go of details until later, he thought.
The girl leapt off the bike and instantly swung her backpack striking the male suspect at the back of the SUV. He was caught off guard. What was even happening here?? It was then that he heard the voices of children, and one voice so familiar he must have been mistaken. The monster was now inside the back of the roofless vehicle thrashing and screaming. He took his eyes off it for one second to identify the distracting noise he’d heard and confirmed it was Timmy.
“What the…?” he yelled.
He watched as his son jumped off the back pegs of another kid’s bike and ran towards the mayhem.
“NO!”, the Sherriff yelled, but obviously the child had his mind made up.
Timmy ran straight for his bike, which was on the ground where Kate had left it in a heap. As soon as he reached it, a roar came from inside the SUV that was different than the sound Foster had heard just a second ago.
Fear.
The past five minutes he’d been in control of the situation and his emotions, but his son….
Fear.
The male suspect whirled back to cover Timmy, and when he did, a huge claw emerged from the SUV. The back door was in the Sherriff’s eyeline. Instinct took over, as well as the love of a parent for his child. Foster kept his momentum moving left, got in a position, and fired into the back of the vehicle blindly.

BLAM!!

Agent Ameca looked to his right and located the weapon.
Timmy looked too and saw his father with the gun.
“DAD!”, he said loudly.

Foster steadily crept closer after he fired to secure his son’s safety.

“WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING HERE!!??”, he angrily yelled at his son, all the while hugging him tenderly with his free arm.

“That girl stole my bike! I knew you and Mom were going to be really mad at me, so I had to get it back. Dad, what is that thing? “Timmy was talking at a fast rate of speed in a high-pitched tone. He was always trying to act older and tough. The boy was scared and on the verge of tears.
“Just get back. Get your friends and get way, way, back!”, Foster said with confidence. He had to show the kids, and his son most importantly, that he was going to handle this insanity.

He turned towards the scene and again looked surprised. He knew he’d hit the subject in question, but now he saw another one. It had his back to him, and if he was going to take the shot now was the time. He held his gun towards the ground and slowly advanced on the action ahead. The larger one had fully emerged from the back of the vehicle, and the Sherriff could see clearly that he had been in the back of the SUV tangled in a netting now on the ground and wrapped around one of its humongous feet. The monster was standing over the first monster who was bleeding from the upper right chest and shoulder area. Screams could be heard from the girl who stole Timmy’s bike, and also from the woman with the sunglasses, but the loudest scream came from the larger monster itself. It was a scream of pain, and fear. The same fear that Sherriff Foster had just experienced.
He felt as if there was a mistake made somewhere, and he might have been the one to make it.

The monster turned.
Tears in its eyes.
Teeth bared.
Claws open.
Angry.
Scared.

Sherriff Foster had never been more unsure and afraid in his whole life.
He lifted the gun. He began to pull the trigger.

CHAPTER 3


Kate would think about the next ten seconds for the rest of her life. “What was I thinking?”, she’d shiver from the thought.

She was less than 2 yards from a cornered 600 pound beast and also next to a loaded gun in the hands of a professional marksman. Her solution to this situation was to jump in the middle of them both as if it was just a couple of kids on the playground.

“NO!”, she yelled so loudly her voice cracked and made people wince because it sounded painful.

THRILLDABEAST was distracted just long enough for Ha’na to grab his hand again. She was up on her feet, wounded, but with a strong sense of wisdom and love she implored her son to stop and think. She said it with one word.

“Run.”, she said quietly.

“WHAT!?”, he looked at her bloody shoulder and shrugged her hand off his claws.

“I SAID RUN! NOW!!”, this time in a tone that did not invite discussion.

Kate saw what was happening and felt the urge inside her head once more.

“GO!”, Kate said in her strongest mind-pushy-thing she had just learned how to do.

THRILLDABEAST turned to her and looked confused.
“What?”, he said back to her, and then to his Mother.

He looked in his Mother’s eyes and he began to cry when in actuality he felt he should be angry and making the man with the weapon pay.
She looked back at him with love and understanding and unwaveringly said:

“Please. RUN!”

She then fell on one knee towards Kate. THRILLDABEAST grabbed a door off of the SUV and threw it at the Sherriff. He shot the Sherriff a vengeful look and took off.
“I’ll find you Mom! I promise!*”, he screamed.
“I know son; I love you! Go to the curtain!*”, she hollered back.

Kate listened to the language, and knew they were making plans to find each other. You could tell from the tone. THRILLDABEAST was gone in an instant. Kate turned to look at the Sherriff.

“Thank you….,”, she said quietly.
She noticed he was crying.

Everett Foster, the man, hated violence. He had reacted as Sherriff Foster, the law enforcement officer. He turned to look for his son and his friends. They were back behind the Police truck with a woman wearing a bikini top and cutoff shorts. There was also a man standing next to a Tesla Super Truck. The woman was filming the kids’ reactions to what had just happened.

“Oh, boy…”, Foster said. “TIMMY! GET OVER HERE NOW!”

Timmy looked over at his Dad and knew his emotions had gotten the best of him. He grabbed his bike and threw it in the Police truck’s bed. He jumped in the vehicle and hoped his Dad would just forget about him and not be too mad.

“Excuse me, Officer. If I might have a quick word?”, said a voice from behind him.

Foster looked down at Ha’na who was breathing heavily as the young girl held her head off the ground. He looked up at the voice with an expression that read confusion and a let out a sigh of exhaustion. The man who spoke put out his hand.

“Agent Arnold Schteckler, Newfoundland Security Director, Science and Nature Division. We need to hurry.”, he said matter-of-factly as he pointed towards the scene.

“Newfoundland?”, Foster said?

“We’ve come a long way, sir.”, the Agent confided.

“OK,”, the Sherriff shrugged. “What’s up?”

THRILLDABEAST BOOK 6

CHAPTER 1


The stream was bubbling into a small pool under a weeping tree. The sun was out and it was filtered through the branches and leaves putting on a natural light show for the parents and their beautiful child.
Ha’na and Mauo had been together for a year now. They spent each day together in their home, the woods. There was a large lake on one end and this brook. The brook gave more shelter now that they had brought a child into the woods as the lake was filled with humans.

M’halo, their son, was now eight months old. He swiped at the water over and over trying to grab the minnows and larger fish he saw under the water’s surface. He bore a striking resemblance to Mauo in his facial structure and had streaks of gold hair in his brown mane. Ha’na was so proud of him.

She had been a wild creature until she met Mauo under the moonlight one night. She had never seen such a handsome male. He was so different from the rest. She instantly became difficult to him. She had no idea why. He looked puzzled at first, and then knew he should tread lightly. They had been in the same woods for a week when she finally felt something other than a resentment for the way she was feeling. She saw him on that day and looked embarrassed for her previous actions. He was wise enough to let her actions pass, and they embraced. They’d been together ever since that moment.




Mauo brought them to a safer place among the mountain cliffs. It was behind a waterfall just off of the great swamp fields. Ha’na never knew it was there, and she’d been in the woods for her entire life.  Ha’na became pregnant almost immediately and Mauo would provide shelter, safety and food for the new family.

The birth of their child was a momentous moment. Mauo could not believe what he was seeing, and Ha’na seemed to know exactly how it all should go although she didn’t know how she knew. It was natural to her, and it was perfect.

Sitting in the shade of the tree and watching her son, she wondered how she got to this point. It seemed impossible just a few moon cycles back that she’d even know how to find a mate. She looked at Mauo and smiled. She got the look back from him that she’d expected and she blushed. He walked over and grabbed M’halo from the water. The boy giggled and splashed his wet hair into the air. Climbing up onto his father’s back, they walked towards Ha’na on the shore. Mauo reached down with one huge claw and pulled a big fish from the stream. He presented his trophy to Ha’na as M’halo shrieked with joy.

They headed home to what Mauo had named “Yinishbaal”. The curtain. The cascading water hid their cave home from the outside world. Ha’na wondered who had lived here before they did, but Mauo just told her he would make sure they would be safe. He would constantly fight off bears and on one occasion a large snake!

The Curtain was the safest place they would know in the whole woods.

CHAPTER 2

Years passed, and the family created a life you could only imagine happening in a storybook. The child grew like a young tree and his parents fell more in love every moon. The woods became a holy place. The threat of civilization was on the other side of every mountain, yet the three of them relied on the bond they shared to keep the peace within their hearts and minds.

M’halo became his father’s best friend. He learned valuable lessons every day. Most days, he was as accident prone as any normal child. Mauo watched him grow and tried to teach him patience and honor. He had no problems with the honor part of the lessons, but the patience… well, that was going to take some time. The boy was rambunctious to put it lightly. Mauo was glad to take the brunt of the days with the boy, leaving Ha’na to herself during those trying moments. The boy would come home scratched and bruised but as happy about he and his father’s adventures as he could be. Ha’na got worried from time to time, as any mother would, but she trusted Mauo. He was raising a man. Raising him strong.

Ha’na and Mauo were protectors of the woods. The residents of the mountain range were grateful for the pair’s constant watchfulness.
While M’halo slept, the two sat in the moonlight while the creatures of the area dropped by to visit, and sometimes bring gifts. The Hawks always surprised them with the most amazing things from over the mountains. M’halo would wake up to these treasures and his curiosity began to get the better of him.

He saw the hawks flying high one day, and he took off to catch up with them. Reaching the top of the mountain was easy, but the hawks seemed to keep going and were so far away he wondered if he should follow. He looked down the side of the mountain and saw the other life that was out there. It was both frightening and amazing. The hawks were almost invisible now in the sky. He looked back at his home in the valley and decided to go back. He felt afraid without his father by his side. M’halo didn’t like being afraid.

The week following, a fox flew down the side of the hill and into the valley. It was mid-afternoon and Ha’na was alone at the stream while her boys did what they do.

“Ha’na!’, yelled the fox, “they’re coming on the hill!”

Ha’na didn’t respond. She’d always known this was a possibility, and was ready for whatever came. She nodded to the fox, and ran down stream and into the curtain. Grabbing a spear and her club, she came out of the curtain with the look of concern.

“Where are the boys?”, she thought.

She sent out a mind shout to Mauo.

“Attack!”

She didn’t know whether it was an attack yet, but thought it was better to be careful than careless.

She prayed Mauo heard her, and that M’halo didn’t.

CHAPTER 4

Mauo moved faster than anything M’halo had ever seen. The boy could barely keep up with him, and would lose sight of his father around trees and rock formations.

“DAD!”, he’d shriek, “WAIT!!!”

Mauo could not wait, and was almost assuredly trying to lose his son. He had felt the push from his wife. She was the love of his life, and he was driven by the fear of loss for the first time after years of safety and joy.