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Chapter Five:

Ice Ghosts

The weather had been cooperating with the duo as they made their way across the mountain range. The Cougar Jim drove had proven itself a number of times in the five hours since the trip started. A heard of large creatures nearly flipped the truck as they stampeded past. The lightly armored skin of the truck withstood the force with only minor damage. A second time, a ravine the two missed nearly swallowed the truck. A short alarm from the computer and a swerve later saw them safely from the edge. The sun was setting slowly as they neared the end of the first leg of the journey. Vera watched the snow drifts pass by the window with seemingly endless excitement. The smile on her face that first appeared when they started the trip had never completely vanished. Her joy was contagious. Jim had also managed to keep a smile for most of the trip through the gently falling snow. He brought the truck to a stop as the last of the light faded out. The lights on the Cougar lit up a large area around itself to ward off anything that might get close. The Lightning built power plant the truck had didn't require traditional fuel of any kind, meaning they could afford to run the engine through the night without penalty. The engine also wouldn't stall or fail to start if the weather got too cold. It used no liquid fuel or lubricants of any kind and the coolant used a self sealing, self regenerating system. After those events, Jim was sure nothing short of a quarter mile free fall or rock slide would stop the truck.

The path had led into a valley between some of the smaller mountains that made up the range. Thanks to the darkness and the steadily increasing rate of snowfall, they could only clearly see fifty or so feet away from the truck. Jim stood from his seat and started for the back of the truck. Vera followed as soon as the space was clear. He dug around in the bins until he found a flashlight, then looked over his shoulder at the girl that followed him.

"I'll be right back, Vera."

She stared at the flashlight in his hands, letting her ears fall to the side with worry.

"You aren't going out there, are you? It's dangerous in the plains."

He nodded and turned the light on to check the battery.

"Yeah. I won't be gone long."

Knowing she couldn't get him to change his mind, she hung her head and frowned.

"Be careful, Master."

He turned back toward the doors on the back of the truck and left quickly to keep the heat in the cab. A feeling of dread fell over the vixen as she watched the figure of her master fade slowly into the snow that surrounded them. Vera tried to dismiss it, but the feeling was too strong. There was something else out there nearby. She didn't know how she could trust the feeling, how she just knew there was something lurking in the snow nearby. Maybe she could call it hunter's instinct. Her hand hovered over her pocket where the gun would be if it wasn't on the dash. She stared at the empty pocket before moving quickly to recover the weapon. In her haste, she hit her head on the low entrance to the cab. She dismissed the ache for now. She had far more pressing matters that needed her attention. She picked up the gun and stared out the windshield. Nothing there but fresh foot prints. Panic then set in. She rushed again to the back doors and peered outside. The shape of a large predatory creature could be seen slipping into the snowy haze heading in the direction of the fennec's footsteps. She forced herself to take a few breaths to keep her aim true. A shaking hand could mean she hits Jim in the snow cat's place. She clicked the safety off of the gun and quietly left the truck to chase after the silent predator.

The brown furred fennec was completely unaware of his stalker's presence. He had gone out to relieve himself since the truck lacked a proper bathroom. He stood with the flashlight half in his pocket, the beam pointing into the sky illuminating the snowflakes as they fell to the ground. Both of his hands worked to keep the wind off of his exposed skin. He finished and sealed his suit back up for the short trip back to the truck. His ears picked up footsteps in the snow somewhere nearby as his hand went for the light. He pointed it toward the truck, then in each direction looking for the source of the sound. After a minute of searching with no luck, he took a breath and paused.

"Vera? Is that you?"

He heard the noise again from a different direction. His nerves were wearing thin by now thanks to the warning of danger the vixen gave him before he left. He wasn't armed and there was no way she would hear his shouts through the metal of the Cougar if things got bad.

"Vera, this isn't funny. Where are you?" He hoped it was her to try and keep from panicking. He missed the wide visibility the desert had. Even at night, he could see for a hundred yards with a good light. At the present, not even the powerful lights on the Cougar cut through the haze. He turned again to face the source of the latest sound only to lock up in fear. A large, feral mountain lion of some kind was crawling through the snow. As soon as he met its eyes, the cat pounced with a snarl. He found his legs in time to roll aside and stand back up. The cat took only a moment to stabilize before leaping at him again. His luck held a second time, letting him bash it on the side of the head with the light as he sidestepped the attack. He took a quick breath and shouted as loud as he could, hoping the girl would hear him by some miracle.

"Vera! Help!"

The cat jumped again catching him off guard. He fell to the ground as the razor sharp claws tore into the thick padding of his coat. He held the flashlight up as the creature's jaws snapped in his face. The cat hesitated when it felt the metal in its mouth, but didn't wast much time before dropping the light on his chest and going for his neck a second time. Jim raised his arms in an attempt to block the attack, but the cat never got the chance. A very loud crack from the handgun bruised his ears, but didn't echo thanks to the large amount of snow. The creature leaped from his chest and turned toward the vixen with a roar. Three more cracks rang out before the cat fell lifelessly into the snow. Jim looked up from the felled beast and picked up the flashlight. No more than fifteen feet away was Vera, still holding the smoking fifty caliber gun with both hands. Her ears were flat against the back of her head. A snarl had formed on her face and she refused to look from the cat. Jim made his way toward her slowly, the beam of the flashlight at his feet.

"Vera?"

She flinched and pulled her finger from the trigger of the gun. Her ears stood alert again before her head moved to face the fennec making his way toward her. She stared at him for a moment before throwing her arms around him and squeezing.

"It didn't hurt you did it, master?"

He hugged her tightly as the gravity of what just happened caught up to him. He felt his body shake uncontrollably as he took a breath.

"I don't think so... just shaken up and out of breath." He took another few breaths to try and calm his nerves. "I'd be dead if it wasn't for you."

The girl continued to keep a tight hold on Jim. She let him go and put his arm over her shoulders to help him walk back to the truck.

"We're not safe here. They hunt in pairs."

The fennec's eyes widened in fear a second time.

"There's another one here?"

She nodded and continued to press on toward the safety of the truck. They were just inside the circle of light when Vera's ears twitched. In one movement, she shoved Jim to the ground and turned to block the pounce attack of the second cat. The momentum from the attack carried them a fair distance from the fennec as they tumbled along the ground. He turned to see an even larger cat trying to get a clear path to the vixen's neck. The claws of the cat tore into her coat as she fought to aim the handgun at the snarling teeth incing closer to her face. The cat pulled back suddenly and lurched forward trying to crush her defenses with brute strength. The handgun fell from her grasp as she reenforced her hold. The pistol had been the only thing between her and certain death. Vera looked over at him with pleading, terrified eyes before focusing back on the cat. He set his fear aside and took a breath.

Armed with only a flashlight, he charged the cat and struck it on the side of the head. It wasn't until he hit the beast a second time that it focused on him instead of the girl. The cat lunged at Jim, clamping its jaws around his arm as they fell into the snow. He yelled in pain as he fought back with his right arm praying he had given Vera enough time to recover the gun. He struggled against the onslaught of tooth and claw for what felt like an eternity before the glint of the heavy gun caught his eye. The flash from the barrel was cut out completely due to the close range of the shot. Blood, bits of bone, and what had been the cat's brain erupted from the side of its head in a fountain as the jaw loosened enough to let him pull his arm free. It fell to his side heavily staining the white snow with its blood. Jim scrambled away from the animal as quickly as he could. Vera stood with one hand on the gun, the other dangling at her side. She had gotten scratched in the scuffle, but it wasn't even on her mind. With the gun still pointed at the cat, she looked at Jim with a small smile. It faded when she saw the blood dripping from his sleeve.

The safety on the gun clicked as it returned to her pocket. The hand that had been holding a wound went to Jim. Without a word, she pulled the man the rest of the way to the truck and opened the back doors. Vera placed him in the back of the truck without a bit of effort and closed the doors behind her before removing the clothes covering his upper body. She worked feverishly to treat the wound on his arm, completely ignoring her own wounds as she bled on the floor. Once his wound was disinfected, examined, and wrapped, she sat down and started tending to her own wounds. The gash on her shoulder wasn't as bad as Jim's bite, but there was a rather large amount of blood. She worked as quickly as she could manage to clean it and stop the bleeding. In another few moments, she finished her task and slumped against the storage bins exhausted.

Neither one said a word for a while. Both spent time trying to catch their breath and calm down from the near death experience. Vera looked at Jim before lowering her head to rest in his lap. She had rolled onto her back so she could look up at him without moving much. He rested his wounded arm on her stomach and started to rub her ears with his other hand.

"You saved me again, Vera."

She shook her head and looked up at him with a weary smile.

"No, Master. That time, you saved me. I am grateful."

He smiled. Now that they were safe, he could do so without worry. No creature in the snowy wasteland could possibly pose a threat to the armored skin of the truck.

"I couldn't just let you die out there. You mean too much to me."

Her eyes shimmered for just a moment before she looked away. She had to remember her place though he made it tough to accept at times. The fennec made her feel like she was something more than a piece of property to be used and sold at her owner's whims.

"I'm just a slave... a servant. I shouldn't matter to yo..." She was cut off by a hand clamping her muzzle shut gently. Her eyes bore a fearful look as he turned her head so he could make eye contact. He let her go before bringing his muzzle to hers in a gentle kiss. Her eyes closed and her heart fluttered again like it had the night before. She forgot the pain in her shoulder, forgot what she was, even forgot where they were for just a short while. There was only her, Vera the young woman, and Jim, the man she met only days ago. Nothing else mattered to her. He pulled back after a moment and looked her in the eyes with a smile.

"You mean more to me than you will ever know. You may see yourself as a slave, but I know you're much more than that. You may see me as just your master, but I hope you'll one day see me as something more."

Vera closed her eyes as a tear stained the fur near her eyes. These feelings she had... could they be love? She didn't know. Could she even feel love? More tears stained her fur as she silently wept in his lap.

"Why am I so confused, Master? Why is it whenever I think of how close we came to death I don't care about what happened to me, but wish you had never gotten hurt? Why do I feel at peace by your side and scared when you aren't around?"

He looked at her tear dimmed eyes and smiled before rubbing her ears.

"You love me. That can be the only answer." His voice soothed her and chased away any doubts she had left. He stood, carefully setting her head against the floor of the truck. In just a few short moments, he put together a comfortable sleeping area on the floor near the front. Vera was quick to disrobe and cover up in the thick blankets. She winced a bit from the cut on her shoulder as she got comfortable. Once Jim followed suit, she rested her head on his chest and smiled. They both drifted off to sleep soon after that.