The Changeling Princess (23 page)

CHAPTER 41

It was 1969 and I
’d lost touch with Sherri. She had married Bruce and they moved to Detroit. Bruce had taken a job as an engineer with the Ford Motor Company and Sherri was teaching third grade. I chuckled as I recalled what a cut-up Sherri was when she was in grade school. Knowing Sherri, she probably used her morphing skills to both amuse and discipline her students. Sherri was probably the best liked third grade school teacher in Detroit.

I checked my list to see who was next. It appeared I would be going to Greece to capture Gensa, a she-creature that lived in a cave. I didn
’t think it would be a problem until I read that Greece had over six thousand caves. After doing some research in the local library, I decided a good place to start was Crete, a large island containing half of the known caves. I was looking forward to seeing the islands around the Mediterranean Sea.

My problem was that I didn
’t know what I was looking for. A she-creature could be anything from a vicious Vampire to a creature with shape-shifting abilities. Judging from what I’d seen so far, the she-creature was probably going to be something that surprised even me.

I was awed by the beauty of Crete. Some of the villages were located on the slopes of mountains and others were located right on the ocean. I should have bought a good camera a long time ago. What a fantastic collection of pictures I
’d have to look back on.

I started
by mingling with the townspeople in the villages. I wanted to see if there were any legends associated with missing or dead villagers. I used the same type of story I’d used in New Orleans. I passed myself off as an aspiring mystery novel writer and I was looking for stories or legends that were unusual.

I went from village to village, talking to the locals and exploring the caves. One cave that caught my attention was called
“Tera” which meant “monster” in Greek. My interest was piqued when I was told the cave was cursed. As the story goes, several young men defied the curse by spending a night in the cave. Their names are now part of the legend because none of them ever returned.

I decided that I was going to be the next fool to enter the cave. If this was the right location, hopefully I could put an end to the reign of the she-creature.

I morphed into a young Greek man and boasted that I was going to enter the cursed cave as proof of my courage. A lot of the villagers looked at me as if I was crazy. I couldn’t blame them.

When it was time to enter the cave, a small group of villagers showed up on the beach to give me their blessing. Some of the village maidens were looking for a hero, so they blew me kisses as I walked to the mouth of the cave. I waved goodbye and disappeared. I morphed into the Changeling Princess as soon as I was out of sight. The only weapon I was carrying was my sword.

It got dark really fast as I descended farther into the cave. Luckily, I could use my energy beam as a flashlight to light the way. I was about a hundred yards into the cave when a snake raised its huge body in front of me. I was surprised because I’d read that Crete wasn’t supposed to have any large venomous snakes. The only explanation was that the snake had wandered into the cave from the ocean. I was still puzzled because this snake was at least ten foot long and sea snakes were rarely longer than four feet.

My first instinct was to cut off the snake
’s head, but my senses told me this was not a dangerous snake. It was then I noticed several eggs partially buried in the sand. I deduced that the snake had made its way to dry land to lay its eggs, so I was the intruder, not the snake.

When snake lunged forward, I struck it in the head with the flat side of my blade. The blow was not life- threatening. I succeeded in knocking the snake out and watched it drop to the ground.

The next thing I heard was a loud rattling sound. It sounded like a rattlesnake, but this creature was much too big to be a rattle snake. I turned up the power of my searchlight and scanned the area. What I saw made my skin crawl.

Coming toward me at a slow pace was a humanoid creature with the body of a worm. The body was about twelve feet long with the front portion of the body in an upright position. The upright portion had a head and two arms. It had human-shaped hands, but they were hideous looking because they had two-inch long fingernails. The tail portion of the worm had eight large rattles, continually swinging back and forth in a threatening manner.

The ugliest portion of the worm was the head. It had a withered human face with green eyes and a mouth filled with razor sharp teeth. The most unusual part of the head was the tiny live snakes that had replaced the hair. This was the ugliest creature I’d ever laid eyes on.

There was little doubt that this was Gensa, the she-creature, but she reminded me of a
creature from Greek mythology.
Are you related to the Medusa?
I asked.

Medusa was my half-sister. I am Gensa . . . And who might you be? You
’re dressed in a toga and sandals. The women on this island haven’t dressed like that for thousands of years.

The snake suddenly woke up, rising upward and facing Gensa. Gensa reached out and sliced the snake
’s throat with one quick slash of her fingernails. The poor snake was dead before it hit the ground.
That was uncalled for
, I scolded.

That stupid snake had no business laying its eggs in my domain. It will make a tasty snack, but not as tasty as you are going to be.

I thought your kind turned living creatures into stone?

That was Medusa
’s thing, not mine. I immobilize humans with my mind and eat them alive. There is nothing more pleasant then chewing on live flesh and listening to the victim scream.

It was obvious that most Demons liked to hear their victims scream. What a sickening trait.

Gensa’s hypnotic eyes began glowing brighter. The snakes on her head were slithering about in a frenzy at the thought of being fed. I held my ground and smiled.

Your little mind trick doesn
’t work on me, Gensa. I don’t think you’re going to like what I have in store for you.

As always, I had to hold back my temper. I had images of morphing into a giant and squashing Gensa like the worm she was.

Gensa slashed out with her long fingernails. When they made contact with my toga, it was like scratching fingernails on a chalkboard. Gensa made a loud screeching sound because she’d broken several of her fingernails. She was still screeching as I stepped back and began building a force field around her. When I was finished, I smacked Gensa between the eyes with Wade’s ring. I left Gensa in the cave for safe keeping and headed for the exit.

I exited the cave, dragging the sea snake over my shoulder. Several of the villagers had stayed close to the cave, waiting for me to return.

“This is the monster that dwells in the cave,” I shouted. “As you can see, it is nothing but an overgrown sea snake. The curse had been lifted and now we can all live in peace. Spread the word that you’ll no longer have to live in fear.”

I was a hero and everyone was cheering. I had a young maiden on each arm and I was really popular. I felt like a phony, but I continued acting the part.

When I was finally alone, I made myself invisible and made my way back to the cave. I decided to stash Gensa away and take a short tour of the surrounding islands. It was such a beautiful part of the world and there was so much to see.

After a week of sightseeing, I flew Gensa to the Mariana Trench and deposited her with the rest of the captured creatures. As always, I had a sense of satisfaction as I headed for home. I had another remarkable report to file with my Grandma Pauline.

CHAPTER 42

Pauline
’s eyes always lit up when I showed up on her doorstep. We’d sit down and chat for a while and then go over the details of my written report. This session was different because Pauline looked worried. “Janis, I have a concern that needs to be discussed.”

I nodded my head and leaned back on the sofa to hear what Grandma had to say.

“I’m getting along in years and I’ve been giving some thought as to what to do with my years of research when I’m no longer here. I don’t know anyone other than you who can carry on in my place.”

I sighed because I knew this day was coming.
“You’re right, Grandma. Your life’s work can’t be discarded because it’s too important. I promise you here and now that your research will be kept intact.”

“
I’m glad to hear that. Now give me the details of your last adventure. They are more exciting than any of the shows on television.”

I spent the rest of the afternoon with Pauline. I wanted it to be quality time because I knew she wouldn
’t always be around for me. I was going to go out of my way to enjoy the pleasure of her company whenever I could.

*
* *

The next creature I had to capture was Hensha, a cat demon that lives in Paris, France. I wasn
’t sure if I’d be chasing after a house cat or a leopard. I’d find out soon enough.

When I arrived in Paris, I passed myself off as a writer who spoke perfect French. I was still amazed that no one ever questions the motives of a writer who goes snooping around a newspaper office. I guess they figure that writers are always digging for information.

I loved Paris, but I wasn’t crazy about eating in the fancy restaurants. I had a big appetite and gourmet French food is served in petite portions. When I shopped at the local deli, I stocked up on ham, sausage, French bread, and a good bottle of wine. I also found out that I have a weakness for French pastries. My favorite snacks were cream-filled donuts and chocolate éclairs.

The newspaper stories that interested me were reports about single women who were torn to pieces by some a wild animal. The killings always took place in the victim
’s home and the victim’s heart was always missing. I was particularly interested in the fact that the killings took place approximately two months apart. The local police were stymied. There were no wild animals in the area, not even a zoo.

I visited one of the death scenes to see if I could come up with anything new. I picked up an unusual scent that definitely belonged to a Demon. My suspicious nature went into overdrive when I picked up the same scent at other death scene. The deaths were definitely connected.

I had a hard time following the scent because it ran in several directions at once. This didn’t make sense. When I finally caught up with the scent, I was looking at a stray house cat I had cornered in an alley
. Could this be my Demon?
I asked myself.

I used my power of telekinesis to hold the cat in place. I gave it a thorough examination, but it was nothing but a simple alley cat with no unusual powers. Nothing made sense. This cat carried the same scent I had picked up at the death scenes.

I’d followed so many false leads that I was now the one who was chasing my tail. What I needed was a fresh approach. I asked myself a simple question.
How could so many different cats have the same scent?
I jumped up from my chair because the answer was so simple. If the cat is a Demon, all she has to do is rub her body against other cats to spread her scent. Now I needed a way to use this knowledge to my advantage.

I reexamined my observations. First, the dead women were murdered by some kind of a cat. Second, the dead women were not known to have had a pet cat. This told me that the women must have picked up a stray cat and brought it home the night they were murdered. Now it all made sense. The Demon cat pretends to be a cute little stray kitty, waiting for some nice little old lady to take it home with them. What a disgusting animal.

I went through the newspaper files and marked off the areas where the recent murders had taken place. Thankfully, the last four murders were limited to a four square mile area. I rented a small studio apartment right in the middle of the area.

I morphed into an invisible Changeling Princess and began covering the area. I was flying at a height of one hundred feet so I could keep the streets in plain view. I had my senses tuned to the max as I searched the area for any stray cats with the right scent.

I encountered a lot of stray cats with the right scent, but they weren’t the one I was looking for. I was about to retire for the evening when I picked up a scent that was overwhelming. I flew closer to the ground and saw a cute little kitty sitting in the middle of the sidewalk. It was so cute and cuddly that you wanted to pick it up and cuddle it. I loved cats, but this cute little kitten reeked with the smell of death. I had no doubt whatsoever that I was looking at Hensha, the cat Demon.

I flew around the corner and morphed into an elderly woman carrying a shopping bag. When I walked up to the little kitty, she looked up at me with her sad little face as if to say,
“I don’t have a home.”

“
My, but aren’t you a sweet little kitty,” I said.

The little kitty walked up to me and rubbed my leg.
“Meow.”

I picked up the kitty and gave her a real big hug. She meowed again as I nestled her in my arms and walked toward my apartment.

The kitty was still making the cute little meows when we entered my apartment. I placed her on the floor and watched as she sat perfectly still, staring up at me. “I bet you’re hungry?” I said.

I reached into the cupboard and pulled out a can of cat food. I opened it and put the contents into a small bowl. I placed the bowl on the floor and backed away. The little kitty walked over to bowl and began eating as if it hadn
’t had anything to eat for a month.

I was standing on the far side of the kitchen when the transformation began. The kitty grew larger and larger and her fur turned pitch black. In a period of five seconds, the cute little kitty had transformed into a full grown black panther. Her eyes were glowing and her evil snarl matched the long fangs that were dripping with saliva. I spoke through my thoughts.
Good heavens, they must have put an extra dose of vitamins in that can of cat food.

I morphed into the Changeling Princess and watched as Hens
ha backed up against the wall.
You’re not a human
, I heard her say.

I
’m very much human, Hensha. And I’m the human who’s going to see to it that you never hurt anyone again.

I heard
Hensha scream.
You’re an Ivarr.

Out of instinct, Hensha lunged at me with claws bared. I grabbed her by the throat and held her at arm
’s length. Her hind claws were scratching at my toga like a dog digging a hole. My first instinct was to crush Hensha’s throat with my bare hands. As I always did, I resisted the temptation and slung her across the room, slamming her against the living room wall. When she showed her fangs again, I slapped her head and knocked her unconscious. I had to admit that Hensha was a beautiful animal. It was a shame her heart was filled with so much evil.

I wrapped my force field around Hensha and placed my special
“W” between her eyes. I was about to embark to the Mariana Trench when I remembered something really important. I opened the refrigerator and pulled out my last chocolate éclair. I had no intentions of letting the delicious éclair go to waste.

* * *

I returned home to find that my grandmother, Pauline French had passed away. It broke my heart that I wasn’t at her funeral. She was very precious to me and I was going to miss her. It was only a matter of time until everyone I loved would be passing on. Grandma and Grandpa Greer were in their seventies and my parents weren’t getting any younger. I had to keep forging ahead because that’s what was expected of me. I had no other choice.