The Other

Eyes?

The eyes opened, blinking rapidly, then slower as they grew accustomed to the light level. It was dim. The eyes couldn’t see much, just a ceiling made of metal with a low-powered light in the centre of it.

There were hands, and they could move.

A body. A breast, two breasts and a stomach and lower… the body was female.

There was a mouth too and it smiled.

Female was always good, better than a male.

The prey was always less suspicious of the female. The males wanted to protect, or if not protect, then damage. Always feeling they had the advantage whichever they were going to do. The females… well, they felt less threatened by another female, less wary of what the other could do.

The other?

The mouth smiled again. That was a good name, it… she liked that. She liked being the other.

The body sat up and she looked down at herself.

She liked this body. It was young and strong – even for a body of the prey – which were usually weak and easily broken – that was why they were the prey, after all.

Once she’d lived in this body for a while it would no longer be the body of the prey, it would become – in time – the other.

She hoped it would not be too long, not this time. She was already feeling hungry.

 

[Books by David Hadley are available here (UK) or here (US)]