by Ivy McAdams
A few people make their way into the airlock, but it’s not worth the effort. As soon as the aliens descend upon us, one of them smashes into the cruiser, knocking it over, and begins to rip the metal apart. The sound of the steel and plastic tearing into pieces sets my teeth on edge.
The other two jump into the middle of our group. We shriek and run. Someone bumps me hard in the shoulder, but I keep pushing through. I have no idea where to go now that the cruiser is being demolished, but I have to move.
A woman screams in a manner that sends the last of my bravery slithering down and out my body.
I don’t look back to see what happened to her. I just run.
Someone goes flying past me, hurdling through the air like he's been thrown or kicked, and lands in a heap in the grass. I dodge him, my stomach turning as I fight back a scream. I don't want to draw attention to myself. I just want to reach that stack of rocks just beyond what's left of the cruiser. Maybe I can hide there.
One of the aliens bellows again, and I have to duck down and cover my ears so they don’t explode.
Then there are gunshots.
I turn back to see two of the giant aliens turning away from the gunfire. Our party’s hired gun is letting loose, even though both the aliens are holding nearly our entire group.
The nasty assholes have four arms, each clutching a human. Their spiny hands are even big enough to hold two people. Even though the humans struggle, they don’t seem to be a match at all for the creatures.
And the bullets don’t seem to faze them. They only roar angrily.
Then one turns to look at me, switching humans in its grasp until it has a free hand.
Its bellowing snarl covers my scream as I turn and run, but I can feel the ground tremble as it follows.
It only takes a few seconds for it to overcome me and snatch me up.
I scream again and jerk against its hard, cold fingers, but it’s no use. It’s clamped down tight on me and we’re heading back for the forest.
I’m being abducted by a fucking alien.
Chapter 2
Kovak
The screeching roar of a stagni shakes my small campfire. A part of it collapses, sending up a small cloud of glowing embers and ash. I turn my head in the direction of the low valley and growl. The nasty leeches are much too close to our lands again.
They know they’re not supposed to be here.
"They're back again already?" Drek steps near the fire. His body is rigid and I can feel his energy. He's no happier than I am that the stagni are here.
“I suppose a few days was long enough in their tiny brains,” I answer over the growl in my throat.
My second-in-command rubs a hand over his face, fingers tracing the scar that crosses over the bridge of his nose and mars his cheek. Then he shakes his head and pulls the dried meats from the edge of our fire. “They will never learn.”
“You think you can make deals with beasts like that?” Xetmir scoffs.
His silver legs tuck beneath him as he perches on a stone next to our fire pit. His normal scowl has grown even deeper.
The challenging tone in his voice rubs like friction in my chest. I can’t help the irritated snort that slips free.
“You know I don’t, but they will learn one way or another not to come into our lands.” I stand and kick dirt into the fire.
It fizzles as Xetmir jumps to his feet.
“They just keep coming, Kovak. You won’t stop them.”
I stand nearly a head taller than him but he doesn’t seem fazed as he glares up at me. I may be one of the tallest males in our tribe―perhaps that is one reason I was appointed leader of our warriors―but Xetmir is the most stubborn. He’d go toe-to-toe with me even if he was half my size.
I fight the urge to shove the heel of my hand into his shoulder and knock his insubordinate ass to the ground.
“There aren’t that many stagni left anymore,” I say evenly. I haven’t gotten where I am in rank by letting my temper get the best of me. “We can keep pushing them away until they go.”
This time it is Drek that makes an unconvinced sound. “It seems like they intend to stick around until we go to war again.”
This has been my feeling too if I’m honest with myself. We may have wiped out half their numbers in our last battle months ago, but they’re still ridiculously headstrong and determined to take over our planet. They relentlessly hunt on our land and encroach on our village.
The last time they got the better of us they wiped out nearly our entire female population. There’s no way we can let them come near us again.
“That may be so as well,” I relent. “If they push it to that, we will be ready for them.”
Another couple bellows reach us from the Big Valley beyond. There’s more than one stagni down there and they seem quite agitated.
Then there’s an odd popping noise. I’ve heard it a time or two before. Those small humanoid aliens that have recently come to our home carry weapons that sound like that.
The aliens haven’t been a bother yet so I’ve had my people steer clear of them. If the aliens have run into the path of the stagni though, they’ll probably meet a horrible end.
“I hear the alien’s weapons,” Drek murmurs, his eyes locked on the horizon. “You think they’ve fallen in the stagni’s path?”
“Fools,” Xetmir mumbles with a shake of his head.
What I’ve seen of the aliens so far tells me they have no skills. They camp in the open, walk around without first checking if danger is nearby, ride in a noisy wagon that could call a predator out of the deepest slumber in a thunderstorm, and seem utterly disconnected from everything they do.
They’re also quite small. The stagni must be five times their size.
“It certainly sounds like they’re locked in battle,” I say as the popping and roaring continues.
There’s a shrill scream on the wind as well that rattles my chest. Something about it soaks into my muscles and infects my brain. Tingles down my arms and legs until I clench my fists.
Someone needs my help.
As much as I’ve done my best to avoid the aliens until now, I can’t help but be drawn to that cry. My body is as stiff as a rock, my tail flicking in concentration behind me, as I lift my chin and test the scents in the air.
A herd of Stretch Necks, inorganic alien material, daffaberries, the stagni, and the exotic blend of smells I've come to learn is of aliens themselves.
“We need to go tend to this,” I say, already moving as if in a trance.
“How many do you think there are?” Drek asks as he falls in beside me, keeping up with my quick feet.
“If there’s more than one don’t you think we should go back for more warrior?” Xetmir asks, stomping on shorter legs to keep up with us.
“There’s no time,” I answer.
It’s hard to tear my eyes away from the horizon where the hills dip down into the low valley. I can’t see down into the plains yet, but my vision strains as if I might miraculously catch sight of things anyway.
At the edge of the grove of purple leaves and vines, our levadon mounts stand at the ready on their thick back legs. All three of their large heads and toothy jaws are pointed at the horizon as well, large nostrils flared and pulling in droves of information. Their noses are better than mine and I’m sure they know more than I do at this point, but nothing will deter me.
I slide a hand down the tail of the biggest beast and his rough dark skin shimmers with gold flecks as he acknowledges my presence. Then I take hold of the edges of the leather pad nestled along his spine and pull myself up onto his back.
“If there are too many, we could be torn the shreds!” Xetmir complains as he mounts his green beast.
I’m ready to move. Not talk.
I give him a simple nod. “We’ll reevaluate when we have a better view.”
Drek joins me without question. Xetmir is not happy, but he moves along with us as well. He knows better than to go against h
is captain’s orders.
The levadon sprint along the edge of the trees and over the hilltop. Our fourth warrior is nearby on patrol, but I haven't seen him in hours.
With a low whoop, I call out for him. We’ll need all the help we can get if the stagni have brought numbers and intend to cause trouble.
The popping sound falls away and I strain to listen for more. Then a stagni roars, and an empty feeling opens up in my chest. If the stagni are still there and the aliens aren’t fighting back, that can’t be good.
I urge my mount on faster, and my warriors and I reach the top of the hill.
Down below, I see what I feared. Stagni have attacked the aliens and dominated them. There are three of the wretched beasts. An unsafe number.
But I can still hear that one horrible scream that grabs me, even among all the others. It does a number on my pulse. Stopping it and sending it flying all at the same time.
“Forward.” My voice is firm, as hard as my resolve to stop this.
“Kovak,” Drek says with a hand on my arm. “We are outnumbered.”
Technically we are not, but as far as the damage a stagni can do on its own, it is foolish to think we are evenly matched.
My jaw clenches so hard that my teeth hurt. Then a movement along the low end of the ridge catches my eye. Xjhun, my third man, lifts a hand in the air from the back of his brown mount. I wave in return, beckoning him over.
“Our numbers have improved,” I say, as if one more is all we need to see off the dirty invaders. The notion stinks worse than levadon dung, but no one questions my statement.
Xjhun rides toward us, and before my brothers can talk any sense into me, I push forward. Even my mount seems a little wary about running straight into stagni but he is loyal and obeys.
One of the stagni sees us coming before we’re on them and turns to roar in our direction. I remove the black-tipped spear from the sling alongside me and thrust it into the air. My warriors do the same.
The closest stagni screams, both in horror and rage. They’ve seen our weapons up close before. It drops the aliens clutched in its talons and flees.
The other two aren’t so quick to leave.
With ears pressed flat to my head and a curl in my lip, I snarl at them. “Leave our valleys, unless you seek more death!”
One of the stagni inches away, unsure. The other throws its many arms up and advances on us.
Xetmir grunts and his energy shifts. I can feel his dirty response to my actions even though he does not voice it. Drek and Xjhun stick close to my sides, spears lifted and growls in their throats.
The stagni lunges, nearly twice our height and too stupid to be afraid of us. It hisses through its small mouth with pointed gnashing teeth.
Five pale aliens are clutched in its hands. One of them screams when it sees us. The sound sends a ripple of energy through me, and the rest of the world drops away as I stare at the small being that produced it.
It's one of the aliens, a soft little creature with a long brown mane and big blue eyes opened wide in terror. A female of their people. Even from yards away I can feel her energy waves pulsing and they pull at me in a way I can't explain.
But I know I must save her.
During my distraction, the stagni has advanced again, and Drek pushes me hard in the shoulder when the beast lunges and chomps at me. I duck and narrowly miss being bitten.
As it pulls back again, the creature waves an arm in Xjhun’s direction. Had its hand not been already full of one of the aliens, it might have swiped him right off his mount. Instead, the squirmy humanoid only collides with Xjhun's shoulder with a horrid crunch.
“End it,” I growl to my warriors, and our attack formation tightens.
Xetmir pulls his mount in a tight circle around the monster and leaps into the air, slicing his spear across one of the stagni's arms. It screams, and I thrust my spear forward, jabbing the black tip deep into its eye.
The stagni thrashes with an ear-piercing shriek, dropping aliens in all directions. Its companion behind it has already dropped its captives and run.
As the beasts turn tail and flee, my men and I drift back together and come to a standstill.
Now it is just us and a whole herd of released captives. Most of them are lying on the ground, recovering from the ordeal. Some are dead. A few others are standing in horror, staring at us and screaming.
“What good was that?” Xetmir grunts. “Now we have the toddler aliens to tend to. Do you intend on running them off our lands too?”
I’m too busy searching for the glowing aura that reached out for me to process his question.
Drek shrugs. “At least the stagni are gone.”
Another alien sits up and starts shouting.
“The stagni were my main concern,” I say, eyes still moving until I spot her.
The female alien is lying in the grass, unmoving, but her ribs still rise with her breath. An odd sense of relief fills me, so much so that a small smile crosses my lips.
“Are you sure?” Xetmir asks. “You seem quite fascinated with these humanoids. Have you decided you need a pet?”
The idea is absurd to me, and I choke out a laugh. “Of course not. These beings need our help.”
“Help? These pitiful things? They need help into a shallow grave.”
“Xetmir,” I growl, and his tail flicks behind his calves as he looks away, his broken connection a sign of submission. The moment of domination feels good in my chest. “They may be weaklings, but they are beings just the same.” I lift my chin toward two of the females that are clinging to one another, whimpering and staring at us as if they expect us to strike them down.
“How do you suggest helping them, Kovak?” Drek says under a low breath. “They are weaklings, as you say. A number of them are dead. We already ran off the stagni. What more can we do?”
My gaze moves past the aliens to the broken shell they'd been traveling in. The wagon is demolished. They're stuck in the valley with no way to return. We could offer them transport. Or we could just leave them to the elements.
Except the female with the powerful energy has lifted her head. She's staring at me. Small eyes the color of the songbirds that nest outside the village in the thawing months. I've never seen anything like them and I find myself transfixed.
She’s no longer screaming, but her energy waves are closer than ever and they beckon to my soul. My body reacts in ways unfamiliar to me, the quills in my mane tingling and standing on end. The skin along my arms and legs tightens and shivers, becoming susceptible to the very air, as if it cannot wait to touch her.
I want to go to her and scoop her up, but I can’t think through the others screaming.
As I consider my options, another alien lifts from the grass and points a stick in my direction. I feel the vicious vibrations radiating from him before I hear the sound, but I don't react fast enough.
Something strikes me in the shoulder, knocking me off balance and nearly off the back of my mount. The second shot goes over my head. By the time I’ve recovered and righted myself, Drek has reacted and hurled his spear into the malicious alien. The small being hits the ground with the quivering pole protruding from his chest.
The other aliens scream and cry. My energy match’s eyes grow wide and she drops to the ground.
I am irritated by the lack of kindness we’ve received after rescuing these people, especially when the wound in my shoulder begins to burn.
“Are you injured?” Drek and Xjhun ask, reaching hands out for me, but I wave them away.
“It is superficial.”
“I knew we shouldn’t have bothered with these pests,” Xetmir scoffs.
"Are there any more weapons?"
Xjhun is on the move, circling the aliens and checking them over.
His mount sniffs and snorts at the small beings as it walks around them. A few more of the females begin to cry.
I curse myself silently for allowing my attention to slip. I should have secured
the area before anything else.
As it turns out, despite their weak bodies and spirits, a few of the aliens are brave. Enough to attack me while I stand with my warriors, all of us armed and ready to defend ourselves. It may have been a stupid act, but it was courageous nonetheless.
The notion that the aliens are not a lost cause swirls in my brain as I stare at them. I recognize the soft features of the females now and begin to count. Of the ten still living, seven are female. I can’t help but let the possibility buzz around in my brain.
It’s possible the Shaman could work miracles with these women.
The aliens are at least intelligent enough to have sophisticated weapons and, despite all the screaming, they are not completely without spirit. They could be a worthwhile investment for us.
I lift a hand as I call out to my warriors and motion for them to round up the aliens.
“Those there with the soft faces. Gather them up.”
Xetmir and Xjhun leap off their mounts and set to work, while Drek frowns back at me.
“We are taking them?”
“I think the Shaman might have a great use for these,” I answer, and he needs no more information than that.
The good warrior Drek is, he asks no more questions. Just hops down and approaches the two clinging females. They scramble to get away as he reaches for them.
I, on the other hand, have my eyes set on a particular female and walk to her without hesitation.
Chapter 3
Gemma
When I first open my eyes, I can’t figure out why everyone is screaming. A girl near me is crying and shouting. Who fell asleep with the scary movie channel playing again?
Then I realize I’m moving. The ground is far below me, rocking back and forth with the footsteps of the person carrying me.
Wait, not a person.
The attack on our cruiser earlier comes rushing back. The giant disgusting bug-looking aliens that snatched everyone from the ground like we were a bunch of Easter eggs. All the shooting and screaming.
Then the huge silver men on dinosaurs had shown up.
