Kissed on Alien Christmas

by Harpie Alexander

  Kissed on Alien Christmas

  By Harpie Alexander

  Copyright

  Copyright @ 2019 by Harpie Alexander

  Editor: J Mills

  Cover Designer: Madeline Martin

  This novel is a complete work of fiction. Everything included in this novel: characters, places, events, accidents, storylines, etc. are drawn from the imagination of the author, not based on real life. Nothing told in this story is based on any real events, any real person, any real business or story. Any resemblances of the characters, or events that occur in this book are completely coincidental.

  All rights reserved. Under no circumstances may this publication be distributed, transmitted, reproduced in any form, by any means (including but not limited to: recording, photos, photocopying, handwriting etc.) without the explicit authorization documented and signed by the author prior, with the exception of brief quotations for critical review and certain other non-commercial uses permitted by copyright law.

  About & Warning

  Rena:

  Earth is gone. Destroyed by the Ru’tah five years ago, there’s no going back. All I want to do is settle down and find a place to call home, but I can’t. Nothing can ever replace the home I lost, or the people I love. A moment never goes by that I don’t think about them, but that changes one day when a mysterious alien walks into a bar on Delarou Valdani. That was six months ago, and I’ve gone back many times since to find the male who I can’t stop thinking about. I’m captivated as he invades my thoughts and dreams. And just when I thought I’d never see him again, he shows up. Between the erupting volcano, the celebration of Valdani’s awakening and all the beautiful greenery I’m surrounded by, I’m reminded of home, of Christmas. Maybe I’m not completely lost, after all.

  Aarvik:

  After the destruction of my home, my people were scattered across the galaxy, but here I stand, on Delarou Valdani. It’s just like my dreams. I know I’m supposed to be here, that something is supposed to happen. I know this to be true because I’ve heard the words my ancestral guide spoke to me through my visions. It may be an impossible task to make things right, but then I’m given a sign and I trust that everything will be alright. I enter Shakaat’s for the final time with a renewed sense of hope. But when nothing happens, I fear I have failed my people yet again, but then she shows up. I’m not sure what a beautiful human has to do with the future of my people, but I’m willing to find out.

  Warning: This book is a slice of life story between a human woman and an alien. It is for readers 18+ years in age. There is an explicit love scene, lots of swearing, and while this book has a Christmas theme and title, some have expressed it to have some dark & gritty tones. If you are looking solely for a safe and clean purely Christmas romance, without the grunge and desperation of characters who’ve lost everything, then this book might not be for you. Consider this your warning before diving in.

  Contents

  Kissed on Alien Christmas

  Copyright

  About & Warning

  Prologue

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Chapter Eight

  Chapter Nine

  Chapter Ten

  Authors Note

  Acknowledgements

  What’s Next?

  Stay in Touch

  About the Author

  Prologue

  Five years ago the Ru’tah came in large quantities and plundered the rich Earth for its resources. Not only were humans completely unprepared, but they also thought they had been alone in the galaxy. The revelation was shocking, terrifying and horribly destructive.

  Billions of people died in the short time it took for the Ru’tah to land and lay waste to the beautiful green and blue planet. Only a short few were lucky enough to escape when ships from other species throughout the galaxy came to Earth’s aid to drive the Ru’tah away. But they were too late.

  With nearly all plant and wildlife killed off in fires, the oceans sucked dry, minerals and oils were drilled and mined from the planet. Earth was left a grey and brown mess. Unrevivable Earth’s rescuers had said. A dead planet.

  Since then, what was left of the human race roamed the galaxy. Not everyone wound up in the same place, or travelled as far as others. Some found themselves in grand situations, mated and cherished, while others were not so lucky.

  Chapter One

  Rena

  “Arg. Come on already, why won’t this day end?” I grit my teeth, eyeing the time on the station wall behind me.

  Jari-ri pops her head around the corner of the mine support beam, her face full of dirt and grime. “Getting all hot and bothered there, Rena?” Her eyes dazzle knowingly through her safety goggles.

  “Yeah.” I sigh, gazing downwards at a small green crystal protruding from the thick rock at my feet. Pulling the pickaxe from my sling, I start chipping away as dust and debris fly into my face. This will be a good one.

  Am I being impatient? Absolutely, but I can’t help it. It’s Tessara, and that means tomorrow I can waltz my way over to Shakaat’s; the dingy whole in the ground bar that screams, ‘I got transmittable disease’ on the far outer side of VadCurah. The place isn’t actually dirty and has a fairly decent kind of clientele; the ones who want reprieve from the bottom scum of the city but refuse to pay the extra devals for something upscale. It’s the kind of bar that’s only open on Pendi, Exi and Efta, the respective Friday, Saturday and Sunday of Earth, but for Delarou Valdani; a planet far beyond the alpha quadrant where I was born.

  So, one more day is all I have to wait. And tomorrow I can head over to my favorite bar and see if that mysterious alien will make an appearance. I blame my new bestie, she was the one who took me there a few months back, and admittedly, I go way more often than I should, but not for the food or drinks.

  Holding out my hand, I snatch the crystal before it has a chance to fall on the uneven floor and ruin its naturally polished exterior before safely stashing it in my sack. I glance back at the clock. My shift is finally over, so I travel down the tunnel towards the changing stations.

  The scent of sweat and unwashed bodies blast my nose like a detonating bomb as soon as I enter the room. They need to put some damn showers in here if they want anyone to be able to breathe. Ugh.

  “So…are all you humans’ stalkers? I just want to know, in case another one of you shows up and takes a liking to me.” Jari-ri casts me a playful glance, wiggling her eyebrows suggestively while stripping out of her work clothes.

  I turn to face her. “Ha. Ha. Very funny. You realize I must know where he is to be able to stalk him. Right?” I strip out of my uniform, replacing it with my usual drab black pants and shirt.

  She stops for a moment, the sheen of her flowing, multicolored one-piece hanging around her midriff, exposing her feeders to me. Long slithering tendrils attached to her breast plate, snipping at the air.

  I roll my eyes, tossing my uniform in her direction. “Put those away! And no, we’re not all stalkers. And neither am I.”

  The bell rings, signaling that the next shift is coming. We both rush to finish changing. It’s better to get out of here before the crazies arrive. Well, they’re not actually crazy, but third shift is particularly dangerous in the crystal mines due to the high volume of toxic critters that come to life at night. Typically, the type that sign up for late hours are dangerous males in need of quick credits or people who literally do not give a rats ass about whether or not they live or die…and that’s on top of the fact that crystal mining is a run of the mill shit job. So, I guess
crazy isn’t too far off of a description.

  We head through the busy mine shaft. It’s already getting crowded and I don’t like the idea of getting separated from my friend. Dropping off our sacks loaded with mined crystal, we take our payments and travel towards the exit.

  Jari-ri holds her stomach. “It stinks of rot, oil and piss in here! I’m not sure how much longer I can deal with this crap.”

  I don’t blame her. The smell is a rather nasty mixture that constantly assaults anyone who still has a nose. Even after several months working here, I’m still not used to it.

  My hand slides to her back. I’m not even sure if it’s comforting, but it’s the least that can be done. “If you want to quit, do it, but tell me first. I’m not working this shithole alone.”

  She bats my hand away. “Bah. You just want to use me as a reference for your next job.”

  “Well…now that you mention it, but I’m not even sure how much longer I’ll be on this planet.” I scratch my head, thinking of all the possibilities.

  It’s been five years since the invasion. Since discovering that we’re not alone in the galaxy, I’ve hopped from one place to the next in a state of constant travel. Now that I’m thinking about it, I’ve probably stayed on Delarou Valdani far longer than I should’ve. Maybe it is time I leave. The thought lingers in my mind, but something deep inside nags at me as if to tell me there’s a reason to stay. I dismiss the idea altogether. It’s a thought for another time.

  We enter the elevator and I immediately grasp the walls, gaining a few stares from other aliens shoved into the tight space. Some species I can recognize, while others, not so much.

  Someone slinks their arms around my shoulder causing me to jump and lose my footing. I stumble, then right myself before turning my neck. It was just Jari-ri.

  “Thanks.”

  She nods her head.

  The elevator hums to life, rattling and shaking as it moves towards the planet’s surface. It shreds my nerves. People were constantly dying in mining accidents back on Earth, and the thought never strays too far from my mind when I’m at work. For that reason alone, standing in this damn forsaken elevator creeps me out.

  It’s not like I have much of a choice. It doesn’t matter where in the universe you are, it takes credits to survive, unless of course you’re a thief or scoundrel getting by on stolen goods. So, for the time being, crappy elevator or not, I need this job. At least until I decide to move on or find something else.

  The elevator comes to a jerking halt and the doors screech open. It sounds like metal grinding on metal, loud enough to make my ears want to bleed. It’s worse than sharp-tipped fingers grinding on a chalkboard.

  I burst through the crowd of aliens who rode up the shaft with us, freeing myself from the deathtrap. I take a breath of the fresh, crisp air, clearing the shit grime from my lungs. Despite wearing a mask, the stuff still builds up in my lungs.

  Jari-ri and I walk down the street towards our apartment complex since it’s only a few more blocks away. It’s where we met when I landed planet side about six months ago. I’d rented the cheapest place available, ending up next to her. After bumping into each other in the halls, and a rather long conversation later, she got me a job at the crystal mines.

  The chilling wind scrapes harshly against my sensitive skin, and I pick up the pace.

  An air transport flies overhead, and I glance at the sky. It has me depressed. The twin suns have settled down past the horizon and out of sight. If the city of VadCurah wasn’t so vast or had no massive skyscrapers assaulting the sky, I might’ve been able to see it. It’s a real shame. I miss the beautiful sage green and apricot sunsets of Delarou Valdani. The unnaturally colored sky is vastly different from Earth. In all my travels since escaping home, I’ve never seen anything so beautiful and it almost makes the grimiest parts of this world sparkle like gems under a bright light.

  “I wish I didn’t have to pay for a transport to see the sunset.”

  A few months back, I had the opportunity to see the sunset for myself when I paid the extra devals for an air transport to Shakaat’s. I didn’t feel like taking ground transportation.

  I reflect on the crowded tunnels, a means of travelling for a cheaper fare. If it wasn’t for the aliens that look eerily similar to the Ru’tah, the ones who invaded my planet, I’d be more willing to ride the underground trains and save my devals. I can’t blame the Dregols for what they look like, it’s not their fault, but it's too soon. Maybe it will always be too soon.

  “Hey, if you’re gonna get all depressed on me I’m gonna stop introducing you to my favorite spots. I mean, look at what’s already happened at Shakaat’s. You go there almost every week and harass the barmaid over the mystery alien.”

  We finally reach the dark grey and gritty high rise that houses several of the bottom feeders of the city, or at least that’s what I’ve been told. It’s one of the reasons why Jari-ri and I get along so well. We’re one of the few single ladies that reside here and it feels safer to be in each other’s company.

  “Ha, as if.” I head up the stairs, pull out my I.D badge and slap it across the chip reader. The door pops open and I slip inside.

  Peeking behind me, I notice she’s got her arms folded across her chest. I give her my best angry glare before heading inside.

  “What? It’s true.” She follows through the door behind me.

  “Ok, you’re right,” I grin back over my shoulder at her. “At least I have a name now.”

  “What the hell Rena? I can’t believe you didn’t tell me sooner. What is it?” She hits the button to open the elevator, selecting the seventy-seventh floor.

  The elevator zips to our level in a matter of seconds. Alien technology. The door hisses back open and we’re nearly at our apartments.

  “I’ll tell you over a cup of Crevetcheck.” I invite her over, scanning my badge across the door to unlock it, but it’s already unlocked. The door creaks open.

  Two males in drab, black attire are inside, flipping furniture and causing a ruckus over the little bits and bobs I own.

  “Just what the hell do you think you’re doing?” My voice comes out harsher than it should considering the size of these guys.

  Jari-ri runs up behind me, stepping inside. One of the males continues to plunder my belongings, tossing shit around, while the other staggers to his full height of eight feet. If he’s trying to intimidate me, it’s not going to work. I work too damn hard to be pushed around, and I’ve already had to leave my home world.

  “Inspection,” he grunts, his beady silver eyes appear unamused as he barricades us off from the rest of the room.

  “Inspection? The hell does that even mean?” I wave my hands in the air, exasperated.

  The male doesn’t answer me, giving me his back as he turns to the task at hand, effectively dismissing me.

  “Come on.” Jari-ri grabs my arm and pulls me aside into the hallway.

  “What the fuck is going on?”

  “It happens about every eight lunar cycles.” She shakes her head. “Checking for illegal activity.” She air quotes, something she must’ve picked up from spending so much time with me.

  “Eight months? This is so damn tiring, trying to learn everything all over again.” I lean against the metallic wall, sagging to the cold floor.

  “Then stop starting over.” She sits beside me.

  “I can’t help it. Nothing feels right, nothing feels like home.”

  “And it might never will. You need to accept that, or this is what your life will always be like.”

  I lean my head back, closing my eyes to take a moment and consider her words. She’s right. I’ve been on the long haul for five years now. Never settling anywhere because I’m trying to find that perfect place that feels like home, but I can’t replace Earth or all the people I’ve lost. My family, my friends, my life. Nothing will ever be the same, and maybe I’ve been running from that, running from a past that I’ll never be able to go back
to or change.

  Five years ago, the Ru’tah hit Earth's atmosphere on large, oversized purple disc shaped ships, something you’d probably see from an old science fiction film from old Earth days, but vastly different in every way. When they landed, they hadn’t given a single fuck about the people or animals on the planet, murdering everything in their path as if we’re a mere annoyance or slight disturbance at best.

  The worst part, I don’t even know what became of my family. I wasn’t home, my manager made me pick up an extra shift at Daneilla’s Coffee Shop. One of the employees had quit and there was no one else to fill the spot. If I hadn’t been in the middle of bumfuck nowhere serving coffee on a dirt road to stragglers, who knows where I’d have ended up. The guilt eats me every day, not knowing if they suffered horrible deaths, or made it out alive like I did. Five years is a long time, and the galaxy is far too large to ever know the truth.

  I’ve learned that the muddy brown and blood red ombre aliens, apparently had destroyed their world, and appeared to have adopted a ‘if my home is a wreck than yours will be too’ kind of attitude ever since. They’ve been reported by many to wreak havoc on unsuspecting planets, pillaging for resources to save their own desolate planet. They’re selfish, vile and downright hideously disgusting, but I guess where I come from, anything that’s coated in a protective slime to regulate their bodies would be considered gross.

  Slam!

  We both jerked up off the floor as my apartment door slams shut against the metallic frame, creating a resonating clank that echoes down the hallway. I reach up and clamp my ears shut as the two aliens who just ransacked my apartment move down to the next door.

  I glance at my friend as I scan back into my place. “Rain check on the Crevetcheck?” You’d think whoever is taking my damn devals to let me live here, would at least have the decency to let a girl know about this shit, and maybe hire a maid to clean up after their shitty ‘inspections’.

  “No! I want to hear all the stalkerish details about this alien.” Jari-ri pushes past me, entering my space. “Damn they really tore this place up, my place never looks this bad. You must’ve really pissed them off.”