by Ivy McAdams
More alien words drift to my ear, and Jade’s chest rises quickly.
“Keep still and be quiet,” she whispers.
My eyes pop open.
The aliens are moving around us. One of them stoops down and picks a woman up. She screams, and my muscles tighten.
“They’re taking us,” Jade says under her breath. “Don’t fight them. Just go.”
What the fuck?
I jerk back to look at her but her face is dead serious. She doesn’t look afraid anymore. She looks confident. Like she knows exactly what she’s talking about.
It makes me shudder.
“What if―?” I squeak, but she shakes her head.
“Don’t fight.”
I don’t want to be eaten or tortured by some giants on another planet. But I’ve already escaped death once. I’d like to stay on the winning team.
The only thing that keeps me from freaking the fuck out is Jade’s face. The anthropologist. She knows pretty much every culture on Earth. And while she can’t know these savages on another planet yet, I trust her.
Then an alien steps up to us and grabs me around the waist. I yelp as my leg jostles back and forth. It's excruciating when he throws me up over the top of his dinosaur mount next to another girl. She’s kicking and screaming, making the pain oh so much worse. I cry out, unable to stop the tears from flowing.
I think my leg is literally on fire, and I’d give anything for it to just fall off right now.
I’m still sobbing when the alien climbs into the saddle behind me. It's hard to see him through my tears, but his eyes find mine and there’s a crease in his brow. For a moment I can see past my pain, pulled by the flicker of concern in his eyes.
He shifts me up off his leather saddle pad and into the air. The movement is awful and my vision blurs. I think I’m going to puke.
Then he settles me again, this time up against his chest. He cradles me close and rests a hand on my knee. I look up at him as best I can, and he murmurs something I don’t understand. The softness in his face is almost moving. You know, for a half-naked alien savage that’s big enough to crush me in his arms.
A haze bears down on me and I blink, trying to focus on his face as it grows even more concerned, but everything goes black.
Chapter 2
Xjhun
The meat is beginning to turn and I curl my nose as I lower the big clay bowl from my shoulder and dump the contents over the edge of a large pit. Graying chunks of vultir flank hit the dirt and are immediately pounced upon by the dinosaurs below me. With all our recent excitement of having new women among the tribe, some people have slacked off on their duties. I won’t go pointing fingers, but it was the Captain’s job to go hunting for fresh meat for the levadon this morning, and now they’re eating leftovers that are half-spoiled.
Not that the dinosaurs care.
Or I, for that matter. I know he’s been hiding in his hut for the last day and a half, rediscovering his new mate over and over.
I’m a little jealous, honestly.
Although I highly respect my captain, I yearn for a woman of my own. It’s rather difficult graduating to a high standing warrior without the prospect of ever choosing a mate.
It was Xetmir who complained about Kovak being lax on feeding the levadon. I took his irritation with a grain of salt, as we all do. He who always complains gets few ears.
But rather than let Xetmir stew, I finished the task for the Captain.
Even if it meant hauling the smelly bowl of meat across the village.
I drop the clay pot on the edge of the pit and climb down the ladder into its depths.
“Good morning,” I murmur as I pass eating dinosaurs.
Most of them continue snapping and slurping up their breakfast with their massive toothy jaws. A couple lift their big heads and look my way before going back to eating.
They all lean over on huge back legs and wide feet, smaller arms tucked into their chests and gigantic tails swaying in the air overhead. There’s a few irritated noises and snapping, but for the most part, they eat quietly next to one another.
I duck under a few tails until I reach the hindquarters of a mid-sized brown male.
“Eat up, Desian,” I say as I slide my hand along his leathery back. His skin lights up in glowing gold flecks where I touch him.
The bioluminescence ripples along his hide, up his back and down his tail, as he acknowledges that I’m there. It’s a greeting of such. One that’s always fascinated me.
The levadon snorts as he chomps through his meal.
“Don’t stop for a hello or anything.” I grin.
He lifts his head just enough to peer at me with glowing eyes. Even for a less intelligent creature, Desian has the best sarcastic tilt of his head.
I laugh.
When he goes back to eating, I let my hand graze along his back absently. I've found my mind wandering a lot in the last few days. Back to the day we picked up the alien women after they were attacked by stagni.
It was an important day for the Kutarian tribe for sure. The day the Shaman made it possible for our people to survive again. It’s second in significance only to the day Gemma woke up. The first of the aliens—er, humans―to cross over into a Kutarian body.
There’s a whisper of promise in the air now as we wait for the other six women to wake up, and hope to the gods they’re in the Kutarian bodies when they do.
Although our odds aren’t the best. There are over twenty males in our tribe without women since the stagni attacked us a year ago and wiped out our females.
It’s silly for any of the warriors to be outright hopeful, but I can’t get my mind off the woman I carried back. The injured one who looked straight into my eyes and saw me.
With all the females screaming and carrying on like we were going to destroy them, she looked right at me and let me carry her against my heart.
Her energy waves were low. They didn't put out much of her emotions, even in the adrenaline-pumping chaos of the battle, but I've also never been around humans before. Maybe they don't project as we do.
Either way, what little she had spoke to me. Pulled at me.
Holding her in my arms was peaceful. Perfect.
It felt like letting a piece of my own energies go when I had to hand her over to the Shaman and his experiments.
When Gemma woke days later, so did a whole new level of hope within me.
Dirt shifts beyond the edge of the pit, and my ears swivel. I listen to the footsteps coming up the path. A few moments later a few levadon near the front of the pit lift their heads with a snort.
A large Kutarian warrior stands at the top of the ladder and tilts his chin in greeting. The morning sun glints off the scar that crosses his nose and cheek.
“Drek,” I say as I return to the ladder.
“Morning, Xjhun. It smells horrid over here.”
I lift a shoulder with a half-grin. “It was the Captain’s day to hunt.”
Drek’s eyebrows move up as he acknowledges my meaning. It hasn’t slipped by anyone what a happy non-bachelor the Captain is now. Especially not his second in command.
“I’m sure Kovak appreciates you covering his duties for him today.”
I nod. It’s the least I can do. The Captain’s always done his best to see that I am properly situated among our warriors, even if I am the youngest of our crew. He’s never made mention that I lack the abundance of skills my brother had.
“Are you prepared for your uza hunt?” Drek asks as I approach the pit’s ladder and climb out.
The mention of the sacred hunt has me pushing my shoulders back and walking a little taller.
“Always. I’ll take the head of one of those ghonts in the blink of an eye. Not a one can stand up against me.”
Drek gives me a solid stare. I can feel it burning into the side of my head as we stroll down the path leading into the heart of the village. “The uza hunt is no joke, Xjhun. Warriors have died on their passage, and—”
“—I know. I understand its weight. Don’t worry so much.”
The Captain’s second in command growls under his breath and I can feel his irritation rolling through his energy waves. “You may be young and strong, but don’t assume you’re indestructible.”
“You forgot fearless,” I add with a grin.
Drek stops and shoots an upturned eyebrow at me. I fall back with him but don’t drop my face just yet. What’s he so worried about anyway? I’ve killed ghonts with him before. How much more difficult could it possibly be by myself?
I’m working with two strong arms, good hands, a true aim. My spear will be through a ghont before it even has a chance to charge.
I’ve got this.
“Don’t get too cocky,” Drek says with a clap on my shoulder that’s a bit harder than normal. “Be sure to focus and remember your training.”
“Of course. I’ve had some damn good teachers.”
Drek finally smiles as he starts down the path again. “You were lucky to join in with a fine group of warriors, that is true.”
Besides the Captain and Drek, there are nine others in our group. The best of the best of the Kutarian warriors. I slipped in at an early age once we started losing our fighters to the invading stagni. The normal process would have me complete my uza hunt before joining the high warriors, but due to circumstances, I was allowed to train with them early.
Only recently have I been deemed ready to complete my training.
"I would have no other teachers. I'm relieved Kovak has taken time from his busy days to permit me to follow through with my hunt."
Drek nods slowly, this time wrapping his arm around my shoulders and giving me a friendly shake. “Of course. He recognizes your potential and it is time that you make your place with us official.”
A warm glow of pride swells in my chest. Knowing my headstrong efforts have secured me a true warrior’s place within the tribe is enough to make me burst. “I’ll crush my hunt and be back before you know it. I’m looking forward to—”
A sharp sound reaches my ear and it twitches. The scream is quiet at first, then grows louder and more horrified.
And somehow familiar.
The face of the female alien I rescued flashes before my eyes. Her black hair and fluttering eyes as she fought the pain in her leg. The way her low energy waves tickled mine, calling me to explore hers. To ramp up her energy and let it touch me.
If only the Shaman hadn’t stolen her away first.
The scream twists in the distance and it triggers something hot and primal in the pit of my stomach. I don’t know what’s happening to the little female, but I’m damn sure not going to let it continue.
I shuck Drek’s arm from my shoulders and sprint down the trail and through the heart of the village, heading for the Shaman’s tents.
* * *
Trinity
I’ve had some fucked up nightmares in my day but being abducted by aliens definitely takes the cake.
Or at least it did until I woke up in a body not my own.
“Get away from me!” I screech at the ugly medicine man-looking dude that keeps inching toward me.
“Calm down. You’re safe here,” he says.
I slap my hands over my ears and shake my head. There’s no way I’m listening to this guy talk. Just a couple hours ago he was speaking some weird garbled gibberish, and now he speaks perfect English. That is so not possible.
Plus this body. I can’t even wrap my brain around that.
I’m tall with silver skin and a long tail. What the damn hell?
Is this a joke?
It’s like I’ve stepped into a magic funhouse. Or the Twilight Zone.
As horrifying as the thought is, I expected a little alien probing and poking. I’ve seen alien horror flicks. But I did not expect being ripped out of my body and stuck in a new one.
Disgusting.
This dude with his scaly skin and ridges along his collarbone looks like a shiny alligator.
At least he doesn't have a snout. His face isn't that different than mine, despite the scales, long twitching ears, and freaky blue-black braids woven with beads and feathers. He looks like an image of cannibalistic savages if I've ever seen one.
I can’t believe I look like one of these alien freaks.
“Hoboy. Oh my God,” I mutter as I clench my eyes against the ridiculous reality in front of me.
It has to be a dream.
There’s no way I’m standing in this huge body. I’ve always been a bit on the tall and lanky side, but this is a whole new ball game. The ground is way too far away.
Not to mention my other senses. I’m inside a tent with dim lighting, but even in here, I can see everything with a sharp edge. I can hear this guy breathing. It’s quick and matches the excited energy he’s putting out into the air. It’s like I can feel it seeping in through my skin.
But I’m not excited. I’m as far in the other direction as I can go.
I’m scared shitless and pissed off to boot.
How dare they just manhandle me around however they want, and more importantly, what are they going to do to me now?
Images of torture chambers and long probing needles bombard my brain and I want to back this body into a corner and hide.
Oh my God. They’re going to experiment on me. Poke my brain.
How did my brain get into this body anyway? And where are the others? The rest of the nerd herd I arrived with. Have they already been dissected and butchered?
My hands are shaking when I open my eyes again.
A few other aliens have come into the tent behind the medicine man. From their clothing and stature, two appear to be male and the other female. The men look familiar, but when my gaze falls on the face of the smaller one, recognition hits me like a flash.
His eyes are dark in the shadows, but they’re clear and hold the same look of concern I saw in them when he cradled me against his chest on the ride over.
A big chest that stretches into strong shoulders covered in scales. The smooth armor plating reaches down over his pecs and out along his thick arms. A wild black mohawk splays out over his head and pointed ears. It seems to go far down his back and looks intriguingly soft.
The same scales that speckle along the medicine man’s face are on my rescuer’s, but they’re smoother, less ghastly. Maybe it’s the guy’s strong jaw and beautiful cheekbones. Not to mention the way his eyes seem to glow as he stares at me.
He could be downright attractive. If he was human.
The concern and curiosity that hovers in his eyes begin to change as his gaze slides down my form, which I realize with a twist of my stomach is not dressed like the other female's—I'm naked.
I’m both horrified and angry all over again. I’ve been standing here naked this entire time? And no one told me? Though it’s only been the medicine man most of the time I’ve been awake and he’s been too busy grinning and talking nonsense to give me the once-over my rescuer is doing. It stirs a slushy mix of feelings in my gut. Being ogled in a body not my own is beyond weird and I kinda want to smack him. Except when his gaze connects with mine, my blood warms at an alarming rate.
Wow.
I don’t need the strange energy levels around me to tell me he’s turned on. It’s in his eyes and the flare of his nose as he takes a deep breath.
His chest moves up and I realize how big it is. Like a wall of pectoral muscles. Naked ones. A pendant hangs from his neck along their smooth surface.
Down below he’s wearing only a loincloth, strapped around his waist with a thin ribbon of animal hide. The soft-looking leather flap hangs between his legs halfway to his knees, leaving nearly all of his muscled thighs exposed. Not to mention his stomach that looks both soft and hard at the same time, tapering down to the best set of V-lines I’ve ever seen. I don’t know what those muscles are called, but if they’re toned properly, they point right to the good stuff. Those are the best looking muscles on a man, and this fe
llow’s got a pair that makes my heart skip a beat.
Have mercy.
His body shifts and his tail swipes back and forth behind the rear flap of his loincloth.
Oh shit.
My eyes leap back to his and find his brow arched in the most teasing, tantalizing way. If he were a man, it’d be totally hot.
But he’s not.
He has a tail. And scales. And who knows what else hidden under that loincloth.
My gaze jumps to the flap of leather again, noting the bulges and making quick calculations before I catch myself.
I look away quickly as a pinch of sweat breaks out behind my ears.
What the hell? Pull yourself together.
His energy is pulsing at me now though. Excitement. A sexual hunger that makes me a little weak in the knees. How the hell is that so powerful?
I lock onto the other two aliens that came in with him, desperate for some sort of distraction.
At least I’m less worried about them dissecting and eating me now that V-Lines has stolen all my attention away.
Or I was until I thought about it.
Crap.
The other male is looking at me with wide eyes, checking me out much more in the same fashion as the medicine man. Less sexy creepy and much more clinical. Like he can't believe I'm here.
Well, guess what, buddy? I can’t believe I’m here either.
Who do I need to talk to to get this mess straightened out?
I want to shout it at them, but my voice is hidden somewhere down deep inside. I’m too shocked to force it out.
A twitch in my ass and behind my legs surprises me at first. Until I take a peek.
Oh, right. I have a tail.
What the fuck.
The other female is inching her way toward me with a big smile on her face. She seems genuinely happy and I can’t begin to imagine why. I shy away from her as she comes up alongside the medicine man and press myself closer to the wall behind me.
“Stop,” I finally manage to bark. “G-get away! I’ve got mace!”
Or at least I did. In the pocket of my cargo pants. Where are my clothes? Best yet, where the hell is my body?