Alien Shifter Force: A SciFi Alien Shifter Romance

by Maya Kane

  “You have no ridges,” he said in wonder, stroking her temples.

  She stared up into his eyes. To his surprise he saw no fear in hers, despite the fact that he dwarfed her and one of his soldiers had just attempted to capture her.

  “Don’t understand,” she said haltingly in Uniton. “Speak Uniton?”

  He nodded. “Small.”

  She bared her teeth in some kind of smile. He didn’t know how he knew that—Aron was the intellectual; Redon was a warrior who had only ever paid attention to combat and weapons. But he seemed to instinctively know this beautiful, delicate creature.

  “I too.” He took her arm and was shocked by the fire that shot through him on touching her. “Come.”

  “Where?”

  “Sensitive.”

  “What?” she stared up at him with her clear blue eyes.

  Aron cleared his throat. “He means his cabin. I think. So you can rest.”

  “Oh,” she said, baring her teeth again. “Don’t have time. I… how you come here.” She pointed to the ground.

  Redon thought. The majority of his Uniton vocabulary related to space trade and diplomacy. That was the reason he’d had no interest in studying it. “Crash. Attack.”

  “Attack,” she repeated nodding. Redon caught the scent of her shimmering hair and it made the breath catch in his throat. His pulse pounded.

  “Yes.”

  “No,” she said. “We. Attacked.”

  “Yes.”

  Redon sighed. It pained him to try and have this frustrating conversation when his body hummed with need for her. But they had no choice. It was vital. “Your agreement?”

  “What?” she and Aron said simultaneously, she in Uniton and he in Dreon.

  He turned to Aron. “I meant commander.”

  “Well, you said agreement.”

  “Oh,” he said, growing increasingly frustrated. “I’m not the scholar. That’s you.”

  Aron stepped forward. “Who is in command here?”

  Her eyes widened. It was clear she was trying to figure out how to answer. Redon watched her with growing excitement. She shook her head and he understood that their language barrier frustrated her as much as it did him. She pointed behind her, in the direction of the great hole in the ship.

  “Those buildings we saw on the way in?”

  “Buildings,” she repeated. “Buildings… yes. Yes in the buildings.”

  “Take us to your commander,” Aron instructed.

  She turned and marched in the direction of the door. Redon felt a stab of loss. He didn’t want to go and mingle with the other humans. He wanted to take her into his cabin and lose himself in her.

  “You’ll have time to make your decision later,” Aron said under his breath as they followed the human off the ship.

  Redon growled in response. All he could think about was her soft skin under his fingers. As it was, it was a strain to stop himself from rushing forward and pulling her to him. He wasn’t thinking straight—they were on a strange planet with a deadly enemy and all he could think about was her.

  His attention was distracted when they reached the hole she had entered through. The human female had rushed forward with a terrible cry and now Redon saw why.

  There were two humans outside, slowly approaching the ship with their weapons aimed. Two of his soldiers already rushed out to meet them. They were in various stages of transformation and Redon’s stomach lurched.

  So much for being repulsed by the human, he thought. Because he felt protective of her, even though the idea was as ludicrous as her smooth temples and tiny frame.

  “Drayon,” he roared. “Stand down.”

  But they had taken off into the air. He glanced at Aron, whose forehead was creased with worry. They both knew how futile it was to try to call off a soldier who had transformed into Drayon form. Once they had decided on a course of action, it was near impossible to prevent it.

  The human female—his human—had rushed forward and almost reached the other humans as his Drayon circled overhead. The little group of humans seemed bewildered, trying and failing to target their weapons at the fast moving Drayon. She screamed at them in her strange breathy language.

  “Tell them to drop their animals.” He screamed in Uniton.

  Aron clicked his tongue. “Order them to drop their weapons,” he corrected as they rushed across the desert.

  But she didn’t seem to hear. She was too far away or her panic prevented her from understanding. It was too late to reason. A flash burst from the human’s weapon and narrowly missed Eren, who roared with fury and pounced.

  Redon summoned his Drayon and jerked as the change came over him.

  “But your Drayon is unpredictable, you—” Aron was saying.

  And then there was nothing. Just the single-minded goal to pacify Eren and Melen before they attacked the humans. He thrust into the air, aiming directly for them. But then the sweet scent of his human entered his nostrils. Next thing he knew, he was cannoning toward her and grabbing her in his claws as a female might with her young. Aron screeched past and roared at Melen, plowing into him just as he swooped for the humans.

  Bullets whizzed past but Redon avoided them, swooping through the air. Finally, he landed on a plateau a safe distance away right after he had deposited his human on the sandy rock. He looked at her. They were finally alone.

  But Eren’s roars distracted him. Aron was still struggling to subdue Melen and Eren. Redon turned and swooped down to them, growling at them as laser beams shot past. But Melen and Eren couldn’t be deterred. Again and again, they circled each other, until finally he could tell that the two young Dreon were growing fatigued.

  They landed a safe distance from the humans’ weapons. Redon shifted and turned to Aron.

  “Tell them we want their help.”

  “Sir, you’ve been hit!”

  Redon glanced down and winced. Sure enough, there was a fresh wound on his chest. “Tell them. Before they shoot again.”

  “I could have killed them all with one sweep of my wing,” Eren growled. “But you insist we do nothing.”

  “We need them,” Redon hissed. “Kill them and we know nothing of their planet.”

  “Put down your weapons. Your human came to us. We did not take her,” Aron said, holding his hands up

  Redon could see the hesitation in the humans, but still they didn’t lower their weapons. There were two of them. And while they looked like his human, they lacked the same sparkle of vitality that seemed to radiate from her.

  “Do you understand?” Aron called.

  “Where is she? What have you done with her?” one of the humans said, stepping forward.

  “In safe place,” Redon said, his tongue struggling to form the words he thought he had long forgotten. “I will bring her.”

  “No,” the other female said. “Don’t touch her again.”

  Redon stepped forward. “Your weapons. Could hurt her,” he snarled.

  “Sir, let me handle this. You’re not objective now. Or eloquent in Uniton,” Aron whispered in Dreon.

  Reluctantly, Redon allowed his deputy to take over. He glanced back at his human, stranded high up in the distance. He could sense her fear, even though he had no idea how. He wanted so much to shift and fly to her, but he knew he needed to stay and keep his soldiers under control.

  We need the humans. We need to give them a chance to cooperate.

  To his surprise, the humans seemed to relax. They lowered their weapons. Redon noticed their eyes on his and looked away. They conferred with each other in their earth language, never once taking their eyes off him. Redon glanced down. He was naked and hard. He wondered at their reactions. Didn’t they find themselves naked when they shifted back to their human form? Or did they shift? He hadn’t seen it. He had so many questions about this place. He knew nothing of it apart from the vague descriptions found in the prophecies.

  “You can stare later,” he said impatiently in Dreon. “Who is co
mmander?”

  They stared at him.

  “Your leader,” he barked.

  “He is back at the base,” the most outspoken one said. “We will take you there. After we’ve rescued our friend.”

  Redon translated their words back to Dreon in his mind. “Rescue no need. She safe. I care.”

  Aron rolled his eyes. “I told you to let me do the talking, okay? You sound like a child. Or an idiot.” He turned to the humans. “My leader speaks the truth. He carried her there to keep her safe.”

  “Why?” the one with the red hair asked.

  Aron shrugged. “Because we want to work with you. To cooperate,” he said wearily.

  Beside him, Melen and Eren were pacing.

  “Save your rage for the Collective,” Redon growled at them. “These humans? They may be our only way to get revenge on whoever attacked us.”

  Aron spoke back and forth to the humans. Redon only caught some of the words. It seemed one of the humans was as fluent in Uniton as Aron was. Despite the gravity of their situation, he found himself wondering if his soldiers were as drawn to the humans as he was to his. Was it just the mating call that was tricking his body into wanting her? Or was it something else?

  Aron turned to him. “They accept you won’t hurt her. Go. If they try to attack you again, we’ll kill them.”

  Redon growled. “Only if it’s absolutely necessary. We need them—for now.” But his attention was already focused on the tiny human female on the plateau behind them.

  Go to her. Take her back, he told himself as he transformed.

  Chapter 10

  Kate watched in amazement as he transformed again. She had been watching their discussion anxiously, wishing she could participate. She had no idea why he had spirited her away from the others. She didn’t know why, but her instincts told her he had done it to protect her. She wasn’t sure if that aroused or frustrated her more. He took off into the air and came straight for her. The strange thing was she didn’t feel afraid. Her core buzzed as it had ever since they’d come face to face.

  He was the one she’d seen from the quarantine unit that day. He couldn’t speak Uniton as well as the other one, but there was no doubt that he was their leader. The way he had subdued the others had made that clear.

  Kate had played it back in her mind over and over as she watched the tiny figures far below her, unable to do anything because of the sheer drop between her and the group. It had happened so fast. He had grabbed her and flown her up there. And she hadn’t been the least bit afraid even though she should have been terrified.

  And then he had flown back and fought off his own kind, even though Danni and Athena were shooting at them with laser rifles. She stared at them. Had they come after her? It was the only possible explanation. She wondered if that meant the commander had decided to take action. She hoped so. She was too inexperienced to lead such an important mission. But where were the rest of the UEF soldiers?

  She had tried to tell them everything was okay, but they’d been too far away. Then those huge dragons had flown from the ship, probably assuming that Danni and Athena were going to attack. Which they had. She breathed a sigh of relief that everything seemed to have calmed down, even though she did feel left out stranded high above them. She could see Athena speaking with two of the aliens, who had transformed back into their more human form. They also happened to be butt naked, but she didn’t react to them like she did to their leader.

  That was the strange thing. Lately, she’d had no interest in sex or relationships. So why was her body going haywire at the sight of this alien? The slightest touch had sent her heart skyrocketing. She hesitated to think what if would be like if…

  Stop it, Kate. It’s crazy. He’s an alien. Just because we need each other doesn’t make them our friends. Or anything more than that.

  He landed in front of her and Kate marveled again how the huge dragon-like creature instilled no fear in her. She was comfortable around him.

  Until he changed back.

  Kate gulped. Seeing him from a distance was one thing. Seeing him up close—barely ten feet away? That was something else entirely. She shivered with need at the sight of his naked body. She may have been in the biggest voluntary dry spell of her life, but she wasn’t naive and inexperienced. She knew what that hard protrusion was. The sight of it made her shiver.

  Kate, you don’t even know it’s related to you. He could have a hard-on for the other aliens or for baked human.

  But she didn’t believe that. She stepped closer. “Thank you. Bring me to safe.”

  He tilted his head to one side. Kate tried to keep her eyes locked on his, but she struggled. He was breath-taking. His skin was dotted with the ridges that were most pronounced at his temples and on his shaft. She had to take a deep breath to calm herself after glancing at it again. Even the thought of it made her squirm. She focused on his chest. His skin appeared tougher than human skin—there was some sort of armor to it. There was no sign that moments before wings had sprouted from his shoulders, except for two black tattoos on either side of his collarbone. She leaned forward to get a closer look. They looked similar to his huge wings.

  He moved his arm and she gasped. She hadn’t seen it at first because his arm had been blocking it. Now she saw the fresh wound.

  “You’re hurt,” she cried, closing the distance between them and leaning in to get a closer look. Even looking at his chest required her to stand on tiptoes, a fact that made her squirm despite her concern for him. “We need to dress this.”

  He stared at her silently.

  Kate shook her head, realizing that she’d spoken to him in English. “Sorry. Need fix you. Um… bananas.”

  “Uh?”

  She mimed washing his wound out and wrapping it in bandages.

  “Yes,” he said, nodding gravely.

  Kate peered over the edge of the cliff and looked up at him anxiously. “How…”

  He said something she didn’t understand.

  “What?” she whispered, praying that he was able to shift at will because there was no way they’d be able to scale down that cliff. It was a sheer drop in places, where the desert wind had whipped up the sands and smoothed any cracks and crevices they might have been able to grasp.

  He didn’t answer. She gasped as he transformed again and bent down so she could climb on his back.

  “I guess that’s my answer,” she murmured, clinging on as tight as she could as he took a run to the edge and soared off the cliff.

  Seconds later, they landed beside the others.

  “What the hell were you thinking?” Athena said, immediately rounding on her.

  Before she could respond, her alien, who had shifted back, barreled between them and growled at Athena.

  “It’s okay,” she whispered, patting his arm.

  Athena smirked. “I think he likes you. If his giant boner is anything to judge by.”

  Kate blushed. “Shut up. He does not.” But secretly the thought filled her with pleasure. Was it possible? Was it really possible that this huge creature felt the same way about her as she felt about him?

  Athena’s stern voice quickly knocked her from her fantasy. “Kate, seriously. What the hell? When the commander finds out…”

  “He doesn’t know?”

  “No, of course not.” Athena rolled her eyes. “We’re going to research the invaders to death by reading.”

  “Oh,” Kate said quietly. It was a bad sign if Athena was criticizing somebody for being too bookish. “I had to do something, Athena. Otherwise, we’d have stayed in that base until they came for us.”

  “That doesn’t mean you should have gone off by yourself. They could have killed you, Kate. You weren’t to know.”

  Kate shook her head. She couldn’t deny her actions had been incredibly foolhardy, but it seemed like they had paid off. “I’m sorry. I had to do something. Thank you for coming after me. I’ll never forget that.”

  Athena shrugged. “Don’t me
ntion it. You’d have done the same for us.”

  “I don’t know about that, I—”

  “Yes you would,” Athena interrupted. “You’re as brave as you are stupid.”

  “I’ll take that as a compliment.”

  Athena arched an eyebrow. “That would be your stupid side at work.”

  Danni clicked her tongue. “Can’t you guys hassle each other when this is sorted out? We’re standing here in the desert with a bunch of aliens, if you hadn’t noticed.”

  Kate and Athena glanced at each other. Danni had always been more serious and anxious than either of them, but Kate had to admit she had a point this time.

  “Okay,” Athena said, taking charge and addressing the one who stood a pace behind the alien Kate had come to think of as hers. “We’ll go back to base. Give me some time to explain this to our commander. Though I doubt you have to worry about him pulling the big guns on you.” She rolled her eyes. “The real risk is you’ll be buried in complex paperwork.”

  Kate elbowed Athena and glared at her.

  “Ow,” Athena groaned. “What was that for?”

  “Don’t say things like that. We don’t need them to see that there’s discord in our force.”

  “You’re the one who can’t get enough of these aliens and their giant dicks.”

  “Enough,” Danni screamed, causing everyone—including the aliens—to start. “Can we please stop this pettiness and get back to the base? Of course Kate is staring at their penises. It’s impossible not to.”

  Athena turned on her, eyebrows raised. “You’re doing it too, Little Miss Proper?”

  Kate stepped between them before things had a chance to escalate. “Come on. She’s right. Let’s get back to base and talk to the commander.”

  Kate found herself falling into step with the huge alien who had carried her off to the plateau. By now, she had gotten used to the feeling in her chest; the feeling that her heart was beating so out of control that it was in danger of bursting. It was all she could do not to gape at his strong, naked form. To distract herself, she tried to translate her many questions into Uniton.

  “You are their leader?”

  “Yes,” he said slowly. “Yes. Of ship.”