by Shifter Club
Almost like an alien humanoid might be expected to act, he flipped her again so quickly she didn’t realize it, and this time she found herself on her knees, on a bale of hay, and Antash gripping her from behind as he entered her again, and again, and again. Jalicia felt like she was about to explode as she came time after time, filling the barn with the sweet sounds of their love making and their call to the wild. Then she heard him grunt and felt him sinking into her deeper and deeper. Her nails dug into the straws before her as he drove all the way home, and this time, deposited everything inside her. He made one final stroke and then let go of her, and led her back to the bed of straws they were sharing before.
“I wish you never have to go,” Jalicia mused when her heart rate had resumed its normalcy.
“Me neither, but I can’t stay here,” he replied as he stroked her hair.
“What happens next?” she was curious to know.
“Well, I am hoping in another few hours for my people to come for me. Beyond that, I am hoping this doesn’t have to be the first and the last time that I see you.”
“I hope not either. Maybe one day I might see Solaris. Now that would be something,” she said as she smiled, though melancholy.
“What time is it?” Antash asked. “I can’t read the stars from this angle here on Earth.”
“Okay, we still use clocks,” she said and laughed. “It is a little after one in the morning.”
“Hmm, you should get some sleep Jalicia. Tomorrow may be a long day.”
“Maybe for you,” she told him. “Nothing ever happens here. In probably a hundred years, your coming here must have been the only thing of note. You are the one who needs the rest; you may have a war to fight.”
Antash grunted, and before she could say another word he was breathing deeply, indicating he was already asleep, and once more she envied him; so complex in some matters and so simple in others. She squeezed from under him when she felt he couldn’t be awakened again and walked to one of the wooden boards that were loose in the walls. She looked out at the stars, and wished that something would happen that would keep him here next to her. But even as she wished it, she knew that would only be a dream. He had to return. She could only hope she would see him again.
Chapter 7
“I wonder if they got the signal,” Antash said as he walked around with the communicator in the air. “Hello, is anyone there?” he called.
“Maybe it is broken again,” Jalicia said.
“I wouldn’t say that. This thing has always had a wiring problem. Hello!” he barked again. Still there was nothing but static.
“Just leave it on a little while longer,” Jalicia said. “Maybe they got the signals crossed or something.”
Antash walked around a while longer until he threw the communicator on the ground. “This is useless,” he said.
“Let me see,” said Ned, who had come along this particular morning to see the spaceship and wave Antash goodbye. “It seems fine to me,” he said as he examined it closely. “Oh, I see the problem,” he said as he reconnected a wire in the back that had gotten loose. “Here, try again.”
“Hello! Jaquar! Mekhi!” he called repeatedly, but other than the crackling, there was nothing else.
“And hello to you too,” they heard a voice further away say. But there was no one there, and the sound did not originate from the radio.
They all looked into the nothingness until they heard a hiss, the same hissing sound they had heard two days ago. Then two Brocoy aliens stepped onto the grass and started walking towards them.
“Run!” Antash told Jalicia and Ned as he sped across the clearing and towards the barn.
In a flash, one of them materialized before them, its ugly face contorted into what should be conceived as a smug smile. “Not so fast Solarian,” he said to Antash, even though he was sporting his human appearance.
“Let us go,” Antash demanded as he tried to push Jalicia away from the creature.
“On the contrary,” one of them said. “I know you,” he said as he walked over to Antash. “You have grown up,” he grinned, revealing slimy matter between his teeth. “Now what are you doing here?”
“I don’t believe that is of any concern to you,” Antash replied.
“Oh but it is,” he replied. “It was you who was there that night outside of Varen. You heard us didn’t you?”
“I heard nothing. I only saw you and ran,” Antash said.
“Oh you only saw us and ran,” he echoed. “That easily scared for such a great warrior?”
“I couldn’t take you on alone. I tried to pass, but you were too many,” Antash replied.
“And so you ran, further into space, and then you disappeared. I told them you must have come to Earth, but we couldn’t follow you that night until we refueled. But you kept ditching us.”
“That was the idea,” Antash replied boldly.
“Oh, I see. So, tell me,” he said as he came close enough for Antash to inhale the stench of his breath. “What have you told your leaders?”
“Nothing,” he was quick to say. “I’ve been stuck here for days.”
“But I see you made some human friends. I wonder how slippery your tongue would be if I took hers,” he said as a wicked gleam came to his eyes and he dashed over to Jalicia.
“No, don’t hurt her,” Antash said. “I only got the communicator fixed yesterday. I told them what I had heard.”
“And what did you hear?” he asked impatiently.
“Something about taking over Solaris,” Antash said, his eyes focused on Jalicia. “That is all I know.”
“But that is everything. Because of you, we lost the element of surprise,” he glared. “Now, what to do to make up for that,” his voice boomed. “Maybe we will take the girl and force their surrender.”
Antash started laughing then. “Take the what? Do you really think the Ackach would trade Solaris for one human girl? That may be a better situation if you were holding her ransom for me, but not Solaris, and they wouldn’t hand over Solaris for me either.”
“Well then, I guess there is no use for you three after all,” he said as his sword started to blink blue and a light escaped it, hitting and burning a black hole in the ground.
Jalicia jumped, but the thing held her tightly. It lifted its hand and pointed the sword at Antash. “Any last words?” he asked.
Just then there was a crackling sound from the communicator, and Mekhi’s voice came over. “Antash, we are now entering Earth’s atmosphere,” he said, and then there was silence. Antash looked at the angry face of the Brocoy alien and smiled. “Company’s coming.”
“Get them in the vessel,” he commanded his other men. But none of the three were willing to go without a fight, even after witnessing the power of the weapon. Earth wasn’t that bad, and they wanted to travel, but not to a Brocoy dungeon or prison.
Antash acted as if he had fallen in line, behaving very docile and obedient, until the last minute. He signaled to Jalicia with his eyes to trip, and when she did, he was by the Brocoy alien, its wrist in his hand and his sword easily wrestled from him. Before he got a chance to move, Antash fired the weapon, hitting the other standing not so far off.
“Quick, follow me,” he told Ned and Jalicia as they made off for the barn.
“Get them,” they heard a voice say, and as they ran, Antash occasionally looked back and fired shots that kept them at bay.
As soon as they got into the yard, Samuel came running out. “What in the name of heavens is going on here? What is that?”
“Dad, get back inside,” Jalicia shouted as she waved and ran.
Just then there was an explosion and Samuel flew into the air and fell onto the ground.
“Dad,” Jalicia screamed as she ran towards him.
Antash was forced to go over, his weapon pointed and firing at the relentless approach of the enemy. They seem to have multiplied, and they now swarmed the yard, firing at will. Ned was able to run to the back of
the house, but Jalicia remained next to her father, whom she chose to believe was only unconscious. “Hold your fire,” Antash pleaded, but his cries only fell on deaf ears. The blue lights danced all over the yard as the Brocoy continued their assault.
Jalicia looked to Antash, and the tears in her eyes melted him. Then there were other yellow lights raining down on them from the sky. Antash quickly swept Samuel from the ground and hurried inside with Jalicia on his heels. He placed Samuel on the sofa as they flinched every now and again in response to the sound of the lasers hitting their marks.
“He will be alright,” he told Jalicia. “He is still breathing.”
She heaved a sigh of relief that was quickly replaced by fear as she turned her head towards the noise that continued outside. Antash walked over to the window, pulled the curtain back, and was pleased to see that the Brocoy were no longer attacking but were now either dead on the ground or retreating.
“I will soon be back. I need to go outside,” he said as he kissed her brow and hurried away.
“Dad,” Jalicia sobbed after he had gone through the door and she heard the click when it shut. “Dad,” she called again.
Slowly he opened his eyes, and then bolted upright. “Jalicia?” he asked. “What happened?” He tried to move but she held him there.
“No, don’t get up yet; you may have a concussion,” she told him.
“A what?” he asked with a puzzled look on his face. “What is that?” he asked as he heard the sounds of lasers.
“Dad,” Jalicia said as she tried to get him to sit still, but he was a stubborn man and she couldn’t keep him there.
“Unhand me,” he huffed as he got up. He went to the window and looked outside and almost collapsed. “What is going on?” he asked.
“You may not believe it if I tell you,” she said.
“Try me, because you really think you are too smart for me Jalicia,” he said. “I saw you so many nights slipping into the barn, but I couldn’t figure out why and I didn’t want to go down there and find something I didn’t like. Now, I know you are a sensible woman and your mother and I tried to raise you right, but if you meet someone I think the proper thing to do would be to introduce him to me rather than sneaking him into the barn.”
“Dad, you have no idea how complicated that was,” she told him as she sat down. “Do you see what’s going on outside? Those are alien ships firing alien weapons.”
“What do you mean alien?” he asked as he moved the curtain once more and looked harder. “Oh my...” he began as the words got cut short. “Aliens?”
“Yes dad, and that is what I have been hiding in the barn. He crash landed here a little over a week ago. I saw it the same night Ned came over for dinner. I was emptying the trash when I saw a strange light in the field, so I went to investigate. It was then that I found him, but he was wounded so I took him to the barn and helped him. I didn’t want to trouble you with it.”
“I can’t believe what you are saying,” he said as he moved the curtain back once more for confirmation. He gasped when he saw one of the beings alight one of the ships. “It’s coming over here.”
“Jalicia, is everything alright?” Ned asked as he came through the back door.
“Yes,” she said. “He seems to be fine,” she said as she motioned to her father.
“So you knew about the aliens too Ned?” Samuel asked.
“I helped to fix their communicator,” he beamed. “I mean, yes Sir,” he said as he corrected himself. Samuel was staring down both of them.
“Are you two crazy? Do you see the damage that was done because of these aliens, and you had one locked away in my barn for days? Do you realize how dangerous they might be? Look at my yard!”
Jalicia jumped as he barked at them. “Dad they aren’t all dangerous, just like humans aren’t all dangerous. He found out some of the evil aliens were planning to attack his home planet. He tried to get back home and was forced to crash land here instead when he ran out of fuel. Since then, Ned has been trying to fix his communicator so he could tell his people where to find them and to warn them about danger. He is no different than us dad; he just comes from a different place.” She walked to the door as Samuel stood gaping after her.
He slapped his hands to his sides in defeat and looked over at Ned, who hurried away before he became the target of another verbal assault. As soon as they got to the door they ran into Antash.
Samuel stood there looking at the being. “He doesn’t look alien at all,” he said in surprise.
“That’s because he can change form to adapt to his environment. Show him Antash,” she said, and right before his eyes Samuel saw Antash turn from chocolate to emerald and he almost fainted at the sight.
“I think I need to sit down,” he said.
“May I come in Sir?” Antash asked.
Samuel turned to look at the being as if surprised he would demonstrate proper conduct. He nodded and walked off to get some water. Maybe that would help the drum beating in his head.
“Jalicia, I have to leave now,” he said as he peered into her eyes that were now getting teary.
“I know,” she said as she choked back the tears. “I just wish you didn’t have to.”
“Well, the good news is Solaris is safe for now. The Brocoy did not intend for so many of us to come here, so we took down their ships and wounded many of them. They will not want to attack now, but we are aware of their intentions to do so, so we will be prepared if they ever come again.”
“So all is well with Santina then,” she smiled, but he could see the sadness in her eyes.
“You will meet her one day Jalicia. I appreciate all the help you gave to me when I needed it the most, even when you didn’t know me. You were meant to help people, and maybe I came here for you to realize that. Follow your dreams and never forget your heart; it will lead you home,” he smiled. And she couldn’t help smiling too.
“I hope I do meet her one day,” she said, “and that I will see Solaris too.”
“You will,” he said as he placed a kiss on her forehead. He was well aware of her father watching, so there was nothing more he could do by way of showing affection for her. “And thank you Ned,” he said as he extended his arm to him. “If it wasn’t for your help, I probably wouldn’t be getting home now. You have a bright future ahead of you, and I hope we meet again.”
“Can I keep it?” Ned asked as he referred to the communicator. It didn’t take Antash long to figure out what he meant.
“Sure thing; it’s the least I can do,” he said. “Besides, it’s broken,” he said as he winked.
Then Antash turned to Samuel and extended his arm as well. “Thank you Sir, for the kind use of your barn. I know you didn’t know about it, but still it was yours. You raised a lovely daughter; don’t ever doubt what she will become.”
“Well you sure are nothing like I’ve seen on TV,” Samuel said as he warmed up to Antash. They all laughed at his remark. Then he slapped his hand into the alien’s and smiled. “I think they are waiting for you,” he said as he looked outside.
“Sure,” he told Samuel, and then he made one last sweep of the room with his eyes, nodded to Jalicia and walked out.
He was barely at the door of the ship when he heard Jalicia calling after him. He turned around and waited for her to catch up to him and as she did, she crash landed into him. She threw her arms around him and he could feel the tears being transferred from her eyes to his chest.
“No, don’t cry,” he said as he pulled back so he could see her face. “I will be back,” he told her.
“I know,” she said. “It just doesn’t change the fact that you are leaving now and that makes me sad.”
Antash stroked her face and then very gently placed a kiss on her lips. She closed her eyes as she drank him in, and the others who waited for him were silent, and then moved away to afford them privacy. When their lips separated, he turned and walked up the steps of the ship and then there was the familiar
hissing sound and then a bang as it closed. She retreated to the house where she could safely watch them taking off, and the longer she looked, the more tears flowed.
Ned came over and rubbed her shoulders in support. “I’m going to miss him too,” he said. Jalicia looked up and smiled at him appreciatively.
“Dad,” she said as the aircraft disappeared from view. “I’m going back to Washington.”
Samuel was beside himself with joy, and tongue tied as he watched his daughter take the few steps to the second landing of the house. He was about to question what made her change her mind when he remembered Antash’s words, and he was suddenly grateful for the alien he met if only for a brief moment in time.
*****
“I didn’t know you would ever come back at all,” Ned said as he and Jalicia headed out to the clearing where she had met Antash.
“I told you I would,” she said. “Besides, two years isn’t such a long time,” she said as she smiled.
“Depends on where you live,” he said. “It seemed like forever on my side,” he grinned and the freckles on his face seemed to light up again. “But why come back here?”
“I heard a doctor is needed in town. I figure I can practice and keep an eye on my dad at the same time-win-win situation for me,” she smiled. And then her face got blank and she looked up to the sky. “So, have you heard anything from Antash since he left that thing?” she asked hopefully. She was walking slowly through the grass now, kicking tufts of it from her path as she stripped a blade she had grabbed earlier.
“Nah,” Ned replied. “It does seem to be broken like he said.” Then he paused and looked at her. “Do you really think he might come back?”
“I was hoping he would, but it has been two years, and there has been only silence,” she said as she rested against the bark of the tree the two had marked when Antash had been there.
“Maybe something happened that prevented him coming back,” Ned said as he tried to pacify her. “Or maybe time travels differently there and it has only been a month on Solaris,” he said and grinned.