by Sara Nebula
Alien Warlord’s Curvy Fated Bride
Queens of Yalania #2
by
Sara Nebula & Juno Wells
Copyright 2020 Sara Nebula
Cover designed by Sara Nebula
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced
in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means including storage and retrieval systems, without permission in writing from the author. The only exception is by a reviewer, who may quote short excerpts in a review.
This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.
Visit the Sara Hazel/Sara Nebula website at www.sarahazel.com
All characters are eighteen years of age or older.
Table of Contents
Copyright Page
Hannah
Meki
Hannah
Meki
Hannah
Meki
Hannah
Meki
Hannah
Meki
Hannah
Meki
Hannah
Epilogue — Meki
Epilogue — Hannah
Thank You!
About the Authors
Join Sara Hazel/Sara Nebula’s Mailing List
Hannah
*
I sigh as I check the time on my phone. John is twenty minutes late.
The waitress comes over to my table and forces a smile. “Sweetie, are you ready to order yet?”
“I’m waiting for my date,” I reply.
“How about you wait at the bar then. As you can see, we’re terribly busy tonight, and we need this table. We’ll get you another one when your date arrives.”
I suppose she thinks I’m blind. I look around the half empty room. I want to ask her why she’s making me move when the place is clearly empty, but I’m not usually the kind of girl to stand up for herself.
“Ok,” I reply as I get up. I head to the bar and order a diet coke. Then I send John a text:
Hey John. Are you on your way? I am really looking forward to seeing you tonight. I had a really great time last week.
I hit send and then bury my face in my hands. I sound desperate or something. But our first date went so well that I was sure this could be the one. I mean, sparks were flying everywhere that night and we even got kicked out of a dive bar for making out in the back for two hours straight. After the date he walked me to my bus stop, gave me a sweet kiss, told me how beautiful I was, and that he wanted to see me again as soon as possible. That was one of the very few times a guy has ever said something like that to me, so maybe I got a little ahead of myself when I sent my best friend Mary a text with a list of potential baby names I hoped to run past John a few dates from now. Yeah, too fast, I know.
I sip my diet coke and my phone buzzes with a text from John.
John: Hey Hannah. I had a great time last week too. But I’ve changed my mind about tonight. I met someone the other night and I think I’m in love. I’ve been thinking about her all day, and I think it’s best if we don’t see each other again. I’m sorry.
Wow. That was a fast turn-around. A few hours ago, he sent me a text that said he was looking forward to tonight. At least he had the decency to explain himself to me, whether his story is BS or not. This is not the first time this has happened to me and it won’t be the last either, I’m sure.
I sigh heavily as I finish my diet coke. My heart slams against my chest, and I wonder if I’m having a panic attack or perhaps, I’m just heartbroken.
“Call Mary,” I say to my phone.
“Calling Mary,” the pleasant, but still robotic sounding voice replies.
Mary picks up on the first ring.
“Girl, why are you calling me? You’re supposed to be on a date.”
“He just told me he’s in love with someone else,” I reply.
Mary sighs. “Oh, sweetie, I’m so sorry. Look, Tom and I aren’t doing anything exciting tonight. We were just gonna watch Cobra Kai or something. You should join us. I’ll order us a pizza. My treat.”
“I’m always such a third wheel,” I reply. “I think Tom is getting tired of seeing me.”
“Not at all, sweetie! I never want to hear you say that again. We love you. Come on.”
“Fine. I’ll call an Uber and be there in like twenty minutes.”
“See you soon. Love you,” she says.
“Love you too.”
I stuff my phone into my purse and slide off the barstool. I pay for my diet coke, and head out into the cool Chicago autumn air. Mary and Tom don’t live too far, and even though it’s cold out, I figure I could use a walk. So instead of Uber, I just head down the street. My heart is now in my stomach, or at least it feels that way. I know I should get over it though. It’s not like John and I were an actual couple. We had one great date. Or maybe it was only great for me. I don’t know and it doesn’t matter anyway. Just be strong, Hannah. You’ll meet someone great if you keep trying. That’s what I tell myself anyway. I repeat it softly over and over again as I stare at the sidewalk.
I continue to not watch where I’m going, and I inevitably run into the male half of a couple who are out walking their dog.
“Watch where the hell you’re going,” the woman says.
“Sorry,” I whisper.
It’s starting to get darker out, and I don’t have the best eyesight anyway. So even if I were staring straight ahead on a bright day, I’d still bump into someone. Or trip.
I call Mary again using my Bluetooth earbuds.
“Mary, what if no guy ever wants me?” I ask.
“Then you can be a third with me and Tom. He’s been harassing me about finding a unicorn or whatever for a threesome. You can be our unicorn.”
“I’m pretty sure Tom is not attracted to me at all,” I reply. “I think you’d better find someone else for your weird bedroom stuff.”
“We’re not into weird bedroom stuff. But threesomes can be hot, girl.”
“I’ll stick to trying to find one man who only wants me.”
“You’re so old fashioned. There are a lot of guys out there who would love that.”
“I must be doing something wrong, because I can’t find any old-fashioned guys to love me in an old-fashioned way.”
“You’ll find him when you’re not even looking.”
“Come on. That’s just something you say to someone—”
All of a sudden, I lose my voice and drop my phone. All sound fades out, but I think I heard Mary screaming my name. People walk past me without a second thought as I’m frozen in place. A wave of calm comes over me. It’s the strangest feeling. I think this Logan Square sidewalk might be the most peaceful place in the entire world. I close my eyes and just enjoy the silence for a moment.
Then the pain begins. When I open my eyes, I’m strapped to a gurney, and a strange gray man is standing over me with a giant needle that he’s about to plunge straight into my heart from the looks of it! His hands come crashing down, and my whole body feels as if it’s shattering into the tiniest pieces. I want to scream, but I don’t have a mouth anymore. Maybe I’ve died and become pure energy — all one with the universe or something. But if that’s what happened then why does everything hurt so bad? If I am pure energy, the
n I seem to be experiencing pure pain throughout what remains of my being.
I wake up in one piece inside of some kind of space coffin with a see-through glass lid. I’m frozen in place and the only sound is that of all the beeping equipment I’m hooked up to.
The feeling of peace that I had on the sidewalk is back. The seemingly pleasant idea that I’ve been kidnapped by aliens has entered my mind. That should be a terrifying thought, but it’s just not for whatever reason. I’d be totally fine being a human slave to some big gray guy like the one who shattered me into a million pieces a while ago.
Thank God my logical brain kicks back in, and the fear rushes in. I’ve got to find a way to escape. I’ll never find love if I’m torn apart by a bunch of hideous aliens. But I must be drugged or something. Part of me still wants to surrender myself to my captors fully. I’m not sure what they’ve done to me that makes me desire this, but it’s a rather good trick. A frightening trick, but a good one.
I cough inside my space coffin, and immediately regain my ability to speak. So, I take the opportunity and scream as loud as I can. Maybe I’ll shatter the glass and be able to escape this thing.
But no such luck. The glass doesn’t shatter. Instead, the gray alien from before opens up my space coffin and plunges another needle into my heart. I’m right back where I started —
A being of pure energy in a universe where nothing but pain exists. It figures this would be my luck.
I HARDLY REMEMBER THE journey when I wake up again. But I have the worst migraine of my life as soon as I open my eyes. The glass over me is gone and the gray alien who is just about the only thing I can remember stands over me once again. But this time he has no syringe.
“Welcome to Yalania, human,” he says in a deep hypnotic voice. “You will soon be transported to the circada mines where you will work for the rest of your short miserable existence. Yalar Meki needs his circada in order to build the weapons that will lead him to victory over the city states of Yalania. He will be the champion of the Goddess.”
The only part of that speech that made any sense at all is mention of the “Goddess”. Well, isn’t that a pleasant surprise. The aliens who are going to enslave me are Goddess worshippers. You’d think they’d treat women better than they’ve treated me so far.
“Let me go!” I manage to scream. But I still can’t move.
“You won’t be going anywhere until I say so. We took you from your horrible planet to give you a better life here on Yalania. You will now serve a purpose. Isn’t that what your kind always hope to find — purpose?”
Better life? Finding my purpose? Didn’t this guy just say a few moments ago that he was sending me to work in mines for a short miserable existence? I think he’s confused about what constitutes a “better life”.
Every wire going inside of me is pulled out. I’m grateful that I don’t feel it. I no longer have the urge to scream. It’s been replaced entirely by the desire to cry, and so I do — as loud as I can so as to aggravate my captor. But he’s unmoved by it. He doesn’t even seem to notice as he carries me over to a cold steel slab and lays me down on it. Then I’m given another injection, and I’m right back to the worst pain of my existence...
I’M NAKED AND DRENCHED in sweat when I wake up this time. A tall red woman in a black robe looks me over. The sky is unusually bright and hard on my eyes. But I still want to look around at the red desert landscape surrounding me on all sides.
“What is your name, human?” the red woman asks.
How nice of her. She wants to get to know me.
“Hannah,” I whisper, seemingly no longer capable of making a noise louder than that.
“Hannah, you’re an incredibly lucky girl. Yalar Meki does not normally visit the circada mines, but he will soon be arriving. Not only that, but you will be lined up with others of your kind and put on display for the Yalar. He will choose one of you to take back and be his personal servant. Isn’t that wonderful?”
She and I definitely have a different definition of wonderful. But for some reason I reply with “Yes, that sounds wonderful.” It’s as if the words are being put in my mouth by something outside of me.
I think of Tom and Mary sitting on their couch watching Cobra Kai without me. Maybe I really could have been their third. The thought hits me that I’m probably not going to see them for an exceptionally long time, or perhaps never again. A shiver goes through my spine.
“Are you alright, human?” the red woman asks.
“How long does it take to get from Earth to your planet?” I say in the same whisper as before.
“The journey is short and also quite long,” she says.
I feel my ability to get frustrated returning to me. Damn, it’s intolerably hot out here, and I just want to be on Tom and Mary’s couch. I look up at the sky and the red woman shields my eyes.
“Do not look directly into the three suns of Yalania, human,” she admonishes.
“I just want to go home. Give me a straight answer, damnit! How long did it take for me to get here?”
“All of your friends and family have passed from this life, I assure you, human,” is the calmly delivered answer she gives. I hadn’t even asked her about my friends and family. It’s as if she can read my thoughts...
I collapse onto the sandy ground in front of her. Tears stream down my cheeks as I think of everyone that I ever knew no longer being alive. Mary and Tom are gone. It hits me right in that moment. These things have taken everything from me.
The red woman kneels before me and chooses this moment to produce a spark of energy right out of the air that she then fashions into handcuffs. She gets up and twists my arms behind my back as she cuffs me.
I scream as she pulls me up and slings me over her shoulder. Her silky red hair brushes against my naked body as she carries me off to who knows where.
I am set before the cavernous entrance of a mine. There are other naked human women of all shapes, sizes, and nationalities. There must be at least a hundred of us.
I am forced into a spot in the line-up. No one says a word, probably out of fear. Every one of us seems to be holding her breath as we wait for something terrible to happen.
After a long time, we all turn our heads to the right side of the line-up. An enormous red man in a black robe makes his way down the line one girl at time. I notice how he moves quickly and doesn’t focus on one girl for too long. Perhaps he knows exactly what he’s looking for in a personal human slave.
When he gets to me, my heart stops, or at least I’m quite sure it does. Everything else seems to stop too, and soon it’s as if the tall and very muscular red man and I were the only two beings in the universe. I study every detail of his handsome chiseled face. A few scars on his cheeks add character.
My eyes lock with his, and I get lost in the swirl of his bright green eyes.
“Am I the one?” I ask. What a strange question that I never would have imagined asking him. Yet here I am.
A deep and mesmerizing voice enters my mind and pushes all my thoughts aside. I hear him loud and clear.
“You already know the answer to that,” he says.
“Yes, I am the one,” I reply out loud.
I don’t know why I believe I am the one or what that even means, really, aside from the fact that I’m about to be forced into serving this alien. But he makes me nervous in some way I’ve never experienced before. I shiver slightly as I stand before him bare and seemingly under his spell. A deep stirring within me makes me feel as if I know him already and have always known him since before the time I was even born.
These aliens seem to have mind control powers, but this goes beyond that. I don’t think he’s making me feel this way. I just do, and that to me is what I find most dangerous about the man before me.
Meki
*
Nura. My Queen.
I hear all of her screams and I must find her at once. She is here now. I can feel her pain. I will soothe her and care for her. She
will love me and learn to obey. Then I will finally be able to defeat all of my enemies. Only with her am I whole, and able to conquer.
“My Yalar, the fresh batch of humans have arrived at the circada mines,” Janki, my chief Priest announces as he enters my tent. “Our circada supplies will be rejuvenated soon, and our factories will produce many fine weapons.”
We have been camped out in the hills of Valare for several weeks just waiting to make our move. I won’t allow Yalar Vekshi to have Valare as well. He controls half the planet at this point, and he must be stopped before he conquers the whole thing. But Vekshi has not touched Valare yet, so I will claim it before he does, and use it as a base to launch attacks against him.
“Ready the transport, Janki. I must go and see these humans myself.”
Janki locks eyes with me. “My Yalar, may I ask why you need to see this particular group of humans? The horrible creatures are all the same — weak and unfit to be graced by the presence of one such as you.”
“I will be selecting one as a personal servant. Alert Heia of this immediately and tell her to halt all production until I’ve left. I don’t want her putting them to work before I’ve had an opportunity to select one for myself.”
“As you wish, my Yalar,” Janki says as he bows his head. “I must also ask you a question.”
“Go ahead,” I reply.
“Have you given anymore thought to asking Yalani to help you find your Nura? Your armies have conquered three great cities now, and you must produce an heir to secure your legacy, my Yalar.”
“I don’t have time to pray, Janki.”
“But you’ll never find her without the Goddess’ assistance —”
“I will find her soon, Janki, I assure you. Put it to rest, please. If you speak of it again, I will have to cut off your head and stick it on a pole so my next priest knows not to interfere where he is unwanted.”
“Yes, my Yalar,” Janki says as he takes several steps back and bows. “The transport will be ready within a few minutes.”
“You are dismissed, Janki,” I say with a wave of my hand. He leaves the tent and once I am alone, I kneel on the dark red ground.