Sex, Love, and Aliens, Volume 1 (21 page)

Rogue rolled with Morgun, freeing Elara from his grip. The duo rolled, both of them grasping for the gun. “Rogue!” Elara screamed as they tumbled down the ramp of the space shuttle. The gun fell with them onto the dark landscape.

She began down the ramp, but caught herself. The dark had already consumed the gun. What could she do, pry Morgun away from Rogue with her bare hands? As her heart pounded, Elara realized something incredible. This was the moment she’d been waiting for. She had the shuttle to herself.

Elara rushed to the control panel and activated the ground power and external shields. Once seated, she began the checklist to get the engines started. Flying home on her own would be difficult. She wasn’t even sure if it’d be possible. But she’d try. Maybe when Angela woke up, she could help. Once they got off planet it was mostly auto-pilot anyway.

She could almost smell the ocean breeze, feel the wooden planks of the boardwalk beneath her bare feet. The street vendors and ice cream stands.
Rogue.
Her heart panged. She could take him with her.
No.
This was her chance to escape before more clones stormed the ship.

Continuing her checklists, the thrum of the engines igniting rumbled beneath the spacecraft. Surely any clones in the vicinity would now be headed their way. If she didn’t get out soon, she wouldn’t be getting out at all. The shields were up, protecting her from unwanted entry, but the indicator showed there wasn’t much ground power left.

“Elara?” Angela’s soft murmur reached out to her.

“You’re awake!” Elara ran over to the floor where Rogue had laid her in the blanket. “We’re on the shuttle. I don’t have time to explain.” She bent to help Angela off the ground. “Get into your jumpsuit and strap in for takeoff.”

“Is it safe?” The words barely escaped her trembling lips.

“Yes. The shields are up, but this might be our only chance.”

Angela nodded slowly, clutching the blanket close as she stood. She moved like a zombie through the shuttle to where the flight suits were stored. Elara returned to the flight deck.

The crack of gunfire echoed from outside.
Rogue.
She hesitated at the controls, but only for a moment.
Damn it.
Leaping out of her seat at the flight deck, she frantically searched the security compartments. At the back of the cockpit, she found what she was searching for—the captain’s handgun.

After shutting down the shields, she bounded down the ramp, searching the darkness for signs of Rogue or Morgun. She found them both not far from the bottom of the ramp. Morgun held the gun. Her eyes strained through the darkness, but couldn’t discern if Rogue was shot.

“Put the gun down,” she commanded. “Rogue, are you all right?” Her voice quivered, but she hoped Morgun didn’t notice.

“I’m fine, Elara. Stay on the ship where it’s safe.”

She didn’t take her eyes off Morgun. “I said put the gun down!”

“Or what? You wouldn’t shoot when your fuck toy is so close. If you have a fetish for clone flesh, I’d be happy to provide that for you.”

Another crack exploded through the night. This time, Elara knew who’d fired it—her. “I would shoot and I just did.” Elara couldn’t see the wound, but Morgun’s dark silhouette dropped to the ground.

Elara ran toward Rogue’s form. “Are you okay, are you shot?”

“No, you proved to have damn good aim.” His mouth covered hers. They didn’t linger in the kiss long, the shouting of a mob not far in the distance. “They’ve seen the lights of the ship. You were able to activate the ground power?”

“Come on.” She grabbed his hand and led him up the ramp. Once they were inside, she reactivated the external shield. “Hopefully that’s the last time I have to do that.”

A scream penetrated the cabin.
Angela.
“Clone!”

“It’s okay, he brought us here.” Elara tried to explain, but Angela only seemed to retreat more. Her eyes glossed over, and she walked backward like a zombie until her back met a wall.

“I’m not getting taken again.” In a shocking burst of speed, Angela grabbed a gun off one of the bodies, aimed it at Rogue, and fired.

“No!” Elara watched in horror as Rogue’s body lurched against the force of the bullet. She dropped to her knees, running her hands over his shoulder.

“It just grazed me.” Rogue tried to sit. “I’m lucky your friend is not as good a shot as you are.”

Elara turned back to Angela. “Get the first aid kit. Now.” She fought to keep her voice level at the woman who’d already experienced too much trauma.

Angela nodded slowly, clearly confused.

Rogue stood, not allowing Elara to help him. “Don’t worry, I barely feel it. Trained killer, remember?” He grasped her hand, clutching it to his heart.

“Good.” Elara tried to grin. “I know we’ve had our differences, but I just saved your life. Can’t have it taken already.”

Rogue pulled her into a kiss. It lingered, but she moved away, knowing Angela would return with the kit any minute. Elara needed to finish preparing the cabin, but Rogue tugged her back into his arms. “I wish we could stay in the shuttle forever, but we can’t.”

“No, it’s only stocked for the month-long return.”

His blue eyes searched hers. “What are you talking about, Elara?”

“I’m the captain of this space shuttle, Rogue. I’m going to take us home.”

“Home?” Rogue’s voice trailed off in disbelief.

“Yeah, I’m thinking we should probably smuggle you in though—”

Rogue swept her into his arms, swinging her in a joyous arc before finally setting her back on the floor of the shuttle. He kissed her, taking his time inside the safety of the shields. “After you came to me—”

“You captain-napped me—” Elara corrected.

“Living without freedom didn’t seem as bad. But having you…and finally having that freedom to live a life, not just as a mercenary…”

“What makes you think you’re going to have me just because I’m taking you to Earth? We just met.” She raised an eyebrow, teasing him.

“I’ll pursue you then…with non-lethal intent this time.” He winked at her before sweeping her into his arms again.

Her smile remained constant as she gazed into his eyes. “To new beginnings.”

Rogue grinned, his bright smile shattering the dangerous shadow he’d always worn. Instead, he glowed like a man that had found purpose, and perhaps, love. “To new beginnings.”

About Jaye Shields

Jaye Shields is a flight attendant by day and romance author by night. Her addictions include reading, travel, and other activities not even a romance writer will confess to. She’s in a committed love affair with her readers, so don’t be shy!

Jaye’s Website:

www.JayeShields.com

Reader eMail:

[email protected]

Gravitation

by Beth D. Carter

Can Bree and Niah’s love overcome their species being at war with one another?

Bree has spent her whole life hiding from the aliens who destroyed what was once Earth. When she stumbles across a wounded alien, common sense tells her to kill him before he can kill her, but her compassionate side refuses to obey. Instead, she helps him.

The two forge a temporary truce when they’re forced to band together for protection. But as the days slip by, the alien Niah won’t leave her, and as friendship gives way to something more, she can’t help but wonder when, or if, them being on opposite sides will break the fragile bonds of love forming between them.

Content Warning: contains sexual content, strong language, and some violence

Dedication

To Ashlynn Monroe. She’s a wonderful friend and an awesome author. I’m honored to be in this collaboration alongside all these amazing women.

Acknowledgements

To the wonderful family of Beachwalk Press. Thank you so much for liking my story!

Chapter 1

Bree scooted forward on her belly to survey the settlement below, using the jagged rock formations on the high ledge to obscure herself as she spied upon the people. This was the first time she’d been this far down the mountain, and she wondered how long they’d been there. Long enough to build homes, with wooden planks and doors.

Did they think they were hidden from the invaders? Pity washed through her, because she knew it was just a matter of time before they came and killed them, all of them. That’s what they do. They find the humans and destroy them. Bree’s father had told her once that it was only the ability of the human race to hide and adapt that kept the invaders from truly eradicating everyone, and that people like her and him would have to carry the memories of what was once Earth.

She didn’t remember what Earth once was like. The invaders had come when her great-grandfather had been alive, and the stories she knew were tales told to get her to sleep. That Earth was long gone. Civilization was long gone. And Bree knew one day humans would be gone as well.

As she watched the people below, she knew she should move on and get as far away from this place as possible. Although the invaders hadn’t found this settlement yet, they would. She’d seen it before. But Bree found herself hypnotized by the families, and her eyes stayed on one particular woman. She was holding hands with a man and Bree saw the man bend down to kiss the woman. There was a little child walking next to them, holding the woman’s hand, and a small surge of jealousy shot through Bree.

Once she’d had a father, a mother, a brother. But this wasn’t a world where families survived, and even though she tried to sneer at how stupid they could possibly be, she couldn’t quite smother the stab of envy. She may think they were idiots but part of her applauded them for taking a chance, because she knew she would never have that. She’d never take the chance of trying to bring a new life into this world.

Bree settled a little more comfortably onto the ledge and crossed her arms to cradle her head. Once upon a time she’d lived like the people below, inside a community, with buildings and homes. She had the vaguest memories of that time, and every once in a while she would get a flash of what her home had looked like, or what the garden had grown. Her father had wanted her to remember the past, but Bree always thought that was a waste of time. What mattered was the present and surviving.

The sun was warm but the wind was cool, and lying on the ledge had relaxed her enough that she began to drift off. When she became conscious again, she realized twilight was upon her and the chance to slip away had just become a little more dangerous. She didn’t know the terrain, plus the threat of dangerous animals like mountain lions made her think it was better to just hunker down and wait until daylight before moving on.

She made sure her pack was secure and used it for a headrest. The sounds of the evening meal drifted from the settlement, and it was almost comforting. Nostalgia had a way of creeping in when least expected.

She watched the sky grow darker and twinkling stars appear. Once, long ago, people had wondered if there was life up there. Too bad it was answered in the worst possible way. The invaders had come, without any warning and without mercy. They fought the humans and they won and now, seventy years later, the human race was all but extinct.

Music soon drifted up, the sound of blended voices singing, and Bree let the smooth hum from the settlement below lull her to sleep. She dreamed of a playset where she swung high, trying to touch the clouds with her toes. She giggled, happy. She felt her mother’s hands upon her back, pushing her higher. She saw her father taking her picture. And it was perfect.

A perfect day.

And then the day darkened and the giggles turned to screams. Fire rained down and the swing set burned. Bree looked around but her parents were gone. They were nothing but a pile of bones and their skulls stared leeringly at her.

She woke, shaking, drenched with sweat, and it took her a moment to gather her wits and realize the nightmare was real. The invaders had come and they were attacking.

She turned on her stomach, looked over the cliff, and saw the people dying. Hover discs with invaders standing on them fired down, their laser guns tearing through flesh like water. Buildings burned, people screamed, and terror was so strong Bree could taste it in the air. But there was nothing she could do. She didn’t have weapons like the invaders so she couldn’t shoot them from her vantage point. All she could do was scoot further into the shadows so she was not seen.

And yet, she couldn’t watch these people die. Foolish, stupid people. They should’ve known better. They might’ve had a long life if they’d been quite at night. Undoubtedly, the fire and singing were giant beacons proclaiming
Here we are! Come get us!
None of them would live, including the children. The invaders didn’t care about children.

Rapid pops suddenly rent through the air, startling her. Those were gunshots, from a human gun. She hadn’t heard them in a long time, but she remembered what they sounded like. Her father had owned a gun and he’d taught her to shoot, long before they’d run out of ammunition.

Bree looked down again and saw the settlers fighting back. Bullets hit the hover discs and brought them down, forcing the invaders to fight from the ground where bullets tore through the protective armor. Somehow, after leaving the discs they were more vulnerable, something she hadn’t realized, and she stored the valuable information in the back of her mind.

She was glad the humans were fighting back. It still wouldn’t save them, but maybe some of them could escape. Regroup. Take this as a learning experience and do better next time. Avoid forming a community. Hadn’t their elders taught them anything? When the invaders had arrived they’d targeted the cities first, and the bigger they were the quicker they fell. Millions of people dead in days, and within a month great nations had fallen. It was difficult for Bree to wrap her head around the idea of governments and presidents, but there was much about the past that confused her.