Page 2 of Found By the Alien Warrior

The muddy terrain out here was so different from the clean, dry spaceship. I shivered in the cold, damp air as the aliens herded us into a grey cargo vehicle. One elbowed me in the ribs. They kept shoving and prodding us into submission.

“Hey.” The male human looked to me and his friend as the kidnappers got the rest of the ship’s passengers inside. "At least it's not a black hole, right?"

I was too stunned to reply to his nervous humor. His friend spoke. "Right." He offered a weak smile that did little to hide the fear in his eyes.

An alien captor got inside the vehicle with us while the others walked around to the front. The door slammed shut, cloaking us in the dark, with only a dim light from the strange red moon that poured through the large drafty cracks of the vehicle’s walls and hatch space.

The vehicle lurched into motion, bumping and swaying as it rolled across the foreign landscape. I folded my arms to maintain what little warmth I had in my thin jacket. Mud caked my clothes and skin, chilling me to the bone, but my discomfort was momentarily forgotten when I spotted him – a big, muscular, blue-skinned alien. A large scar on his chest was visible beneath his torn shirt. His pointed ears stood out from his shoulder-length dark hair.

His electric blue eyes locked onto mine, causing a jolt to run through me. It was as though he could see right through me, laying bare all my fears and secrets. I didn’t see him get on the spaceship earlier. I definitely would have noticed him trying to cram what had to be six and a half feet of his gladiator frame into the cabin. If he wasn’t with us, was he with the aliens who captured us right after the ship landed?

I tried to look away, but I was trapped in that piercing gaze.

"Who are you?" I whispered. My voice had to be inaudible above the rumble of the cargo vehicle, but his right ear twitched. Maybe he could read my lips. Whatever the case, he didn’t respond, only watched me with a focus that sent hot and cold tingles down my spine.

"Hey!" The human guy with the bad sense of humor snapped, drawing my attention away from the blue alien. "Keep your voice down. Do you want to get us all killed?"

So much for the humor.

Sorry. I mouthed the word, but as I stole another glance at the big alien, I couldn’t help but wonder if we were already doomed. For now, all I could do was hold on and hope maybe, just maybe, I might find a way to survive this sudden nightmare.

Through the cracks in the vehicle’s side, I watched the passing scenery. The muddy terrain beneath us shifted and churned as we moved. Soon my heart started to race until it pounded in my ears like a war drum. What was wrong with me? Was I going to just sit here and wait for whatever those kidnappers decided to do next? I inched my way towards the hatch.

"Where do you think you're going?" The captor who stayed inside the vehicle shouted at me. His voice was like nails on a chalkboard, sending harsh tremors through me as he showed his row of shark teeth. He advanced, claws poised to strike, but before I could react, I felt strong arms encircle my waist. The blue-skinned alien from before yanked me back against his chest.

"Don’t touch her." He growled at the captor, his breath warm against my ear. "She's no threat to you."

"Let go of me.” I struggled against him, but his grip tightened. What did he want with me? Was he trying to save me or just make my punishment or possible death more drawn-out and painful?

"You think you can talk back, Aurik?” The captor confronted the alien who held me. “Don’t let a few wins in the ring go to your head. You’re still a prisoner.”

I shifted to look at the guy holding me. Wins? Ring? What in the literal hell was he talking about?

Shark Teeth jabbed a claw at the one restraining me. “You’re out of the ring for now only because Korga has a job for you. Keep these new ones under control.”

Who was Korga?

The captor snarled at us again before turning his attention to the other captives, leaving me alone with the mysterious alien. I braced myself for the blue guy’s next move. The heat of his body radiated through the damp fabric of my jacket, and I could practically feel power coursing from him. But I refused to let him control me. I kicked and tried twisting myself free of his grasp.

All while maintaining his firm grasp, he leaned his head towards me. In the scarlet moonlight, I saw that his big arms and part of his torso were covered with tattoos, their symbols completely foreign to me. "Stop before you get yourself killed."

"Easy for you to say." Fear and anger bottled up inside me, burning away everything else until all that was left was the instinct to survive. "You're not the one who's been kidnapped and dragged through the mud."

"I know what it's like to be in your shoes." His tone was stoic, but his electric eyes burned with blue intensity.

“Really? It sounded like you and the other guy are working together.”

“We’re not.” His voice softened just a fraction. "But I have to act like it. If you want to make it out alive, you need to trust me."

“Trust you?” I scoffed, my laughter bitter and hollow. I glanced around the vehicle at the other captives who slumped down in the shadows. "I don't even know your name. What did the other dude call you, Aura or something?"

“Aurik. Is this really the time for jokes?" He raised an eyebrow, seemingly unimpressed. But underneath his gruff exterior, I couldn’t help but feel that he was silently amused by my sarcastic brave front. "Are you going to let me help you or not?"

"Alright, Aurik. My name is Sonya." There was something about him that called to me, some unidentifiable quality that made me want to believe he was on my side. Trust was a luxury I couldn’t afford right now, though. I had to stay focused on surviving, no matter what it took.

"Good," he murmured, his grip finally loosening. "Now, listen. Korga’s a racketeer. He’s got himself on nearly every planet’s most wanted list in this galaxy. I got caught when I was searching for him.”

I frowned. “So you’re a bounty hunter or something?”

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