Page 1 of An Alien for the Farm

1

ELEANOR

Igrab my bag and step off the shuttle, pulling a chestful of air into my lungs. This is the first day of my new life and…

And it smells like shit.

Maybe I inhaled too hard because the scent of what can only be fresh manure wafts straight into my nostrils and fills my lungs. I almost choke but manage to compose myself as I see the offending pile of animal excrement being carted off down the street.

Strange alien beings look my way. Some with horns, some that look like bulls from back home, others that look like birds… Some with tails, some with more than two legs, some with only one. My eyes widen as they pass, but none stop to look at me. Their gazes fall my way and then shift away a second later.

They…don’t see me. It’s almost like being transported back to Earth and dropped in the center of a city. I’d be invisible there, too. And that’s a good thing right now, isn’t it? I just stepped off a shuttle into a brand-new world. The last thing I want to do is stand out like a sore thumb.

Clearing my throat, I fix my glasses on my nose as I look one way down the street and then the other. Behind me, there’s a low hiss as the doors to the shuttle close, and the operator, a furry guy who looks like a cross between a goat and a human, gives me a wink before pulling away.

“Hey, I—” But he’s already gone. “I…don’t know where to go…”

I frown, my words fading into the hustle and bustle of the town around me. Slight panic rises in my gut. I’m on a new world and I’m all alone with no idea where I should go or where to find the person who’s supposed to meet me.

Forcing the lump of panic down my throat, I reach into my bag and pull out the flyer. Something squawks near my ears, nearly toppling my glasses off my nose and nearly sending the flyer into the air.

“Get out of the way, female!” A gruff alien that looks like a set of boulders stacked on each other lumbers past with a flock of…ostrich-kiwis? following closely behind him. At least, they look like kiwi birds…if God made them seven feet tall.

His remark has me looking around to realize I am, in fact, standing in the middle of the road. “Oh!” I grab my little bag filled with all the clothes and things I could carry and hurry to the other side of the street. There, I swallow down that ball of panic again and make sure I’m not standing in anyone’s way before I lift the flyer again.

“The New Horizons Initiative,” I murmur, gaze skipping over the words. “The New Horizons Initiative offers a fresh start on a peaceful farming planet to individuals facing significant life changes—such as widowhood, retirement, divorce, or personal hardship. Each female receives a homestead in the Hudoian planes, creating opportunities for growth and fulfillment.”

It’s actually written in English. These New Horizons people seemed legit.

I release a breath, turning the flyer to its back. “Someone’s supposed to meet me,” I murmur, biting my bottom lip as I look at the name I’d scribbled down. “I’m sure of it.”

I’d written everything down. I’d double and triple-checked. Living on a refugee ship for the last ten years after being abducted from the only planet I knew, I’d made sure I got every detail right.

Lifting my chin, I use the hand holding the flyer to keep my sunhat on my head as a gust of wind blows down the street. I’d worn the sunhat just in case and it seems like I made the right decision. The sun’s shining hot and there’s barely a shadow to hide underneath. Hudo III is supposed to be a minor planet with relatively calm weather and low danger. I’d heard someone on the refugee ship laugh and say it was like a huge farming colony and it sounded perfect. A slow life, perfect for rebuilding. I took the flyer and signed up for the New Horizons placement. Only now…now I’m wondering if there’s something I missed.

Am I supposed to find my way to the farm on my own?

Just as I square my shoulders and decide to ask someone for possible directions, I hear a voice at my back.

“You must be the human! Eleanor Tabitha Taylor?”

I blink, turning around to face a…male with a perfectly white coat of fur, rabbit ears, and the tiniest nose I have ever seen. His big albino red eyes blink at me. “I am Xarion, your guide.”

“Oh!” I release my hat and fumble with the flyer, turning to the back where I’d put down the name of the person I’m supposed to meet. “Xarion Naga…mooshi…favel, right? Nice to meet you!”

He gives me a flourish that makes me blink several times.

“At your service, Eleanor Tabitha.” He’s dressed in clothes that make him look like a human butler for a very wealthy family. “I do apologize for my tardiness.”

“Oh, no! Don’t worry, it’s fine!” I grab my bag, clenching my teeth slightly at the ache that goes through my thumb. “And it’s just Eleanor.” I’d packed light to take the strain off my hands, but it seems even that wasn’t enough. Ignoring the pain, I smile at Xarion. “So, where to?”

“Well,” he stands, his long ears almost brushing against the soft fabric of the flowing brown tunic I’m wearing as a summer dress. Not exactly the type of clothes for a farm, but I assume I’ll find a garment shop somewhere and can sew myself some overalls. They’d advised that I shouldn’t carry anything with me, anyway. “I was supposed to take you to have your language implant installed. However, you can understand me, so I assume you’re already in possession of a language device.”

I smile. “Oh yeah. Just a present from those Isclits that took me from Earth in the dead of night.”

Xarion blinks at me. His lids closing over his big eyes in a slow blink filled with the silence makes me want to laugh at my joke. Only a human can joke about their abduction from their planet like it’s just another thing that happened. Most other races I met on the refugee ship didn’t even speak about that part of their past.

“Well then,” Xarion recovers, adjusting his collar with one hand. “We shall set off.”

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