Page 1 of Veras
CHAPTER 1
Present Day
The beast is…magnífico.
I pressed my face against the invisible force field to study one of the most terrifyingly beautiful creatures I’d ever seen. Since I’d been abducted and dumped on an alien planet almost five years before, that was saying a lot.
Massive, with deep purple scales and a startling mango plume, it prowled and swiped at the handlers maneuvering it into submission. It had eight legs, two sets in the back and front—each muscled limb tipped in razor-sharp claws. Impossible to gauge its size from a distance, I peered down at it from the alien equivalent of box seats. I imagined it stood as tall as a dragon without its wings.
Its fearsome teeth shredded almost a dozen of the bird-like alien handlers, and I silently cheered as it slashed through the group. Because we both knew that whatever they planned to do with the alien-dragon wouldn’t be good.
A backdrop to the bloodshed, I glimpsed the raw alien landscape. It still took my breath away. The U-shaped arena appeared minuscule against the ebony mountains that stood higher than the cloud line. A chain of them, jagged peaks striped in gold, dominated the barren land. Beyond their dark beauty loomed the most incredible sight I’d ever seen or imagined. A massive blue sun shone through golden, swirling skies. The startling contrast to Earth’s atmosphere was a constant reminder that I was lifetimes away from home.
The alien beast roared, and my eyes refocused on the arena. I drank him in, willing him to fight. To win!No te rindes,I silently chanted. As if straight out of a horror movie, the monster tore off an alien’s head, tossed it in the air, and chomped it down like a snack.Don’t give up, I repeated.
Mid bite, it spun its massive head around, snapping shut its shark-like maw as it searched the crowd, golden eyes landing directly on me.
As if… it heard me.
I fell into the monster’s gaze. A dull ringing tickled my ears. The irritation increased, and faint pressure crested like waves against my temples. Not exactly painful, but the sensation transmittedfeelings, a deep sadness and anger that was so fierce and specific, it eclipsed my own.
As if the beast could—
“Teeth-teeth? Your pet has teeth?In its mouth?I must see them-them.” A bird-like Aavvee, the dominant species of the planet, sidled up and studiedmeinstead of the alien-dragon below. “How-howdoes it mate?Reproduce?”he called behind him.
I scrambled away from the inquisitive alien. The connection to the tortured beast below disconnected abruptly, and its loss staggered me. For a few precious moments, I’d forgotten where I was, forgotten the constant danger surrounding me.
“Show-showme, Pet. Now.” The alien chirped and puffed out his chest.
I wasn’t surprised by his demand; it happened every day on thishijo de la putaplanet. I didn’t bother addressing him. Instead, I hunched low and scurried toward the vile of a substance I callOro,a golden liquid that made this planet so unique. It was a drug to the Aavvee, but it was also a necessity to survive the harsh climate of this world. It allowed me to breathethe air, understand my captors, and communicate. If I ever decided to speak.
Not that they’d given me anything more than the barest amount to stay alive. Even now, I knew I had a few days, tops, before I collapsed from the inhospitable planet.
Don’t think about tomorrow. All you’ve got is today.
“Open-openwide. Must,mustsee those teeth.” The creeper alien jumped in front of me and reached out with surprising speed, grasping my face in his clawed hand. He stood around my height, a little over five and a half feet, small-framed with a large head at least three times the size of mine. This particular one had a small beak instead of a mouth, large bulbous eyes, and mottled feathers that flowed up and over its teardrop head.
I clamped my mouth shut and planted my feet. If this redundantpendejowanted to see inside my mouth, he was going to have to work for it.
Not that he’s gonna like what he finds.
“Fascinating-ting. They have fleshy protrusions instead of beaks. But,buthow do they eat?” He squeezed my cheeks so hard, my eyes watered. “Open-open up!”
“Leave-leaveit be.” My current owner, and the head honcho of this place, tittered and sat back in his tiny chair. “We-wehave more important matters at hand,” the squat supreme proclaimed. “But-butfirst, myglrtsstlllloroggg.”
Glrtsstllllorogggwas the alien word for Oro, one I couldn’t begin to pronounce. His anatomy allowed him to make sounds I couldn’t fathom.
I tried to back out of Creeper’s hold, but he wouldn’t let go. He was about to ruin all my hard work. It’d takenyearsto curry the alien supreme’s favor. After groveling and serving him nonstop, I’d earned the right to dispense the Oro. Because it had to be fitted into an injector with a long needle at the end,the Aavvee supreme didn’t trust many to administer the shot—directly into his eye, for maximum effect.
“So-sosoft.” Creeper alien persisted in a harsh lisp. “I can imagine how it might feel on my…” He opened his mouth, and a thin tube, wet and leathery, slithered out and slapped me in the eye.
Thwap!
If I lived a thousand years, I would never get used to the feel of alien junk. The stench of Creeper’spitomade my knees buckle, a sickening combination of fermented fish and death, all rolled into one.
That’s right.These skinny little fuckers had dicks for tongues and this predator was about to get a rude awakening about human anatomy.
His fingers tightened. The inside of my cheek cut into my teeth, but still, I took my time, slowly spreading my lips in the widest smile he’d ever seen. A female alien opening her mouth was the human equivalent of a woman spreading her legs.
