Page 16 of Claimed By her Alien Prince

"Artificial insemination." Andrea rolled her eyes, and I wasn't sure if she was rolling them at Dina or Homer.

"Why hasn't anybody told us this before?" Azubah asked reasonably. "Why now?"

"Because we didn't know exactly when they would come. Much of this program isn't divulged to everyone."

We exchanged some quick disbelieving glances, but nobody said anything. I turned back to the mirror and had trouble applying my lipstick; my fingers shook so badly, I needed to wipe around the edges to clean up smudges.

Ben, I thought. I would have been paired with Ben. But even though the thought didn't displease me, all I could see were red glowing eyes on a chiseled face.

The conversations died after that and once we had applied our makeup and taken our choice of the white, sacrificial dresses, we stood huddled in the temple's center. I craned my neck up to the ceiling, where, about ten stories up, a fifteen-by-fifteen foot opening allowed bright light inside.

For a moment I marveled at how dry the edges seemed and wondered how no rain had ever gotten in or mold, but then I remembered how pristine everything else looked.

A noise to my left, a subdued sob from Sara, brought me back to reality and stopped my senseless wondering about why this place was in such pristine condition, and how no rain had found its way inside. In the grand scheme of things, it really didn't matter and was only a way to keep my brain from short circuiting.

Judith put an arm around Sara and talked to her.

"Can I talk to you for a moment?" I jerked, because I hadn't heard Ben approach, and he startled me.

"Sure."

I followed him to a more secluded corner, throwing worried glances toward the girls, all now dressed in white, like me, standing bathed in the rays of sunlight.

"Don't worry, they're not going to get beamed up to the spaceship without you," Ben joked.

I smiled wryly, hugging myself and waited for him to begin.

"Look, uhm, this is kind of awkward." He brought his hand behind his neck and rubbed it, and for some reason, I found that gesture sexy as hell. Ben wasn't a bad-looking man and under different circumstances… and with my newly awakened libido…

"I know that you don't know me, have been kept in the dark about me, us, the program… but I…" He closed his eyes and took a deep breath. "Well I sort of always knew about you…"

I tilted my head and gave him an encouraging smile to continue. "This is going to be hard to believe, but I… I'm not a stalker… but I've always really liked you."

Ben must have been a couple of years older than me, and if it was true what I had been told, a powerhouse in his own right. A successful businessman. And not only that, I had also seen him fight. The stunts he pulled had reminded me of the heroics in action movies, which meant he was well accomplished in that field too. So seeing him standing there, looking embarrassed, was kind of endearing.

"It's alright," I tried to reassure him. "I suppose we all have roles to play in this."

He nodded. "Yes, you have no idea… anyway, Homer…"

As if conjured by having said his name, Homer appeared, and clapped his hands. "Can I have your attention please?"

I gave Ben an apologetic nod and noticed he looked torn between being irritated for having been interrupted and relieved for it at the same time. I wondered where he had been going with his speech, but Homer demanded my full attention.

"Like I said before, many of us have been in the dark about many things, most of all you, and I'm sorry for this, but it was necessary. What I must ask of you now might even be even harder to do and hear. But this devilish menace has been returning to Earth every seven hundred years, for a very, very long time. They need to be stopped." His eyes moved from one girl to the next. When he caught mine, the muscles underneath my skin rippled in discomfort.

"You are the first modern women these aliens have ever encountered on Earth. Let's teach them a lesson that has been long overdue." He paused again dramatically, and the foreboding sensation inside me increased.

"Every single one of you has been trained in weaponry and self-defense. Each of you is a worthy soldier. Something these aliens aren't expecting. Now, I'm not going to pretend to know exactly what they want from you, why they return every seven hundred years, demanding seven virgins of the Nayphyllym blood, but let's make sure you are the last ones they will ever take from Earth. Let's make sure no other families will ever have to go through what you and your families are going through."

It was deathly quiet in the temple. We all stood frozen, staring at Homer. It was Azubah who broke the spell. "You want us to kill the aliens?"

Her voice reflected just the right amount of humor woven with skepticism to pull a small giggle, first from Phoebe, then Dina, then me, and before long, even Sara giggled, before each one of us laughed hysterically.

"Man, you have some nerve," Azubah grumbled when she caught her breath.

I wiped at some tears, careful not to smear my eyeliner and mascara, even though I wondered why I cared.

"For all we know, they're going to pamper and spoil us to no end. Have you ever read an alien romance?" Dina asked, in a cold tone of voice. "Why would we care about any of you, or the other humans? According to you, we are Nayphyllym, not human. Why should we care what happens to any of you? None of you ever gave a shit about us."

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