Her Alien Protector: A Sci-fi Romance

Part 12

Ava

Loviatar looms over me.

I try to get away, but he claws at me, sending me sprawling to the ground. He drags me toward the surgical table where there is the image of a brain overhead.

Help!

***

"Scourge," I cry.

Where am I? Kayla is in the arms of a scourge. Oh no!

Hands unbuckle me. Rigel lifts me out of my seat and pulls me into his lap. His wings drape over me, blocking my view of Kayla and the scourge.

My sleepy mind starts to remember. It was only a nightmare. Loviatar is no longer with me. Now, I am in a spacecraft with the human Kayla, the scourge Tarak, and the angel Rigel.

Tiny paws press into my palms, and my eyes go to Glow Ball, the little animal (the rahoni) Kayla told me to watch.

The rahoni glows like a luminous yellow candle, lighting up everything in this dark pocket under Rigel's wings: my shirt; Rigel's arms, which wrap around my waist; and every part of Glow Ball, including his eyes.

Glow Ball's large eyes gaze up at me. I hug the little animal against me, whispering. "Don't be scared, Glow Ball."

The rahoni kneads his tiny paws on my shirt, curls into my lap, and purrs contentedly. Before my eyes, Glow Ball's color changes from a bright yellow to green.

Glow Ball can change colors?

"What are you," I ask the little animal.

Rigel runs his hands up and down my arms. "Shh, Ava, Rigel protects Ava. You are safe."

Enveloped in this mini world with a glowing rahoni in my lap, strong arms embracing me, and warmth and softness from Rigel's feathers, I lean into Rigel's promise, letting myself trust him. Just like the little rahoni who yawns and closes his eyes, I do the same.

I'm floating, lulled to sleep by a rumbling sound.

My mind holds onto the promise whispered to me: You are safe.

***

We are not safe! My stomach flip-flops like I am in freefall.

I pop my head out between Rigel's wings. Through the viewport, the ground races toward us.

Tarak shouts at the wall, Rigel's arms tighten around me, and we slam into the ground. The overhead lights go dark.

We are not in darkness for long. Glow Ball casts light, and minutes later, emergency lights illuminate the ship's floor.

Kayla disappears down a hallway and when she returns, she drops bags near each of us. "These backpacks contain food rations, water, a blanket, and a battery-powered communicator. We should return to the Firefly at the end of each day, so we shouldn't depend on the supplies, but keep it with you as you explore planet X044 as a precaution."

Kayla doesn't need to tell me twice and I immediately strap mine onto me.

Tarak opens the hatch, and he is the first to leave the ship.

Kayla goes toward the open hatch door next. All the science fiction shows my little sister Hannah has watched—Body Snatchers, Village of the Damned, Aliens—dance in my mind.

Has Kayla ever seen those science fiction shows? Apparently not because she does not tell the computer to scan the environment or distribute weapons. No, she just disembarks.