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  “We will not. Your human colony shot at us. We are going to try to go to a different team in colony north of here. We will see if they are more receptive to us and you are going to help us. You will be the one to talk to them for us,” he said.

  “No. I won't. I want to go home. I have family there. My sister is there. I am sorry that they grew hostile, but can you blame them? Look at you,” I said.

  He was silent. He looked at me up and down. I suddenly felt like I was very naked as his brown eyes moved over my body. Once again, I found myself growing aroused by his presence. What the hell was wrong with me?

  “I will make a contract with you, human,” he said.

  “Contract?”

  “I will take you home to your sister. But only after you do two things for me,” he said.

  I narrowed my eyes at him. How dare he think I would enter into a contract with him. There was nothing that would make me think he would keep his word. He wasn't even human. I crossed my arms, waiting for him to finish.

  “You will introduce us to the human colony that we stop at next as well as the one that you live in. You will let the humans know that we are not hostile and that we have come to help them,” he said.

  “You already said that. What is the second thing?” I asked.

  “You will mate with me,” he said.

  “What? Do you mean have sex with you?” I shouted.

  “Yes, sex. You will have sex with me. Only when you fulfill these two items of the contract will I take you home to your sister,” he said.

  “You are fucking crazy, you lunatic alien!” I shouted at him pointing my finger in his face as I angrily stomped to him. Now I was only inches in front of him, and I had to tilt my head back in order to look up at him. He was very tall—very foreboding. I suddenly became scared as I felt more petite than I ever had in my life standing next to this giant alien.

  He laughed at me. “I like that. You have a fire inside of you, human female. You are feisty.”

  “I don't care if you like it. I will not agree to your stupid contract,” I said.

  “I understand. But ask yourself, what choice do you have? You are stuck here with us hundreds of feet in the air. I promised my king to rescue and help humans. But I did not make a promise that I had to return them home. In fact, my king would probably find it very good of me that I kept you as a resource. We need a human on the ship. So if you do not agree to my contract, then you could potentially spend the rest of your life with us, the Veruka,” he said.

  I narrowed my eyes at him in anger. He was really pissing me off. He was right. Everything he said was right. I didn't have a choice. But I couldn't do it. I didn't know this creature. I couldn't sleep with him. I had to do something in order to buy me some time and to get me back on the ground.

  “Fine! I will agree to speak to humans for you. In exchange for taking me home to my sister. But only after you have reunited me with my colony will I fulfill the second half of your agreement. It is the only way I can be sure that you will hold your end of the contract,” I said.

  “Done. Now if you will follow me, I will show you to a more comfortable room. Unless you want to stay in the infirmary?” he said.

  “Where is my shirt?” I said.

  “I had to cut it off you. It was the only way to not injure you more,” he said.

  “You cut it off for me. So you were the one that…”

  He smiled. “Yes. And may I say that you are absolutely beautiful, and so are they,” he said as he looked directly at my breasts. My face turned a bright red. He had already seen me naked. I couldn't believe it. I didn't know how all of this was happening to me, but I had a feeling it was just the beginning.

  Chapter 5

  General Rai Razook

  Seeing Hannah's breasts when I took off her shirt to see to her wounds on her back, was shocking to me. I wasn't expecting her to be so damn beautiful. But I forced myself to concentrate on treating her injuries. It was the right thing to do no matter how much my brutish nature wanted to just stare at them. But seeing the look on her face when I told her I had seen her half naked already was well worth it. She was easily frustrated, this human female, and I was having a lot of fun with that. Anything could set her off, and I like to sing the fire inside of her come out. I wondered if she was this feisty in bed as she was when she was angry.

  “Are you ready? I have a room set up for you on this ship,” I said standing in the doorway.

  "You want me to go out there like this?” she said looking down at the bandages that she had used to cover her breasts.

  “Yes, I do,” I said as I walked out.

  I heard a frustrated groan come out of her mouth. But I could feel that she was following me. No one wanted to stay in the infirmary.

  I walked down the hallway with her following me. I stopped in front of a door and put in the combination to open it. The door slid open.

  “This is it. It is standard quarters for a soldier. It is small, but you have everything you need,” I said stepping inside. She followed me in.

  “Am I a prisoner?” she said looking at the door lock panel.

  “No, you are not. But we are on a ship hundreds of feet in the air. Where are you going to go?” I said.

  She gave me a dirty look. She knew that I was right. She walked in and stood on the other side of the room. “Am I supposed to stay in this?” she said pointing out her bandages.

  “Forgive me if we do not have clothes for you. As you can see, we do not wear clothing on our chests either. So I cannot give you something to wear,” I said. She looked at my chest and my stomach. Then she seemed to blush a light pink color. Then she looked away.

  “Yes, I have noticed.”

  “I will have food brought to you. You need to eat. It will help with your injuries,” I said.

  “Thank you,” she said. It was the first kindness I heard come from her. Maybe she was starting to realize that I was actually on her side. That I had not only rescued her from the machines, but had taken care of her injuries, and would take care of her. She would just have to take care of me in return. I didn't see what the big deal was in asking for some sex from this human female. But clearly, she thought it was a big deal.

  I bowed in goodbye and walked out of her room, closing the door behind me. As soon as I turned the corner, I ran into Lieutenant Qon.

  “How is the human female doing?” he asked.

  “She is doing well,” I said.

  “Good. That is good. I saw you leading her to her room. I have never seen a human female scantily clad like that before. It looks good on her,” he said with a grin. It was then that I realized there was a desire for Hannah in his eyes. I didn't like it one bit. I did not want anyone touching her. She was mine. I was the one that had found her, and I would be the one to claim her as a mate.

  “It is out of necessity. She needs her rest now to heal. Lieutenant, I will have you summon the others for a meeting in exactly one hour. We are going to look at the human colony map and make a move north. That is an order,” I said to him trying to give him something to do so that he would not try to bother Hannah.

  “Yes, General, ” he said with a tone that let me know he wasn't happy about hearing me give him an order. But that was his damn job, the jerk.

  He turned in the other direction and walked away. I walked up to a trusted soldier.

  “I want you to get a tray of food and take it to the human female. I have put her in bunk 9C. After you deliver the food to her, I want you to stand guard outside her door. No one is to enter except for me. If she wants to walk around the ship, that is fine, but you must guard her. Do you understand?” I said.

  “Yes, General, right away,” he said as he turned to do my orders.

  I went to the flight deck. I had one more thing that I wanted to do before I had a meeting to decide where we were heading.

  “I need two soldiers to come down to the ground with me. We are going on wings so lower the ship down to flight le
vel,” I said to the pilot.

  “You were going on a flight?” he said.

  “Yes, I have one particular assignment I want to complete. It won't take me long. Set us above a forested area near some human houses,” I said.

  “Yes, General, ” he said.

  While the ship lowered, I gathered to soldiers, armed and ready. We shifted into weredragon form. The cargo door opened, and we flew out of the ship. I landed on the roof, and the soldiers followed me. We walked along the roof of the house searching for any activity.

  “Stay on the roof and keep alert. Signal me if you see any activity. I'm going inside this house,” I said.

  They nodded in recognition of my orders. I flew down to the ground and entered the house. The house was abandoned. There was no activity nor sounds in the area. I walked in and looked through the rooms that had the beds in them. The humans organized their clothes in a certain way in small compartments in the wall and in cabinets on the floor. The first room was full of very small human clothing. So I went to the next. I found what I was looking for. There was clothing similar to what Hannah was wearing when I found her. I took a few items that she could wear on her top, as well as pants. I hoped they would be sufficient for her; they looked about her size. I pushed them into a bag that was on the floor. I went into the kitchen and found some canned human food. I grabbed some and pushed them into the bag. Then I walked outside and flew onto the roof.

  “Did you see anything?” I asked my guards.

  “No, nothing, General, except the creatures of Earth,” he said.

  “Good. I am ready. Let's get back to the ship; there is much to do,” I said.

  We flew back to the ship. The cargo door closed, and it had been exactly an hour. I put the bag on the floor as I saw Lieutenant Qon coming toward me.

  “We are ready for the meeting. The map is set up in the conference room, and everyone is waiting for orders,” he said.

  “Good. I am on my way,” I said.

  Minutes later I stood in the conference room looking at the human colony map that we had obtained from Haven Brook. There was another concentration of human colonies just north of our position.

  “I want to go to this area. Maybe we will find a human colony there. Now that we have the human female, we can send her down first to speak with the humans on our behalf. It is how the king did it at Haven Brook and was successful, as you all know. Therefore we will try to do the same. Set a course for this spot,” I said circling the area.

  “Remember: we need to get at a high altitude. Do not descend until I give orders. We will be embarking on a scout ship down to the ground while the fleet stays out of sight high in the clouds. That is the plan. Now go,” I said.

  The group disbursed to complete their orders. I went back out to the cargo area and grabbed the bag of human items. I went to Hannah's room. The guard I had posted was there.

  “You can take a break and return in an hour,” I said to him.

  “Yes, General, ” he said with a salute and walked away. I knocked on the door, giving her a warning. Then I opened it. She was sitting on the bed.

  “Did you eat?” I asked.

  “Yes, I did,” she said standing up. I closed the door behind me and threw the bag at her feet. She gave me a dirty look. Was this woman never satisfied?

  “What is that?” she said.

  “Look inside and see, human. Or do I have to do everything for you?” I asked.

  She gave me a look and then squatted down and opened the bag. She pulled out the clothes and canned food. She looked up at me with her big brown eyes.

  “Where did you get this?” she asked.

  “I flew down to the ground and looked into some human houses. I found these items for you,” I said.

  “You went down to get this for me?” she asked with a softer voice.

  “I did.”

  “Thank you. I am glad to actually have some clothing,” she said.

  “Good.” I stood there waiting.

  “Did you need something else from me?”

  “No. I am just waiting for you to try on these items,” I said folding my arms across my chest and leaning against the wall.

  “What?” she said with anger.

  “How will you know if they fit?” I laughed.

  “I am not going to get naked in front of you,” she said.

  “Not yet anyway. But you will eventually, and I have already seen this,” I said as I motioned toward her breasts.

  "That does not mean that you get to see it again. Now if you'll excuse me so that I can change, you pig,” she said.

  I laughed. I took very wide steps and stood directly in front of her. Standing this close to her, she was much smaller. I looked down at her as she looked up at me with her big brown eyes. I could see fear in them. I am sure that my size terrified her.

  “You will be my mate, human. You can count on that.” I leaned down as though I was going to kiss her. She sucked in a sharp breath of air. I stopped. I did not kiss her; I only lingered. Then I turned around and walked out of her room.

  Chapter 6

  Hannah Maven

  I didn't mind the room that I was in so much. It was a very small room, but at least it was private. Even at Willow Springs, I didn't have such luxury. I shared a room with my twin sister, Helen. I didn't mind it because we were close, and we were in survival mode, but I missed the old days of having an entire apartment to myself. This small bank on a spaceship was the closest I had to any privacy in years. There was a single bed all along one wall, and it was very long and very wide for a single bed. But that was because it was for these extremely tall alien creatures that were massive and broad. The rest of the room had a small table and then a small door that led to a washroom the size of a small closet. I was glad to not have to share a washroom with all of the soldiers.

  But I wasn't alone for a long when the frustrating brute General Razook came in to interrupt my solace. I was still trying to wrap my head around everything that was happening, but more importantly, how I would escape. I needed to get back to Willow Springs and to my sister. I wondered if anyone on the supply run had managed to get away. Either they were killed by the humans or cyborgs, captured, or had gotten away. I would not be able to find out such information where I was. I needed to get on the ground and get away from these aliens.

  So, it was quite the surprise when General Razook came into the room to give me a bag of human things including clothing. I was very grateful for it. I did not want to be topless any longer. But I was surprised when he told me that he went down to the ground to get it. He had done this for me. I didn't understand this creature. I was seeing two sides of him. One side was brutal and completely rogue. This was the side that had seen me half naked and was talking about my breasts. The other side was kind enough to go down to the ground and get me clothes and food. I didn't understand him.

  Now, he stood towering over me.

  “You will be my mate, human. You can count on that,” he said to me in a very cold way. He leaned down over me, and I thought he was going to kiss me. I gasped. But for some reason, I didn't move away even though there was plenty of room behind me to step away from him. I froze. Somewhere deep down inside of me, I wanted this attractive alien to kiss me. What the hell was wrong with me? He was awful. He was rude and a pig. But at this moment with him standing this close to me, demanding that I will have sex with him at some point, made my body feel hot all over. It was not the reaction that I was expecting.

  I sort of got ready for him to kiss me. But then I was completely shocked when he didn't. He just smiled at me as though he knew that I wanted him to kiss me. Then he turned around and walked out of the room, closing the door behind him. I realized that I was holding my breath. I started to breathe again.

  “What the hell was that, Hannah?” I said to myself. I was very disappointed in my behavior. I threw the bag on the bed and emptied out everything. There were tank tops, a plaid flannel, and two pairs of jeans. There w
ere cans of green beans, carrots, and even a can of chicken soup. I was delighted by this, even though the Veruka had brought me a tray of fresh food which was surprisingly from Earth. I had been expecting some sort of alien goulash. This meant they must have been on Earth for quite a while now. I wanted to know more about what was going on, but I wasn't going to find that out in this room.

  I unwrapped the bandages that served as a tube top. I pulled on a green tank top slowly over the bandages on my back. I was surprised that they were feeling better already, and I remembered that General Razook said I would heal fast with the alien medicine. Then I pulled on a flannel but didn't bother to button it up. It was more like a jacket because it was a bit drafty in the spaceship. I put on a fresh pair of jeans, considering the ones I wore had been dragged across the forest floor. I put my boots back on and felt better. Too bad there wasn't a bathtub in this room. I really could use a long hot bath.