Alien Soldier's Baby (Scifi Alien Romance) (Zoran Warriors)

“
L
ook
at his tiny little feet!”

I look at Jillian’s ultrasound, and a warmth flows through me. Even in the grainy picture I can already see that their baby is a perfect mix of Jillian’s and Vinz’s features.

My best friend Jillian, who had always been the forever single one, is now having the first human-Zoran baby in recorded history! I’d never have guessed. We’re sitting in her royal chambers, drinking tea as we catch up. General Vinz is now the Warrior-King of the Zoran people, which technically makes Jillian a queen. Vinz and her are absolutely made for each other. I don’t know how, but she managed to tame the wild, seven-foot-tall warrior, and it’s clear that he loves her more than anything.

“How do you feel?” I ask, placing my hand on Jill’s swollen stomach. It’s as round as a melon.

“Pregnant,” she huffs. “So very pregnant.”

“I can see that.”

“Tell me about your travels,” she says. She grabs her cup of tea, stirring the liquid before taking a sip. “I’d like a moment’s distraction from this little kicker. I feel like he’s more than ready to be born, but the healers say it’ll take two more months! But enough about my swollen feet, tell me everything about your travels!”

After everything that happened – our abduction by Senator Gorgi, our rescue by General Vinz and his second-in-command Koryn, and the subsequent short-lived war as the High Command was overthrown – I decided I needed a good long
break
. I decided to put my minor in anthropology to good use, and I travelled all over Exon Prime, the Zoran homeworld, for over six months, learning about their culture.

As the only human on this planet, besides Jillian, I got quite a bit of attention.

Male attention, especially.

There’s something about earth women that these hulking, broad warriors go crazy for. I’ve had to fend off more men than I can count. Not that they’re not attractive – with their eye-catching skin tones, their radiant eyes, and bulging muscles, the Zorans are sight to behold – but they’re far too possessive for my taste. The Zorans mate
for life
.

I’m not ready for that kind of commitment!

I can barely commit to an outfit, let alone a life-long relationship.

“I don’t even know where to start,” I tell Jillian.

“Have you found a mate yet?” she asks, wiggling her eyebrows at me. “Or am I going to be the only mom around here?”

I roll my eyes. “Just because
you
have got baby fever doesn’t mean my ovaries are about to explode.”

“You’re telling me nothing happened? Come on, you’ve been gone for
six months
. I don’t think you went
six days
without a date back on Earth.”

“That’s totally different!”

“How so?” she teases.

“First of all, no men I ever dated can compare to a Zoran,” I start.

Jillian laughs. “You’ve got that right.”

“And I decided to take a bit of a break from dating. A cleanse, if you will.”

My friend’s eyebrows rise. “Kelly Graham? Taking a break on dating? Did you fall on your head, dear?” She places her hand on my forehead. “Have you got a fever? Should I call a healer?”

“Cut it out,” I say, and playfully slap her hand away.

Not all of us meet the perfect man right away like you
.

Jillian smirks, and I can’t help but laugh. As unforgettable as it was to travel all over Exon Prime, I’m truly happy to be back here with my oldest friend, chatting away as if I’d never been gone at all.

“I’m glad you’re here, because I want to ask you for a favor,” Jillian says.

“Sure. Anything for you.”

“It’s a rather big one,” Jill says. With a few taps she sends a document to my wrist-com.

I open the file, and to my surprise a holo-image of an alien planet pops out of my display. The dark-green sphere orbits in front of me.

“This is Zenus,” Jillian says. “It’s two quadrants over. According to my preliminary readings, there’s large natural deposits of
evides
there.”

I nod.
Evides
is a white mineral and one of the main components of AC-19, also known as the Archer Cure. It’s a cure for the
black cough
– a horrible disease that has been ravaging Earth for decades.
Evides
is extremely rare, and I know Exon Prime is quickly running out of the valuable stuff.

“I’d like to go myself, but, well, you know,” she says, looking at her big baby bump. “I’m not as mobile as I’d like to be. Do you want to lead a small research team to Zenus?”

“Of course!” I say without hesitation. Explore another alien planet? Why not!

Jillian bites her bottom lip. “It
is
sort of… in the middle of Ygg territory.”

My face loses a bit of color.
Ygg
. I’ve never seen one myself, but I’ve heard plenty of stories about the horrible, insectoid killers. From what I hear they’re all shell and fangs. I hope to never see one.

“Our reserves are dwindling,” my best friend continues, “and I think Zenus is our best shot. If my readings are correct, then we can find enough
evides
there to make AC-19 for every single human being on Earth. Vinz is putting together a small team, and I’d like you to lead it. If you want.”

“Of course,” I say once again.

Jillian sighs with relief. “Thank you, Kel.”

“Don’t worry about it.”

My best friend rises to her feet. I try to help her, but she waves me away. “Let’s go tell Vinz.”

We walk through the long, stately halls of the Zoran palace, heading towards the throne room. “I love what you’ve done with the place,” I say when I see how all the High Command’s decorations have been replaced. Now the walls are adorned with warm and colorful tapestries.

“I did my best to make it feel a bit more like home,” Jill answers, “but I don’t think I’ll ever get used to living in such a keep. I’ll take a quaint little cottage over this any day of the week. Ah, here we are.”

Two Zorans guard the immense doors leading to the throne room, each one of them holding a massive halberd in their hands. They give us a polite nod and open the towering crimson double doors for us, the loud creaking sound signaling our arrival.

Even though it was only six months ago that Jillian and I were led into this very same throne room as prisoners of Senator Gorgi, it feels like a lifetime ago. So much has changed.

Vinz is standing in front of his throne, his skin as silver as the moon. His expression is hard like granite, but his features soften when his clear-blue eyes land on Jillian.

Standing in front of him, a scowl on his scarred face, is Koryn. He’s Vinz’s second-in-command, and he helped to save me and Jillian from the clutches of the Senators. He matches the general’s frame beat-for-beat. He’s got the same intimidating height, the same broad, muscled chest; the same intense, brooding, panty-melting stare. The difference is that Koryn’s skin is a dark purple, like amethyst.

His radiant eyes, the color of honey, narrow when our gaze meets. His shoulders are pulled back, and his jaw clenches.

I feel he’s not too happy to see me.

“
A
bsolutely not
,” I growl. “I’m not going to some backwater planet! I’m needed right here!”

“It’s not a question,” Vinz says. “It’s an order. You’re leading the mission to Zenus, and that’s final.”

“The Ygg are building up their forces! They want to take advantage of our weakness! It’s only a matter of time before they strike. I should be here, prepping our soldiers, leading the defense! General Tyr and General Drax are both millions of klicks away!”

“I will do fine without you,” Vinz says calmly. “We
need
those resources, Koryn.”

“For what? The humans?”

Vinz’s icy eyes narrow. If they could shoot fire, I’d be a pile of ash.

“We need
evides
,” Vinz says. “For the humans, yes, but also for our own healers. Or have you forgotten it’s the basis for all our medi-gel?”

I grumble, my voice throaty and low. “If I’m leading the defense, our men won’t
need
treatment,” I say.

My king cracks a smile, a rare occurrence. “I’d like to believe that, Koryn, but we need those resources. Zenus is right in Ygg-space, so that’s why I want
you
on the ground there, making sure our researcher is kept safe.”

My jaw clenches. It seems he’s made up his mind, and once Vinz does so, there’s no changing it.

Unless your name is Jillian Archer.

“You’ll lead the team. Just the two of you. In and out. Quietly. Avoid inciting another intergalactic war with the Ygg if you can.”

“Who’ll be joining me?” I say. “One of those traitorous techies? Same ones who helped the High Command poison our food?”

I never trusted the academics of Exon Academy – a true Zoran is a warrior as far as I’m concerned – and my suspicions were proven true when Jillian revealed the Zoran High Command had been poisoning the entire military’s food, making sure we couldn’t produce any offspring. The High Command never could have done this without the Academy’s help.

“I’ve cleaned up the Academy,” Vinz growls. “You already know this. And if you want to know, Kelly Graham will be your partner, if she accepts this mission.”

My jaw tightens further. “The human female?” I bark. “I’m done babysitting her. You care too much about human concerns. Your mate has made you weak.”

Vinz rises from his throne, his face unmoving; stony. I sense the anger in him, and I mentally prepare myself for him to strike at any moment. I know I’m toeing the line, but that’s my job as second-in-command: to keep my leader sharp.

At that very moment the doors leading into the throne room open with a loud creak. Who else but Jillian and Kelly stride in, chatting incessantly to one another. Jillian’s showing all the signs of her pregnancy – her belly is well-rounded, her breasts swollen. Her skin is glowing, and I can sense Vinz’s anger subsiding. I know our discussion is over.

“Welcome,” he says. “We were just talking about you two.”

“Only good things, I hope,” Jillian says.

Vinz’s stone-cold eyes turn to me. “Of course.”

I lock eyes with Kelly Graham. Her blonde hair is tied into a ponytail, hanging nonchalantly over her shoulder. Her frame is slim, especially compared to her voluptuous friend. I haven’t seen her since she left for her travels, months ago. Strangely enough, I feel a warmth spread through my loins as my eyes drink in the sight of her pale skin.

Her blue eyes travel across my scar. It’s my most prominent feature, a single cut across the length of my face. She doesn’t look away.

“Kelly’s agreed to join the mission to Zenus,” Jillian says.

“Excellent!” Vinz replies. “I was just informing Koryn here about his part in the mission. He will be in charge of safety. Due to the planet’s dangerous location, I’ve decided that the team will consist of only Kelly and Koryn. The smaller the team, the smaller the chance of gathering any unwanted attention.”

Kelly’s eyes widen at the news. I nod briskly. Though I disagree with my king’s orders, I will follow them to the letter.

“Permission to be dismissed, sir?”

“Permission granted,” Vinz says with a nod. Our eyes meet, and we understand each other perfectly. No word of our conversation will leave the throne room.

I stride away. A whole mission spent doing nothing but making sure the frail human doesn’t hurt herself? My talents are being wasted.