Alien Coffee (7 page)

Jillian could see three people in the
building and two aliens that appeared to be hanging by the wrists.
She couldn’t make out details, but the heads of the captives were
definitely not human. A man behind the captives hit one with what
appeared to be a whip and Jillian instantly felt sympathy for the
aliens. She was terribly ashamed of the useless cruelty being shown
by members of her own race.

“Her eyes are leaking. What do we do?” asked
Sclurp. The aliens turned to look at Jillian who quickly wiped away
tears.

“Your compassion does you honor,” Buffy
praised her. “I believe it is high time we begin the rescue.”

“Definitely,” Nyxulla agreed, coming over to
wrap Jillian in a hug. “Take us behind the compound, Sclurp.”

“Right away, dude,” the bouncy alien agreed
as he dashed through the door.

“Why does he call everyone ‘dude’?” Jillian
asked, giving Nyxulla a squeeze before breaking the hug. She
couldn’t help but observe how soft and cool the alien’s cheek was
and how pleasant the lilac smell was.

“Sclurp isn’t really saying dude, but he is
saying his race’s version of it,” Nyxulla explained as she sat back
down and resumed tapping on one of the screens. “The translators
choose the most appropriate words, but it’s impossible to catch
every unique quirk of each language.”

“It’s really quite fascinating all the
peculiarities different races have in their languages,” Buffy said
excitedly. “The way in which beings evolve to be able to survive on
their planets and the manners in which they cope are amazingly
varied.”

“Don’t get Buffy started on this subject.
You’ll hear about it for years without stop,” Nyxulla warned
playfully.

“It’s fascinating,” Buffy protested
simply.

“We’re in position. I’m going out to scout in
advance.” Sclurp told them over the intercom.

“Will they be able to see the ship?” Jillian
asked in concern.

“It has a cloaking device as well. All ships
on planets with . . .” Buffy paused and looked at the image of tied
up aliens being tortured. “. . .
supposedly
intelligent life
not part of the Amalgamation, have cloaking devices.”

“Basically, they will never see the ship.
You’ll be able to because your device will be on,” Nyxulla told
her. “Speaking of which, let me show you how to use it.” She stood
and moved to Jillian’s side. “Put your finger on this blue pad.”
The pad was in the middle of the silver device. Jillian did as she
was told. There didn’t appear to be buttons, screens or anything
else on it. “Good. Now, continue pressing and say, ‘Activate
stealth mode’.”

Jillian did as she was told. The pad turned
red and became warm where it had been cool to the touch before.
Other than that, there was no visible effect.

“Excellent,” Nyxulla said. “You’re invisible.
Press the pad again and say, ‘Deactivate stealth mode’.” Jillian
did so, causing the pad to turn blue and become cool again. “Good.
Now I’m going to go invisible.” Nyxulla touched her pad and said,
“Activate stealth mode.” She became invisible. Buffy did the
same.

Jillian reached out to touch Nyxulla. She was
surprised when her hand bumped into something soft and she pulled
it back immediately. Then she remembered she wouldn’t be able to
hear them while they were stealthy, so she touched the pad of her
device and said, “Activate stealth mode.” Buffy and Nyxulla
suddenly appeared.

“Now you have it. You can see and hear us,
yes?” Buffy asked.

“Yes,” Jillian answered with a smile, pleased
at having figured it out.

“Thank you for fondling my breast,” Nyxulla
told her with a playful wink. “I do enjoy that sort of thing.”

Jillian felt her face heat from a blush. When
Nyxulla laughed lightly, Jillian joined in. Buffy shook his head
and led the way to the door they had entered when boarding. “The
device repels animals and insects too, so you don’t need to worry
about those things. I’d advise not stepping on anything poisonous
just to be on the safe side though,” the BEM warned.

“I will be very careful,” Jillian
promised.

“I’ll go first,” Nyxulla told them. “You stay
with Buffy at all times no matter what happens,” she ordered
Jillian with a pointed finger. At Jillian’s nod, Nyxulla opened the
door, drew her ray gun and stepped into the jungle.

***

Heat and humidity hit Jillian unexpectedly.
She breathed in the heavy air and tasted the scent of thriving
plants and damp earth. Sounds assaulted her ears as she followed
Nyxulla with Buffy right behind her. Chirping, chattering and
rustling shot back and forth between the trees while the droning
hum of insects played a steady accompaniment in the background.
Vibrant colors of flowering plants dotted the rich green foliage
and Jillian stared at everything in awe.

“Pay attention now,” Buffy said quietly from
her side. Jillian gave the BEM an embarrassed look and quickly
followed after Nyxulla. She didn’t pull out her ray gun even though
the others had theirs out. If at all possible, Jillian was going to
avoid harming anyone. She wasn’t certain if turning someone into a
bunny was harmful or not, but it was best not to take the
chance.

They quickly reached the clearing around the
camp where Sclurp was already cutting into the fence with great
efficiency. Jillian noticed that one of the soldiers had stopped at
the back left corner of the building where the captives were being
held and was staring at Sclurp with jaw hanging open. She realized
he probably saw the fence being cut and wondered who was doing
it.

“Sclurp,” Nyxulla called out in a harsh
whisper. “The soldier sees the fence being cut.”

Sclurp looked up just as the cut part of the
chain link fence fell inward. He dashed through the opening and ran
to the wall, plastering himself against the wood. When the
soldier’s eyes followed the alien instead of staying on the hole in
the fence, Jillian grew concerned. Fortunately, the man just
continued to stare in astonishment.

Nyxulla ran through the hole toward Sclurp.
“How can he see you?” she asked. “Your device is on, right?”
Jillian slipped through the opening followed immediately by
Buffy.

Sclurp looked in their direction without
focusing, as though he were seeing through them. He pushed a button
on his collar. “Where are you? I think they can see me. I need
assistance right away.”

Jillian could hear him through her earpiece
just as if he was right next to her. Nyxulla pushed a button on her
collar and responded, “We’re right in front of you, why isn’t your
device on?”

“Oh no!” Sclurp banged on the device a few
times. “Jillian broke it when she pushed me down the stairs. I
didn’t have time to fix it.”

Just at that moment, a different soldier came
around the opposite corner. Instead of staring like the other one,
he reacted immediately. “Another alien!” he hollered in a voice
cracked with fear. Then he lifted his rifle and pulled the
trigger.

Luckily, the safety was on and nothing
happened. Sclurp bent his knees and leapt. The strength of his
three legs propelled him to the tin corrugated roof of the building
just as the man took off the safety and began firing.

Regrettably, the original soldier was still
standing at the other corner of the building with his mouth open. A
fly had even landed on his lower lip and was debating whether or
not to go any further. When multiple bullets began piercing the
hapless man’s body to send him falling to the ground, the fly
buzzed off for less violent activity.

Nyxulla raised her ray gun and zapped the
shooting soldier, transforming him into a black bunny with purple
streaks in its hair. Jillian stared at the blood coming from wounds
in the other soldier. The man coughed blood and went still. She had
never seen a man violently killed before. It was grittier in real
life than in any movie, picture or book, more personal even if she
didn’t know anything about him.

“I’m going to provide cover for Sclurp,”
Nyxulla said. “You two go around and rescue the captives.” She ran
toward the right side of the building.

“Come on, Jillian. No time to be sick.” Buffy
took her arm and guided her toward the other side. Jillian did feel
sick now that she thought about it and was sure all the blood had
drained out of her face. She let Buffy lead her around the
building, but kept staring at the body as they passed near.

They didn’t get far because a group of
soldiers was rapidly approaching with weapons ready. Buffy yanked
Jillian to the side and they both ran toward a shed in the back
corner of the compound. The soldiers didn’t see them, but they were
spreading out to look for the intruders. Jillian knew they could
still be touched or bumped into, so it was best to avoid contact
even being invisible.

“We’ll go around behind them and try to get
into the shed while they’re searching,” Buffy told her. Jillian
realized the BEM could see her with its faceted eyes even though
she was running behind. It occurred to her that the day was nothing
like she had expected when getting out of bed that morning.

Buffy came to an abrupt halt just behind the
shed, causing Jillian to windmill her arms in order to avoid
running into the bug eyed alien as she tried to stop. The two men
having sex from the image on the ship were lying naked together in
the grass by the back wall, apparently ignoring the commotion.

“What is it with you humans? If you’re not
getting high, you’re having sex,” Buffy asked Jillian while
waggling the ray gun at the two lovers. “If you’re not having sex,
you’re getting high.” Then the BEM zapped the man on top. His
partner looked at the bunny that suddenly appeared on his chest in
shock. Buffy zapped him too and two emo bunnies were on the ground
in place of the two men. They sniffed each other for a moment
before rubbing their cheeks together and hopping off around the
shed.

“I thought we weren’t going to zap anyone if
we didn’t have to,” Jillian protested. She just couldn’t decide how
to feel about transforming people. The one thing she knew for
certain was that she didn’t want to kill anyone. The sight of the
dead soldier flashed across her mind again and she shivered in cold
dread.

“I’m not playing around anymore. The people
here are killers and criminals of the worst sort. When presented
with other life in the universe, they’ve taken the path of
imprisonment and torture. When that second human saw Sclurp, his
first action was to shoot to kill.” Buffy’s voice had an edge to it
even through the translator. By aggressive posture and jagged
motioning of the ray gun to emphasize words, it was clear the alien
was angry. “You have permission to zap them all. I take full
responsibility.” Without waiting for a response, Buffy moved
rapidly around the other side of the shed, heading toward the
building where the captives were being held.

Jillian drew her weapon and followed. It
looked like a ray gun should look, futuristic and silver with a
simple hand grip and trigger. It even had glowing yellow lights in
chevron patterns along the sides. She held it in both hands and
aimed it at the ground while moving so as not to accidentally shoot
Buffy.

Two men were coming in their direction. Buffy
zapped both of them. There was a lag of about two seconds after the
first shot where the yellow lights on the sides dimmed and then
grew bright again before the next. Jillian made a mental note not
to shoot too quickly in case the gun needed to recharge or
something. She tried to think of how it turned people into emo
bunnies like the two that were now hopping back and forth not
knowing where to go, but too many things were happening to
concentrate.

They came behind the original group of
soldiers who had been searching for them, but others were
approaching the area too. Nyxulla was on the other side of the
building where the captives were being held while Sclurp was on top
trying to stay as low as possible. He zapped one of the soldiers
who was about to shoot him. Jillian wondered why he wasn’t lying
down, thinking maybe he couldn’t with three legs and arms.

Nyxulla zapped one of the nearest men who was
also aiming at Sclurp. Buffy zapped another. Quite a few were
beginning to point their guns at the tri-limbed alien and it was
clear his life was in mortal danger.

Jillian’s gut twisted into a sickening knot
and her hand shook as she pointed the ray gun at a soldier that was
about to shoot her new friend. With tears in her eyes, she zapped
him into an emo bunny. The gun hummed and grew warm in her hand
while the yellow chevrons dimmed briefly before lighting back
up.

The fact that the man was a drug runner of
some sort and probably did bad things didn’t make Jillian stop
feeling guilty. If Sclurp hadn’t been in true peril, there was no
way she could have done so. She was also going through a moral
quandary about taking the side of aliens she had just met over
other humans, even Columbian drug lord henchmen.

“Oh boys!” Nyxulla called out in a frisky
tone. The men on the front side of the building suddenly stopped
and stared at her. Jillian could barely see that the button on her
invisibility device had gone blue, meaning she deactivated it. It
was a bold move to distract the men in order to give Sclurp a
chance for survival.

The move was too late. One of the men on the
side of the building got a shot off just before Buffy zapped him.
The bullet hit Sclurp in his rear shoulder, eliciting an eerie
squeal of pain from the long, thin mouth. Jillian zapped another
one that was about to shoot. Perhaps the life of an emo bunny would
be better for them.
They might be sad for a little while, but .
. . aren’t emo bunnies always sad?

She shook off the thought and zapped another,
as did Buffy and Nyxulla. Sclurp jumped off the building back
toward the fence. Buffy started running in that direction too while
Nyxulla reactivated her invisibility and ran around the other side
to cover him that way.