Page 3 of The Alien Who Saved Christmas

Frosty the Alien wasn’t a jolly, happy soul,

With growls that exude, his rabid mood,

And two eyes that burned like coals.

From “Frosty the Four-Armed Alien”

A Christmas Carol for Non-Earthlings by Sadie Malone

Alien buying seemed to be a boys’ club.

As far as Sadie could tell, she was the only female at the auction.

Of course, she couldn’t be totally sure what some of the aliens identified as, because they were aliens.

It was impossible to know which parts went where.

They came in a multitude of shapes and colors.

Thinking about their physiologies gave her something to focus on besides her fear, though.

It was taking forever to get Xane. Every minute that passed made her more worried about something going wrong. She was surrounded by heartless people, who bought and sold defenseless creatures. As a mostly defenseless creature herself, it didn’t make her feel real secure.

Sadie’s eyes warily traveled around the other buyers, who were waiting for their slaves. Every one of them was horrible, and they didn’t seem to care. If they decided to capture her, there wasn’t a lot she could do to stop them.

She cringed as one fluffy yellow thing was wrenched away from the other fluffy yellow thing and dragged off with a one-eyed guy. The fluffy yellow things screamed. Panic sounded the same, regardless of the species.

Tears began to burn Sadie’s eyes. Not just because she needed those damn ducklings to escape this godforsaken planet, but because it was horrible to witness their pain. She wanted to buy all the aliens and set them free. It was the right thing to do. Unfortunately, she couldn’t do it.

Paying for Xane had cost almost all the coins.

No matter the galaxy, she was perpetually broke.

It was a sad fact of life. Sadie had been sweating beneath her robe as the tri-legged auctioneer counted the money out and her pile got smaller and smaller.

Maybe he’d screwed her over and taken more than necessary.

She had no idea. But now she only had five coins left.

That clearly wasn’t enough to purchase anyone else.

Buying Xane had wrecked her finances and her escape plans.

And she still didn’t regret it.

All she felt was relief that she’d saved the man.

The gate to one of the pens opened and the auctioneer guys herded Xane towards her.

Her new alien looked slightly more awake, his expression intensely forbidding.

All four of his wrists were manacled, but the tri-legged aliens were still keeping a healthy distance.

The rest of the crowd spread out as well, giving Xane plenty of room.

They were all watching him with a mixture of fear and fascination.

“Good luck transporting that savage, Lythion.” Someone sneered out and there was a bunch of chortling.

Sadie had no idea what “Lythion” meant. Was he calling her “Lythion?” Was that the name of the See-Through Alien Kidnapper whose clothes she’d stolen? Or had it been his species? Or maybe just friendly, extraterrestrial slang for “Bro.”

Damn translator never gave context.

Regardless, Sadie wasn’t answering. She was afraid her voice would reveal the fact that she was human. Aliens’ voices all sounded more… alien. She huddled deep in her thick hood, keeping her features hidden, and ignored the taunt.

One of the auctioneers dropped the weird-shaped key to Xane’s cuffs into her gloved palm. Then, he handed her a vial of clear liquid. “Keep the Rtaharion drugged, if you know what’s good for you.”

Yeah… she wasn’t going to do that. The poor man would die, if he had too much more. She wasn’t an alien doctor, but it seemed obvious.

Sadie concentrated on not looking at anyone directly and on not noticing that Xane was even bigger up close. Whoa. He was really, really big.

And he was staring at her.

She could feel his turquoise gaze trying to penetrate her hood.

“Dose him six times a day. At least .” The auctioneer went on firmly.

“With his kind you can never be too careful, and he fights through the castr extract at the usual doses. He’s due for another shot now, but we were afraid he wouldn’t be able to walk if we gave it to him. And he’s too big to carry.”

No kidding .

Sadie nodded. Did aliens nod?

Apparently so, because the three-legged guy handed her the end of the chain that was secured around Xane’s neck like a leash and kept talking like everything was normal. “What do you want this animal for, anyway?” He demanded. “Are you suicidal? Because there are easier ways to die.”

Sadie wasn’t about to strike up a conversation with an alien slave merchant. For a number of reasons, it was just a bad idea. Instead, she turned and walked away, like she was way too cool to even talk to lame three-legged creatures. High-school-her would be so proud of the mean-girl cut direct.

The tri-legged aliens scampered off in the opposite direction, visibly grateful to be away from Xane and not seeming to notice anything amiss with her rudeness.

Upside: She had truly embraced the holiday spirit. She’d rescued a wounded man from certain death in the octopus mines.

Downside: The “holiday” in her “holiday spirit” might just be Halloween.

Her good deed looked exactly like a monster. Xane had to be close to seven feet of solid muscle. If he decided to kill her, there was literally nothing she could do to stop him. Hopefully, he’d stay docile and quiet until they were alone…

“Who the hell are you?” Xane snarled. His voice had an echo-y quality, like darkness and death and haunted specters stalking your dreams. Yep. Halloween.

Sadie’s shoulders hunched a bit, but she kept going.

Fast. At the moment, her only priority was getting away from the other aliens.

She felt too exposed. Her fingers clenched around the chain, leading Xane onward, like he was a cute little yorkie and not a mythological nightmare being. Praying he didn’t make a scene.

Xane stopped walking.

Crap . He was going to make a scene.

Newtonian physics worked, even in a galaxy far, far away. Sadie had done surprisingly well in her prerequisite science course, so she knew what she was talking about. Her forward momentum was no match for his sheer mass. She stumbled, inadvertently letting go of the chain.

One black eyebrow arched as the leash fell slack between them, and Sadie tumbled to the ground. “Gods, you’re feeble.” Xane scoffed.

Sadie didn’t bother to argue. She was too busy scrambling to her feet, before an elephant-looking alien stepped on her.

Keeping her head down, she reached up to make sure the hood was still in place.

No one else on this planet was wearing a purple scrunchie in their hair, so her humanness was sure to stand out.

“You’re certainly not a Lythion.” Xane persisted loudly. Did he not know how to whisper? Did it not occur to him to try? “What are you? A Gortx? Yo’delen?”

Sadie grabbed the chain again and desperately tugged on it. Willing him to move.

He didn’t move. “You should kill me now, because I will never submit. I am Rtaharion. Do you know what that means?”

Of course she didn’t.

“It means I am honor-bound to fight all who oppose me.” Xane continued in a deeply threatening tone, not waiting for an answer. “Rtaharions are bred to fight. If you think I will spare you, just because you are small and pathetic, you are gravely mistaken.”

Hang on. Sadie hesitated, glancing back to frown at him. Pathetic? That was a bit much. Which one of them had just pulled off a brilliant rescue? She pulled harder on the chain, annoyed now.

Xane didn’t seem to notice. “Certainly, I will never obey a clumsy, puny creature, like you. Even drugged with your unholy elixirs, I will defy you.”

Well, that was dramatic.

Sadie looked towards the orange sky, praying for some help with the big idiot. Why couldn’t Xane just cooperate for five minutes?

“I may not even have to murder you myself.” He hypothesized. “In paying so much for me, you revealed yourself to be stupid and wealthy. Soon, everyone on this accursed rock will be targeting you for robbery and death…”

“Would you shut up?” Sadie interrupted, losing her patience. “Damn it! I knew I should have bought the yellow fuzzy guys.”

Xane froze.

The lack of movement wasn’t the same stubborn resistance he’d given before. This was a deep and disquieting stillness. This was pure, unadulterated astonishment.

Sadie blinked, confused by why he was so surprised. Could he tell she was human? Did they even know about humans around here?

All at once, Xane seized the chain and used it to drag her backwards. Sadie gave a squeak of alarm as he wrenched her closer to him. She tried to drop the chain again and dash out of range, but his catcher’s mitt of a hand was already sealing around her wrist, holding her still.

This wasn’t how alien buying was supposed to go. She was pretty sure.

Dropping his head, Xane peered into the shadowed confines of the thick hood. His incredible turquoise eyes landed on her face. He gave a strangled growl, the sound somewhere between dark suspicion and complete wonder.

“No, I’m not one of those See-Through Kidnappers, okay?” Sadie hissed. “Keep it down or you’ll get us both in trouble.”

Xane didn’t seem to have an answer for that. He was too busy studying every inch of her face. Clearly, they didn’t have humans on this planet. He looked like he’d never seen anything like her in his whole life.

Sadie knew that feeling. Meeting aliens was always scary.

“I’m not dangerous.” She assured him swiftly. She didn’t want to freak him out. If he felt threatened, there was no telling what he’d do. The man was built like a mountain, on top of a bigger mountain.