Page 40 of Charmed By the Alien Warrior

The sound bubbles up from deep inside me, turning into full-blown giggles that echo in the small space. Maybe it’s the thrill of surviving yet another close call on this deathtrap of a planet, or maybe the air on Laedirissae has some sort of psychotropic quality, but I dissolve into uncontrollable, nearly-pee-your-pants laughter.

Sorrin watches me, his grin growing wider as he joins in, the tension of the moment easing.

Clutching my stomach, I finally manage to catch my breath long enough to ask, “How do you know it was a male?”

His goofy grin widens into something almost boyish. “Because a female would not be so dumb as to run into a metal door.”

That only sets me off again and before I know it, I’m laughing so hard that tears prick the corners of my eyes as Idouble over. Sorrin’s laughter joins mine, his rich, warm voice filling the enclosed space.

For a brief moment, it’s as if the fear and danger outside these metal walls don’t exist, and it’s just the two of us, in a shared moment of ridiculousness and enjoying each other’s company. The abduction and my sister and my friends, all the people depending on me, fade into the background. For the first time in forever I’m genuinely happy.

Despite the danger and the constant near-misses with dinosaurs and hairy enemies, I feel alive in a way I never did on Earth. My laughter slows to a chuckle and I stare at the man in front of me—that cheesy grin that used to irritate the hell out of me is still stretched across his face.

Only it doesn’t irritate me anymore. Instead, it makes me have the urge to kiss him. Again. To press myself against his hard body and to feel his hard cock moving inside me.

And I realize, it’s him. Sorrin is the reason why I’m actually having fun and enjoying life for once. It’s his devil may care, lighthearted personality. He brings joy and energy to everything he does, and I’ve come to appreciate that. To even crave it.

But as the last echo of our laughter fades, the reality of our situation creeps back in. Inside the ship, the air is stale and cool. And quiet.

Too quiet.

My shoulders sag as I glance around the dim corridor. I had hoped—maybe even expected—the rest of our group to be here waiting for us. But the empty halls make it clear they’re not. Sorrin steps forward, his expression softening into something more serious as he takes the lead.

“If the others made it here, Vrenner will have left a message for us in the control room,” he says, his voice calm as he leads the way deeper into the ship and I follow him.

The corridors are surprisingly narrow, just wide enough for two Laediriian warriors to walk side by side. The walls and floors are clad in a dull gray metal that reflects the faint light emitted by small, round fixtures set into the ceiling. Their weak glow helps dispel some of the surrounding darkness, but they do little to diminish the ship’s eerie, abandoned feel.

Each step we take reverberates through the silent corridors, adding to the sense of eerie desolation. My heart pounds with anticipation and apprehension as we head deeper into the vessel, passing sealed-off rooms and dust-covered, dormant machinery. The ship is a maze of nearly identical hallways, and it doesn’t take long before I’m hopelessly turned around. I really hope Sorrin knows his way out of here because I sure don’t.

Finally, we reach a dead-end with no way out except back, and I hesitate, glancing around uncertainly.

“We’re lost, aren’t we?” I ask.

Sorrin grins at me, a chuckle in his voice as he says, “I prefer to think of it as exploring the scenic route.”

His grin is so disarming that I find my lips tipping up the barest amount. Still, I can’t help but roll my eyes at him. “You’re ridiculous.”

“Ridiculously charming.” A mischievous glint flashes in his eyes before he turns to the bare wall in front of us and inspects it. After a few seconds, he places a palm on a small circle right in the center of the wall.

A sharp beep echoes through the corridor, and with a hiss, the entire wall slides away to reveal a large room with banks of monitors and controls that look like they came straight from the set of a sci-fi movie. A small seating area with upholstered benches takes up one corner of the room. The technology, while old, is awe-inspiring and looks like it’s light-years beyond what’s available on Earth.

Sorrin strides across the room and approaches one of the consoles, placing his palm flat on a small screen. The monitor flickers to life and with a soft, almost imperceptible hum, every light in the control room switches on, illuminating the open space in a warm glow.

“Wait… How is all this stuff running? I thought the Ancestors’ Ship was out of fuel,” I say, glancing around in awe.

He doesn’t look up as he answers, “It is. Laedirissae was at the edge of the Ancestors’ fuel range. They couldn’t go any further when they stumbled upon this planet, but some of the ship’s systems can function on solar and lunar power.”

His fingers fly over the touchscreen as he types out something in a language I can’t read.Damn.I wish the translator implanted in my head worked on written language, too.

A block of text appears on the screen, and Sorrin turns to me with a triumphant grin.

“They were here,” he says, relief flooding his voice. “Vrenner left us a message.”

“What does it say?” I ask, moving closer as he scans the text.

“They stopped here for a day but didn’t find any sign of the other humans. They left supplies for us,” he says, gesturingto a satchel on one of the benches. “He was able to use the instruments on the ship to confirm that another vessel did crash on Laedirissae. He was also able to narrow down the crash site to the territory near the Lost Tribe’s village.”

My heart skips a beat at his words. “So, there really are others? More humans like me?”

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