LOGINMy muscles flex and tense as the testosterone in the air intensifies. I feel as if we are in battle, but instead of enemies I see comrades. My instincts are fighting one another. The need to prove my strength against these males is fighting ten years of training. "Relax," Modok says lowly and I see Burk flex as well. "How are you staying that calm," I mutter as I look over his cool demeanor. He smirks and meets my curious gaze. "I know my only competition is standing with me," he says arrogantly and someone growls as I laugh. Of course, Mo would find the room full of highly trained soldiers beneath us. "You cocky asshole," Burk mumbles and we adjust our stances. A sense of familiar calm fills the air around the three of us and I smile. Mo's quick thinking has completely relaxed us. He knew we needed to break out of the fight mode we were in. Finally, a Harvest announcer comes into the room and the room goes silent instantly. We all line up and place our hands behi
JIA POV"Tursa do the other planets not like humans," I ask quietly as she lightly restyles my hair and she freezes for a moment before looking at my reflection sadly. "There are some who are resentful towards your governments. Earth is the only planet in the alliance who doesn't send soldiers... The loss that the other planets experience makes them feel resentful. I don't know if anyone dislikes humans. I do know that there are negative feelings toward your governments," Tursa answers sounding diplomatic and I get annoyed with her careful answer."So there are a bunch of people who dislike humans then," I answer for her and she bites her lower lip. She seems reluctant to confirm my statement, but she eventually nods. "That's all you had to say," I whisper as my anger becomes sadness. The everyday average person has no power on Earth. We can't force the government to share the facts with us. So it isn't my fault or my friends' fault that humans aren't fighting along side everyone
ZARN POV My hand begins to shake and the male medic moves the healing wound to the deep gash on my forearm. "The Jahns have retreated, but the station lost 33 ships. We held the station, but... Frole's eastern fleet will be grounded for at least three months," Commander Pasill relays and my jaw clenches. I look up at the big orange brute to see him pacing behind his desk. I can tell he wishes he had some Jahn blood on his hands, but he wasn't available for transport when the call came in. Only my unit was free... and now my unit consists of me. So many ships... So much life... All lost because the Jahns want ultimate power over all of us. They want to rule over free worlds and I have vowed to never allow that to happen. I will sacrifice my very soul to keep them and their evil allies at bay. "Yes, Lt. Zarn is here. Yes, sir. I will let him know," Commander Pasill says and the comm unit goes silent. Pasill turns toward me and smiles. The expression looks out of place sin
JIA POVWhen the doors slide closed behind us everyone but Xiu bursts into laughter. Zor's face when Xiu told her she had lipstick on her skinny fang killed me. It took all I had to contain my laughter until we were in the hall. "That was amazing," I gasp, continuing to laugh, as Zuri hugs our stoic leader. "I can't believe you said we are prettier than her," Krystal says as she holds her side. She is laughing just as hard as I am. Xiu shrugs as Zuri steps away from her. "I spoke the truth. I have researched the different planets' beauty standards to try and guess which male might choose me," Xiu says, and we all seem to freeze. Fiadh's eyes go wide with surprise and I tense up completely. I have told myself not to expect love or adoration from the man I end up with, but I still long for it. Maybe if a group of them finds me attractive I could possibly have a happy ever after that involves more than just companionship. "That's brilliant. Why didn't I think of that," Fiadh
JIA POV"They look just like you, Zuri. All you need to blend in with them are the pointy teeth," Fiadh whispers as we approach the table already filled with Vaal women. Zuri nods but doesn't say anything. But Fiadh's assessment has me looking between the Vaals and Zuri more. There are definite similarities in their bone structure as well as their coloring. Maybe the Vaals are somehow distant ancestors of Zuri's. We all sit down and the Vaals smile at us before Krystal takes the initiative to introduce us. "Hello, my name is Krystal and my friends are Jia, Xiu, Fiadh, and Zuri. It is a pleasure to meet you all," Krystal says as she points at each of us. The Vaals nod at her words. "My name is Rioma. My kinsmen are Ri, Polina, Fiorella, and Elowyn. We have been blessed to represent Vaal. My Kinsmen and I hope to find strong matches that can support large families with their hunting capabilities. What are you all looking for in a male," Rioma asks after introducing her friends and
JIA POV I link my arm with Krystal's as we cut across the massive room. The next group we are meeting with is the Hassins and I am actually excited. Every group since the Froles has been friendly and eager to talk with us so I no longer feel guarded. I can tell Krystal is still tense hence the arm link, but surprisingly she doesn't loosen up. "This is going good," I whisper to fight her inner thoughts and she bites her lip for a second before responding. "It seems fake. Look around. When we pass they give us side eyes. Even the women we had a good time with," Krystal whispers and I actually glance around. I catch a few glances, but everyone looks away too quickly for me to read their expressions. "Well, it is a battle of the beautiful. Jealousy is a difficult emotion to fight," I say while hiding the uncomfortable feeling returning to my stomach. She nods and we reach our destination. "Good morning, humans of Earth. Please sit," one of the Hassins says as







