Free Alien Coffee by John H. Carroll Page A

took a deep breath and
nodded. “I can do that.” She had no clue if what she was doing was
right or wrong, but decided to just go with it. Perhaps she would
stay in bed tomorrow and stare at the ceiling while contemplating
the morality of it all. At the moment, there was no time.
    Buffy led her back around the shed into the
wide clearing between it and the building where the captives were.
“You take the guard to the right of the door and I’ll take the one
to the left. Zap when I tell you to.”
    “Alright,” Jillian agreed apprehensively. She
lifted her ray gun and aimed it at the guard on the right. When her
hand started shaking, she steadied it by putting both hands on the
hilt.
    Buffy watched as the guard on their side went
around back. “Shoot now.” Both guards by the door became emo
bunnies within an instant of each other. Jillian felt the gun warm
in her hand and saw the yellow light dim as she followed the order.
It made a slight humming noise when fired that was barely audible,
causing her to marvel at the technology. She followed Buffy to the
door of the building, wondering if it had a setting for turning
people into dinosaurs, dragons or whatever other creatures might
exist on other worlds.
    Upon reaching the door, Jillian put her back
against the wall with the ray gun pointing up in front of her like
they did in the movies. Buffy quickly opened the door and dashed
inside while she followed. Buffy shot a soldier on the right and
Jillian took out one on the left.
    She studied the situation while waiting for
the gun to recharge. A brutal man in a t-shirt was holding a whip
while looking in alarm at the bunny Jillian had just created. The
drug lord’s head was swiveling back and forth as he looked around
for someone to shoot with his pistol. Had Buffy and Jillian not
been invisible, they would most likely be dead by that point.
    Hanging from the ceiling on chains attached
to shackled wrists were two humanoid aliens. They had brown, scaly
skin and were dressed in simple jumpsuits that were dirty and
tattered from the abuse the captives were being put through. Their
heads were elongated with cottony white hair. A human-like mouth
and nose filled the front of the face while four iridescent,
rounded, protruding eyes rested in a line underneath a low hanging
brow. The female of the pair was sobbing, although the eyes didn’t
produce tears. The male appeared to be unconscious. Jillian didn’t
know how old they were, but there was something about them that
gave her the impression they really were teenagers.
    “Show yourselves or die!” the drug lord
ordered. Jillian took a step back, not sure what to do. Buffy had
no such qualms and turned the man into a bunny. Jillian’s gun was
charged again so she zapped the man with the whip. It was actually
easy that time. She hated the idea of people who tortured
others.
    The female’s head rose. “H . . . hello?” she
called in a soft, broken voice. Once again, the translator
technology amazed Jillian.
    “Stay invisible and watch the door, Jillian,”
Buffy told her before tapping the invisibility device to become
visible to them. The BEM pulled out a bandage and applied it just
below the girl’s neck. “We’re here to rescue you, but things aren’t
going well. We’re going to be shooting our way out and you need to
follow quickly.”
    “A . . . alright,” the girl said while Buffy
pulled out another bandage and moved to the other captive. Jillian
watched in awe as the girl’s cuts began to quickly heal. Her
breathing came easier and the muscles beneath the scales appeared
to relax as much as possible in their stretched position. Shortly
after receiving a bandage, the male groaned as his injuries began
to heal in the same manner. The bandages were vastly more effective
than the princess themed ones Jillian had purchased the last time
she was at the store.
    The door creaked open further as a nervous
soldier cautiously peered inside. Jillian quickly zapped