The sun blazed over San Francisco at high noon, casting sharp shadows across the cramped, cluttered shed behind Adan Beckett’s home. Inside, the air was thick with the scent of motor oil and antiseptic, a chaotic blend of tools and half-finished gadgets strewn across every surface. Adan, the 18-year-old alien virgin with a nerdy streak and a surprisingly muscular frame, sat hunched on a rickety stool, wincing as a bloody trickle dripped from his nose. His blonde hair was matted with sweat, blue eyes squinting in pain from a fresh bruise blooming across his cheek. Surrounding him, like a pack of protective lionesses with curves that could stop traffic, were his posse of fierce girlfriends—Valentina, Eliana, Donna, Ava, Jasmine, Esperanza, Catalina, and Isabela. Each woman wielded a damp cloth or bandage with the precision of a surgeon and the sass of a stand-up comedian.
“Hold still, hero,” Valentina snapped, her dark eyes flashing as she pressed a cloth to Adan’s nose with just a little more force than necessary. Her full lips curled into a smirk. “You go out there playing SkyRyder, and come back looking like a piñata after a kid’s party. What’s next, you gonna trip over your own cape?”
Adan groaned, his voice muffled behind the cloth. “It wasn’t my fault, Val. Ryan Parker had some kind of black weapon—felt like getting hit by a freakin’ asteroid.”
“Oh, an asteroid, huh?” Eliana chimed in, her caramel skin glowing under the shed’s single bulb as she leaned over to inspect a cut on his arm. Her tone was pure mockery, but her fingers were gentle. “Boy, you couldn’t dodge a paper plane. Don’t blame no alien tech for your two left feet.”
“Two left feet?” Adan protested, trying to sit up straighter only to be pushed back down by Donna’s firm hand on his shoulder. “I took out three of his goons before he got that hit in!”
Donna, with her sharp cheekbones and a glare that could melt steel, raised an eyebrow. “Three goons, and yet here you are, bleeding all over my favorite tank top. Real impressive, champ. Maybe stick to saving cats from trees next time.”
Ava, standing by with a roll of bandages, tossed her auburn hair back and laughed, her voice dripping with playful scorn. “Cats might be too much for him, Donna. How ‘bout we start him on goldfish? Less risk of drowning in a bowl.”
The shed erupted in laughter, each woman tossing in her own jab as they worked. Jasmine, her deep brown eyes glinting with mischief, wiped a smear of blood from Adan’s jaw and purred, “You know, if you wanted attention, sugar, all you had to do was ask. No need to let some ICE punk rearrange your pretty face.”
“Pretty face? I’m a superhero, not a model,” Adan shot back, though a shy grin tugged at his lips. He couldn’t help it—their teasing, sharp as it was, warmed him in a way he’d never admit out loud.
Esperanza, her curves barely contained by a tight tee, crossed her arms and fixed him with a stare that could command armies. “Superhero, my ass. You’re a walking disaster, Adan. Next time, you wait for us. We’d have had Parker’s head on a platter before he could even draw that fancy toy of his.”
Catalina nodded, her raven hair swinging as she handed Isabela a fresh gauze pad. “Damn right. You think we’re just here to play nurse? We’re your backup, baby. Don’t forget it.”
Isabela, the quietest of the bunch but with a tongue as sharp as a blade, smirked as she pressed the gauze to a cut on Adan’s forehead. “Backup? More like babysitters. Keep this up, and we’re gonna have to leash you, SkyRyder.”
Adan opened his mouth to retort, but a sudden, low hum vibrated through the shed, cutting through the banter like a knife. His gaze darted to the corner where a sleek, glowing panel—part of his alien ship—sat half-hidden under a tarp. Nexus, his AI companion, spoke in a crisp, urgent tone. “Adan, incoming transmission. Threat detected from Zackton-4. Two ships approaching San Francisco Bay. Estimated arrival: five minutes.”
The women froze, their playful demeanor replaced by a collective, steely focus. Valentina’s grip on the cloth tightened. “What the hell, Adan? Zackton-4? You didn’t think to mention more of your alien drama was coming to town?”
“I didn’t know!” Adan exclaimed, already sliding off the stool despite their protests. “Nexus, prep the suit. I’ve gotta handle this.”
“Oh, no you don’t,” Donna snapped, stepping in front of him, her ample frame blocking his path to the ship panel. “You’re half-dead already. Sit your ass down and let us deal with whatever space trash is dropping in.”
Adan shook his head, his jaw set with a stubbornness that rarely surfaced. “I can’t. If they’re from Zackton-4, they’re here for me. I’m the only one who can talk them down—or fight them off.”
Eliana scoffed, hands on her hips. “Talk them down? You can barely talk your way out of a parking ticket. We’re coming with you.”
“No time,” Adan said, activating the panel with a quick gesture. A shimmer of light enveloped him, his blue-and-white suit materializing over his body, transforming his blonde hair and blue eyes to a deep brown. He shot them a cocky grin, though it wavered under their collective glares. “I’ll be back before you can miss me.”
“Boy, you better,” Ava called after him as he rocketed out of the shed, the door slamming shut behind him. “Or we’re hunting you down ourselves!”
---
Minutes later, Adan soared over San Francisco Bay, the glittering water below reflecting the sun like a shattered mirror. His heart pounded—not from fear, but from the raw adrenaline of what he knew was coming. Nexus’s voice buzzed in his earpiece. “Ships detected. Brace for impact.”
Sure enough, two fiery streaks tore through the sky, slamming into the bay with twin geysers of water. Adan didn’t hesitate. Diving low, he unleashed his super strength, hauling the sleek, otherworldly vessels onto the nearest street with a grunt of effort. Onlookers gasped and pulled out phones, snapping photos as the ships’ hatches hissed open.
Out stepped two towering figures, their muscular builds rivaling Adan’s own. Julia Armstrong, her skin a deep bronze, gripped a massive war hammer, her piercing gray eyes scanning him with cold disdain. Beside her, Aaliyah Jones, her ebony skin gleaming under the sun, twirled a spiked mace with casual menace. Both women exuded raw power, their presence commanding the very air around them.
“So,” Julia drawled, her voice low and cutting as she sized Adan up, “you’re the so-called prince of Zackton-4? You look more like a human frat boy who stole a costume.”
Adan hovered mid-air, hands raised in a gesture of peace. “I’m Adan Beckett. I’ve got the lineage, the powers—hell, I’ve got the ship to prove it. Let’s talk before we start smashing things, okay?”
Aaliyah barked a laugh, her mace glinting as she pointed it at him. “Talk? Sweetheart, we didn’t cross galaxies to chat with a liar. If you’re our prince, I’m the queen of Earth. Prove it, or we pound you into the pavement.”
“Look, I get the skepticism,” Adan said, dodging a sudden swing from Julia’s hammer that sent a shockwave through the air. “But I’m telling the truth! I was raised here, yeah, but I’m one of you!”
Julia lunged again, her hammer grazing his shoulder as he twisted away. Her smirk was pure venom. “Raised here? You mean you’re a soft little Earthling playing dress-up. Pathetic. Hit harder, Aaliyah—he’s barely worth the warm-up.”
Aaliyah obliged, her mace arcing toward Adan’s chest. He caught the blow with both hands, the impact rattling his bones, but he held firm, gritting his teeth. “I’m not your enemy! Come back to my base—I’ve got Nexus, my AI. It’ll confirm everything!”
The women exchanged a glance, their movements pausing for a split second. Julia’s eyes narrowed, her hammer still poised. “An AI, huh? Fine. But if this is a trick, pretty boy, I’m using your skull as a paperweight.”
Aaliyah smirked, lowering her mace just enough to signal a truce. “Lead the way, ‘prince.’ But don’t think we’re done with you. This better be good—or it’s gonna be real bad.”
Adan nodded, catching his breath as he gestured toward the city. “Follow me. And try not to scare the locals more than you already have.”
As they took to the sky, a trio of warriors amidst a backdrop of flashing camera phones, Adan couldn’t shake the feeling that his tiny shed was about to get a whole lot more crowded—and a whole lot more dangerous.
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