"It's exhibition football," Kaila explained. "A game."

"They fight over a ball?" Lucius asked.

"Yeah, sort of."

Flick. Next channel.

Jersey Sh.o.r.e on MTV. The gang was in a night club, getting drunk. The hive observed it with interest.

"They are almost naked," Antonia commented on Snooki and JWoww's dresses.

"They're stupid s.l.u.ts," Pia explained.

"What's a s.l.u.t?" Echidna asked.

Viktor spluttered, "How can people call this entertainment?"

Flick. Next channel.

"I want to know. What is a s.l.u.t?" Echidna persisted, approaching Pia. Echidna's black bangs framed her dark eyes as she scanned Pia. "Big b.r.e.a.s.t.s? Tight clothes?"

"Be quiet," Lucius called from the living room. "Here is a s.l.u.t."

A beautiful young blonde actress was being interviewed on Jay Leno. She wore a low cut dress that displayed her b.r.e.a.s.t.s and long legs. A young man sat next to her making jokes.

Echidna raced to the television. "She has fake b.r.e.a.s.t.s! Look at them poking out. They look like they might explode."

"And fake makeup, hair, clothes, nails," Pia called from the kitchen. "Get over it. Everyone in Hollywood is a fake."

"They think they are clever," Viktor snorted. "So impressed with themselves."

Antonia said, "She's been implanted by us."

"Implanted?" Pia asked.

Antonia mind-stared solid black eyes at Pia and Melissa. They froze, suspended in time. Antonia said to Kaila, "We especially program those in Hollywood. Well, some are programmed and many are . . . like us."

"Some famous people are hybrids?" Kaila asked.

"Yes," Viktor said. "We get indoctrinated to pa.s.s as human, as we are doing in school now, and then fulfill a role. Maybe you could be a famous singer or actress, Kaila. Would you like that?"

"Don't tease," Antonia said to Viktor. "You are as cruel as the humans."

"Is she a hybrid?" Kaila asked pointing to the actress on the television.

"No. She's implanted and programmed. In a sense, all humans are programmed to compete with each other, worrying about superficialities like looks. And to keep their minds focused on bodies and breeding . . . television, Internet, and music."

"Rather than what's really going on," Viktor said. "But then, that is our form of fun. Controlling the ma.s.ses. Come little pretties . . . come to the slaughter."

He breezed past Melissa and Pia, consciously directing his eyes at them. The two girls picked up where they left off, unaware of the comments. Kaila wanted to question Viktor, but knew not to say anything now that Melissa and Pia were conscious.

Viktor nodded at the television, changing the channel. A singer sang from a stage in a band; people in the audience were drinking and dancing.

"I believe," Viktor drawled, "this is considered a party."

Lucius touched his sungla.s.ses as he watched the rock band. Lucius held his palms up and the volume increased as the surround sound came on. The ba.s.s boomed loud, so it reverberated in their chests. Lucius waved his hand again and the lights dimmed. They were replaced by dim flickering purple, navy, and magenta lights, imitating the television.

Viktor stood in front of Lucius and put his hands on his hips and gyrated his hips in time to the music. "What you think of this, big boy?" he sneered.

Lucius nodded, his eyes hidden behind dark sungla.s.ses. Viktor poured Scotch in two shot gla.s.ses, handed one to Lucius. The two downed the shots, then hurled the gla.s.ses, which shattered against the wall.

"Stop!" Kaila shouted, running to pick up the gla.s.s shards.

"Be my s.l.u.t," Viktor said, extending thick fingers. Lucius accepted his hand and the two danced, imitating the dancers on the television.

"Interesting," Lucius said, his hips moving in time to the beat.

Soon, Antonia and Pia were dancing, moving their bodies to the music.

"Dance?" Jordyn asked Kaila. "We got your family covered."

He pulled her to the living room. After that, things sped up, got blurry.

Music blared from the sound system, shaking the walls. The dogs remained oblivious, asleep on the floor. The hive created colored light lasers pulsating from the ceiling and walls: red, indigo, cerulean, white, yellow. Everyone was dancing.

Lucius mind-scanned the radio frequency signals. He zeroed in on the blues, a duet between U2 and B. B. King. Pia sang. Antonia put her arm around Pia's waist, observing Pia with fascination. Her brown eyes shone with delight, listening to Pia's rich voice.

Antonia tried to sing. Pia laughed at Antonia's croaks and dissonance, but after trying a few verses, Antonia's throaty, resonant voice rang clear.

"Girl, you got it now," Pia said.

"I've never sung before," Antonia said, smiling. "This is amazing!"

Pia and Antonia belted out the chorus, Pia harmonizing with Antonia.

Melissa and Toby clung to each other, doing a slow dance. Toby wrapped his arms tighter about Melissa as they stepped side to side.

Jordyn held Kaila, pressing his lips to her neck. Gooseb.u.mps rose all over her body and she snuggled closer. He clasped his hand on hers, his other on her lower back. They moved as one to the beat of the music. Sheer bliss, united with the one she had been unknowingly seeking her whole life. Now that he was here, she felt whole.

Lucius stumbled. "Whoa," he said, clutching the coffee table for support.

Viktor laughed.

"I believe Lucius, you are what the animals call, *wasted.' Viktor spread his arms. "Loss of control. Blotting the mind. Terrible! How can people like being this way? We made a mistake drinking that poison fire . . . aieeee, I'm wasted too."

Lucius bobbed his bushy head at the television, for now VH1 reviewed top divas in clips. Lady Gaga sang. Then Madonna, Cher, Beyonce, and Christine Aguilera.

"Okay," Viktor slurred. He clapped his hands.

Lucius and Viktor leaned drunkenly toward each other. "Mind-screen!" they shouted and slapped hands. They transformed. Lady Gaga stood in the living room in a black corset and high heels.

"You like?" Viktor leered at Kaila as the blonde Gaga. Kaila gaped at the Gaga with a high blonde ponytail, thick eyeliner, and tell-tale reptilian black slit in her eyes. Kaila froze, mesmerized yet repulsed.

Lucius transformed to Cher, wearing a skin-tight black leather outfit with stilettos. Lucius and Viktor sang and danced along with Cher, who sang Welcome to Burlesque.

Toby threw back his bald head, laughing uproariously. He swung Melissa around, who laughed till tears came down.

"Wonderful!" Echidna cried. She transformed to Madonna, wearing a retro eighties dress.

Lucius and Viktor danced behind her and trailed their hands all over Echidna's Madonna body.

"Feel me, touch me," Echidna said, looking over her shoulder. "Let's be s.l.u.ts!"

Viktor, as Lady Gaga, kicked Echidna, as Madonna, in her a.s.s. She tumbled to the floor.

Echidna transformed to her former long lean self in her silver bodysuit, black eyes ominous.

"Hey," she called from the floor. She lifted her long fingers, trying to concentrate on a mind-screen. She was so drunk she had to look at her hands, licking her thin lips, giving a few unsuccessful tries. "Why do people drink that poison fire?" she lamented. "We will never do this again. Oh, how it deadens the mind . . ."

"That's how we want humans," Viktor said. "We need to encourage more distilleries for this world. Keep them stupid. We are as stupid as them now."

Kaila felt the alcohol washing through her veins and mind; she made a note not to do this again. She had to stay aware. But now, she barely cared as Jordyn's arms cradled her body. She adored his strength and solidity, his stubbled cheek nestled against hers.

Echidna clamped her eyelids shut and concentrated until a silver shining ball appeared in her hands. She flung it hard at Lucius and Viktor, who were knocked off balance and fell to the floor.

On his back, Lucius transformed to his former self in his silver bodysuit and bushy brown hair, big nose, and sungla.s.ses. He balanced the ball on the soles of his feet and sent it turning and spinning bright as a sparkler.

The shining silver ball was tossed and kicked around to everyone, the ball hanging mid-air. They b.u.mped the ball with their b.u.t.ts or batted it with their heads like a volleyball.

"We used to play with this ball when we were kids on the ship," Jordyn slurred, tossing the glowing ball to Kaila. "It was some of our only play. To teach us coordination and group bonding."

She threw it at his forehead, and he bounced it back at her. It hit her in the chest then lifted, suspended in air, spinning and glowing.

Kaila s.n.a.t.c.hed the ball, threw it at Pia.

"Ping!" she shouted, laughing as the ball hit Pia in the head then spun in mid-air. Pia laughed and threw it back at her.

Melissa and Toby had their arms about each other, kissing. Kaila threw the ball at them; it bounced off them in a shower of sparks.

Things grew dimmer, blurrier. Somewhere, sometime, the hive created hundreds of b.a.l.l.s of glowing light and they were laughing and throwing the b.a.l.l.s at each other, getting hit, falling down, but it didn't hurt. It was like a s...o...b..ll fight but the b.a.l.l.s had no weight or gravity. The b.a.l.l.s were light, glowing, radiant.

Everyone laughed and sang and hurled the b.a.l.l.s. When they missed their intended target, the b.a.l.l.s bounced off the wall emitting sparks, then spun, suspended mid-air.

Jordyn put his arms around Kaila as the b.a.l.l.s floated, illuminating the room with silver light. "I really like being on Earth and being with you." His golden eyes blazed with drunken courage.

"I'm glad you came," Kaila said, kissing his neck. After that she didn't remember anything.

"What is this?" Nan shrieked.

Kaila blearily opened her eyes. She had pa.s.sed out on the couch, her head on Jordyn's shoulder, who had his head back in sleep.

Lucius and Viktor lay on the floor, Viktor's arm across Lucius's back. Antonia and Pia nestled together, asleep on the recliner. Toby and Melissa clung to each other in sleep on the floor. Echidna lay on her back on the floor, her thin lips parted, gently snoring.

Shattered gla.s.s on the floor. The pictures fallen to the floor. The kitchen table littered with plates of food and empty liquor bottles. Kaila bolted upright.

"What is going on?" Nan repeated, her wrinkled face going red in her pink nightgown and green felt hat.

"Oh, s.h.i.t!" Kaila blurted.

What else is there to say when there are six hung over aliens pa.s.sed out in the house?

Chapter 8.

What is going on here, young lady?" Nan asked. Her lower lip trembled.

"Uh," Kaila couldn't talk, her mouth was so dry. She had to get a drink of water or die. Plus, her head pounded. But she had to do something and quick. Even the dogs were awake, pushing their heads in her lap.

"What in h.e.l.l is this?" Mike came into the kitchen. He strode into the living room, kicked Viktor. "Hey, boy, git up. And you too," he said, giving Lucius a kick.

"Get the h.e.l.l away from me," Viktor slurred, still half asleep.

"What'd you say?" Mike was on Viktor in a second, jerking him upright from underneath his shoulders. Viktor's fiery hair was a mess, sticking out. "Hey, boy, you better sober up."

Mike glanced at Kaila. He shook his head.

Viktor rose to alertness. Whereas his blue eyes had been flat, the pupils became a vertical slit. "Hey, caveman," he said. "It was your liquor we were drinking."

Jordyn was between them in an instant. "Damage control!" he shouted. His hazel eyes transformed to solid black b.u.t.tons directed at Mike. "Look at me." Mike took one look at Jordyn, and his face went slack.

Nan screamed.

Antonia shot up from the recliner, raced to Nan. "Hey, old lady," she said with a raspy voice. "Chill out."

She stared dark eyes at Nan. Nan's chin dropped to her chest.

Paw Paw ambled into the kitchen. Weak, he took one look and sunk into the kitchen chair.

"Don't touch him!" Kaila cried. She put her arm about Paw Paw.

Paw Paw laughed. "Looks like you had one h.e.l.l of a party here, Goosy."