Casey froze, then fell to the floor, into the foul mist, as he saw a flash from a gun behind the alien. Immediately, his face numbed as the mist touched his flesh.

Overhead, a bullet smacked against the corridor wall and ricocheted into the central room of the ship.

Jumping to his feet, Casey ran to the hatch and looked down at the body of the alien robot. They seemed not designed to take abuse from the hands of irate humans. One shot had destroyed the head of the robot.

“Don’t shoot,” he waved his hands to show he was not carrying a weapon, and walked part of the way down the ramp. He could vaguely see the face behind a barrel protruding from a bush several yards away.

Stolen novel; please report.

“Are you a good guy?” a female voice answered.

“Hell yes,” Casey almost laughed in relief. “Stay there. Better yet, back off fifty feet and wait for me.”

Before the woman could ask questions, Casey pulled a grenade from his pocket and pulled the pin. A commotion from the top of the gully and the disappearance of the barrel of the gun told Casey the civilians had seen what he was going to do.

He crossed to the wall of the gully and climbed to the top. With a deft toss, he sent the grenade into the hatch of the ship and dove for cover.

With a roar and ball of flame, the spaceship ceased to exist.

Above the woods, to the north of the house, the huge spaceship neared its destination as a ball of flame raced up into the night, announcing the destruction of the scout ship.

The UFO tilted down and sped towards the site of the disaster.