This Little Piggy by J.G. Brin

A humorous cross between the children's story "The Three Little Pigs" and the movie ALIEN.

Mac makes a living where he can, playing fast and loose with the laws of the Porcine Republic. He’s faced every kind of danger possible in both known and unknown quadrants. Luck and skill have served him well enough until he unwittingly unleashes the fury of a beast the likes of which he's never seen.

Cal is a doctor, left alone to safeguard a deserted medical outpost. She bitterly opposes the military expansion of the Republic and regrets the part she has played in aiding the marines. Her world is about to be rocked to its core.

Zok is a marine, living in self-imposed exile on Planet V3. Half-patriot, half-visionary and completely bananas, he is the third and final piece required to defeat the beast that arrives on the planet he now calls home.

On the frontier of space, these three unlikely heroes must form an alliance to confront the most powerful opponent the galaxy has ever known.