Mate Her by Jenika Snow
5
Minka stared out the observation window and watched as the red, fiery planet of Hades came into view. She had finished eating hours ago, and aside from when Lukin came in to tell her they were arriving and that she needed to prepare for the reentry, the three of them had left her alone.
The ship broke through the barrier of Hades, and Minka stared out the window as the red planet came into view. No longer were the darkness and stars her background. All she saw was giant black mountains, rivers of lava and fire, and a red tint that covered the planet that was now her home. Maybe she should have fought harder and not given in to them so easily, but the honest truth was that she had nowhere else to go.
She nearly died back on Arambria and had almost been sold as an object in an intergalactic auction. These warriors said they wanted to have her as their equal, and all she had to do was give herself to them and allow them to take care of her. No one knew what the future held, least of all her, but she had to start somewhere. What she did know was that her fate without them was grim and undetermined.
If these three warriors vowed to offer her the peace and safety she desperately wanted, why would she refuse it? They could be lying, trying to keep her calm until they got to their home, but she didn’t think they were dishonorable. They were warriors, and if she knew anything about a warrior species, it was that they were held by their word.
The seat she was in was a gravity-controlled one that had no straps or belts to hold her down but instead used the pressure in the cabin to keep her stationed. It was like this heavy weight keeping her down, not comfortable, but not painful either. The window before her showed her every small detail in crystal clarity. The monstrous mountains came into view, the color like the tar pit on her home planet.
But there was this glossiness to them, one that reminded her of one of the rare Obliqua gems that were mined from the great Mindora caves. Dozens of lakes could be seen from her vantage point, but they were not the green or blue watery ones she had seen before, but ones made of bubbling, boiling, steaming lava.
The ship wove in and out of the tight confines of the mountains, and she had no clue how they maneuvered the large contraption so seamlessly.
Even though the room was overheated and there was metal and temperature resistant glass that kept the elements out, Minka swore she could feel the heat of the planet right outside the ship. The craft landed onto a smooth strip of rock that was clearly used as a landing pad, and then suddenly the engines were cut off and the silence descended upon her.
She could hear the faint sounds of the ship settling, of the engines cooling, and of her heart beating wildly. This was it, her new home, one that was like hell itself, although she told herself that her life hadn’t been anything perfect to begin with.
Even if she thought about escaping once she got here, the scenery told her she wouldn’t survive one day on her own. But truth be told, she didn’t really want to leave or escape.
What was out there for her? Even if this planet wasn’t death waiting to happen to her, she wasn’t safe anywhere. Minka had to struggle just to live in a world that had necessities for her survival. She even had men and women who’d been there to help. Well, they had been… until she was in the throes of being eaten, and then she had been forgotten.
A part of her hated them for doing that to her, but another part knew they were just thinking about their own need to live as well. But then there’d been Jobe, the strong and fearless man who she had given herself to on more than one occasion, and although she hadn’t loved him, she respected him for everything he stood for.
But he was gone, he was in her past, and she needed to focus on what her life was going to be like now.
The doors to the observation room she had been put in for their arrival opened, and she glanced behind her. At the same time, the gravity hold on her lifted, and she stood from her seat. The outfit she wore was a shift type dress, universal for men and women when they bathed, but she didn’t care if it was shapeless. It covered her, kept her modesty intact, and she was thankful to have something clean on.
“Are you ready?” Brawn asked.
She nodded, unsure if she was, but she had no other options. Thorque held out his hand for her, and she took a step toward him, and then another. Before she knew what was happening, Thorque had her hand in his, and the four of them were walking out of the spacecraft and into the sanitation pod. As the mist surrounded them and they were cleansed of any foreign particles that could contaminate this world, Minka closed her eyes and breathed out.
Once they were properly sanitized, the door opened, and the heat instantly engulfed her. She followed them out, Thorque still holding onto her hand as they walked out onto the black rocky ledge.
She took in the sight before her, and although she had seen it from the observation deck, seeing it like this, without metal and glass separating her from this planet, was surreal. They walked so close to the edge of a cliff that this tingling started in her belly, and her knees grew weak. Instinctively, she held onto Thorque’s hand tighter, and she noticed he glanced over at her.
“It will be okay.” There was this gentleness in his voice, and she found herself believing him implicitly. It seemed out of character, given his intimidating appearance, and if she had seen him from the auction block, she would have assumed he was an evil man wanting to hurt her. How wrong she would’ve been, and she knew that without a doubt, even if she really didn’t know him or his brothers.
Before she knew what was happening, Brawn had her in his arms. A small noise left her at the suddenness of the action, but when he pressed her close to his chest, warmth that had nothing to do with the heat of this planet or the fact that his body temperature was higher than hers, slammed into her.
Brawn glanced down at her, and she felt her heart pick up speed. Thorque and Lukin were on either side of him, and although their focus was on the terrain in front of them, she could feel how tense they were, as if it was her own emotions. The planet of Hades was scorching hot, far more uncomfortable than the temperature inside the ship.
She swore she could feel the heat from the lakes of lava below them, and the burning red sun above her, and the heat from Brawn’s body penetrating her skin as if he had gotten hotter. She was scared, and she’d be stupid not to be. But Minka wasn’t afraid of these three demon-looking alien males, and she didn’t know if that was foolish of her, or if her instincts just told her they wouldn’t harm her.
Minka relied on her feelings this far, and they helped her stay alive.
They were strong and powerful, and she felt so weak and fragile in comparison. Even being in Brawn’s arms right now had her feeling like some delicate doll. His hands were on her waist, and his large, long fingers spanned all the way to her belly button. She had gained weight in the short window of time she had been with them, and it was strange being full and having some meat on her bones.
For as long as she could remember, she had been hungry, thin, and bony, never having enough food to go around. But whatever nutrients Thorque had given her helped her pack on the pounds, and she was feeling strong and healthy now. She had curves, a rounded belly, and thicker thighs. Was this how she was supposed to look when not starving?
The wind that moved across their bodies brought even more heat. Smoke filled the air in a hazy kind of atmosphere.
“The heat is too much for her,” Lukin said, his voice clear, his expression no longer showing her that he was on some kind of mind-altering substance. He glanced at her, his black gaze determined but also somewhat gentle.
It was strange to feel this sensation inside her when she looked at each of them. She didn’t know them, yet she felt this connection, this need that moved through her. Maybe it was because they saved her from death and a life that was slowly killing her?
And then the sound of Brawn’s wings emerging, and of the wind increasing as he flapped them, had her glancing at the other two brothers. They too had dark inked-on wings that covered their backs, and right before her eyes, those black wings emerged from their red flesh in massive, inky deadliness.
They were tipped with claws, and the wingspan itself was monstrously large. And then Lukin and Thorque were airborne, moving high above them and looking like fallen angels.
“Ready, little human mate?” Brawn asked and looked down at her.
She stared at him, got lost in the dark gaze he held her in, and knew she had to have faith that things would be okay. “Not really.” She smiled for the first time since forever, and when he grinned, his fangs flashed bright white at her. He was so damn frightening, but she felt arousal moving through her at the same time.
And then he was in the air and flying behind his brothers. She closed her eyes, so afraid that she gripped his bicep and felt the sweat pool even thicker on her flesh.
“Open your eyes, Minka,” he said in his deep, steady voice.
As if the sound urged her to have the courage to open her eyes, she did just that. She looked at Brawn first, but he was focused in front of him. Then she turned her head and took in everything. They were high enough that the tops of the jagged mountains were just feet below them. He curled his claws deeper into her skin, not breaking the flesh but keeping her close to his body, and for that she was thankful.
Maybe it was a reminder that any sudden movement could bring her death.
“I won’t let you go,” he said and glanced down at her. His thickly accented voice penetrated her fear, and she nodded. She knew he wouldn’t. She knew none of them would, in more than one way.
“These are the Tartanaian Mountains, and that is where the home I share with my brothers is located.” He tipped his chin toward the highest-peaked mountains in the distance.
She stared at those angry, violent-looking rocks and wondered what evil creatures also inhabited that space.
“It is only home to the Hades warriors. All other creatures live in Brokaou, the forest of flames, over there.” He nodded toward the forest with flames that tipped the branches and fire that encased the land. God, how could she survive this place?
He dipped low, and she noticed the way he curled his wings further into his body and turned to the right to clear the narrow opening. He was taking lefts and rights, dipping low and soaring higher to clear the mountains, and when he rose higher and higher and let his wings spread out their full width, she felt free.
Brawn glided across the thick air the rest of the way, and Minka wondered if he was doing this aeronautic show for her. What she did know was that for the first time in her life, she didn’t feel like she was suffocating in her own skin.
