After Genet typed in something else, the room rose, and she held onto Erak’s hand tighter and reached out for Raimi’s.
“There isn’t anything to be frightened of, sweetheart.”
Giving Raimi a grateful look, she knew that she had no reason to be scared at what she would find once they reached their destination, but the fact remained, this was a totally new place and experience for her.
The room suddenly stopped moving, and the ceiling above them started to disintegrate into a thousand tiny shards of light. The sun broke through, bathed everything in a golden hue, and vanquished any and all electronic devices that had been visible.
They were no longer standing in a sterile, barren room, but had thick trees on all sides of them, and the scent of clean, fresh air filled their lungs. Everything looked so beautiful, so clean, and she was struck speechless.
“Just a little farther and we will be at the palace.” Genet turned and looked at her. He cupped her face in his hands and stared into her eyes. “Are you okay with all of this? I don’t want to overload you too fast or too soon.”
She shook her head as an answer, and the smile he gave her was one of relief.
“Good, because I want this to be perfect for you. We all do.” He leaned down and kissed her lips gently. “If you are tired from walking, we can charter a small craft.” She was shaking her head before he finished.
No way in hell was she going to give up the chance to walk through nature.
“I’ve wanted to do something like this my entire life.”
They started moving through the thick foliage, following a wide, formal stone path. Everything smelled so fresh, looked so vibrant, and held so much life. Colorful birds flew above her head, their beautiful songs traveling as far as she could hear.
The scent of clean water filled her nose, and she inhaled deeply. The green, reds, and browns of the trees and the vibrant yellows, blues, and oranges of the forest creatures scurrying about had tears actually forming in her eyes.
So this was freedom? Her home planet was nothing but death and red dust, but there was nothing of the sort here on Aktulla. She couldn’t leave this place or these men, not when life filled her, flowed through her veins and had so much happiness rushing through her entire being that she was going to explode from it.
The trees opened up, and right before her was an architecturally advanced building. A skyscraper that seemed to touch the heavens. The Aktulla palace was like nothing she’d ever seen, nothing she could have ever envisioned.
Crystal clear ponds in shades of emerald green lined the monstrous building, and the closer she got, the more detail she saw worked into the smooth, seamless stone. Scenes of war were etched into the sides of the palace in startling clarity and detail.
Guards in fierce looking armor flanked the front entrance, and she wondered how many other soldiers had been hiding within the forest protecting the brothers and their king. The sounds of metal clanking together had her turning to her left.
In the very near distance, she could just barely make out hundreds of men fighting and training together. How had she missed that upon walking up?
Once inside and after she lifted her jaw off the ground at the beautiful, arching stairways, floor to ceiling windows that overlooked a massive, purple-hued lake, and the detailing to the décor, she let her men lead her through their home.
Although they were advanced with technology, everything screamed primal and old world. There was no artificial intelligence cleaning and cooking, and instead, she found men just as big as the brothers doing those tasks.
A booming voice came from a set of double doors they stopped in front of, and after Genet gave a hard knock and was granted entry, he pushed them open, and they walked inside.
Luna looked around, knew from the images she had seen of Earth, that what she was looking at was called a library.
“Our father enjoys the simple, primitive things in life and has made it his duty to make things as basic as possible, aside from our training, army, and, of course, intergalactic travels.”
All of this newness and the happiness she felt caused emotions to crest inside of her.
“The Aktulla army is the fiercest in three galaxies.” There was a proud tone in Raimi’s voice, but she knew it was well deserved.
“My sons, I heard of your arrival and wondered how long it would take for you to come to me.”
With Genet in the way, she couldn’t see the male that matched the deep voice.
“Well, Genet, move out of the way so I can see your female.”
Suddenly, Luna was very nervous. Genet took a step back and to the side, just enough that the king, their father, could look at her.
They resembled him in their hulking builds, towering frames, and facial features, but none of them had the rich brown hair coloring or light golden eyes. The king took a step toward her, and she noticed the brothers stayed right where they were, flanking her in an almost protective, territorial manner.
“A human for a mate.” It wasn’t an accusation or a question. His words held more of a hint of wonder. “Such a small and fragile species.”