Page 1 of His to Claim
1
EMMA
“Oh, my fucking God. We’re gonna die here,” I scream from the bottom of my heart.
“We have to go through the portal. NOW.” Catleya shouts as she enters more codes on the control panel. Anil’ha is beside her, waiting for the portal to work. There’s no time to waste. The blast wave is catching up with us, and we’re seconds away from sure death. My heart thumps in my throat, my limbs shaking. I’m seeing death with my own eyes, and it’s not pretty.
“We’re not dying,” Anil’ha says, hugging me in his big arms. The fucking portal doesn’t work.
“It works. Come on, hurry. Sadly, only one of us can pass at a time. There’s not enough power for more. Who goes first?” Catleya starts the portal and approaches us, her gaze wide. I’ve never seen her this scared and worried.
“Emma goes first,” Anil’ha says and pushes me forward toward the portal.
“No. We all go,” I say.
“No time to argue,” he replies. “Pass through the portal, Emma.”
“What about you guys?” I ask.
"I will not go alone. You have to come with me. Please… I need you with me." I tell Anil’ha and grab his hand. He brushes my hair, his other hand caressing my back. The explosion gets closer and closer and we're minutes away from sure death. He has to make a decision, right here, right now. There is no time to waste. It’s either now, or death.
"I can’t comewith you, Emma. It's too dangerous. The portal can’t handle it. You have to go alone. Trust me. We’ll be right after you." Anil’ha lets go of my hand and takes a step backward.
"No. I won't let you die here. Catleya, you have to come too. It's too dangerous for both of you." Tears start running down my face. I won't have it. They've become my friends, some of my best friends. They risk their lives for me and I just can’t be this selfish. I can't let them die here without even trying to convince them.
"You have to go now!Listen to me! If you don’t leave right now, we are all going to die." Without saying another word, Anil’ha grabs me and pushes me through the portal. I try to fight it, but I can’t. He is way stronger than me and I can't fight back. In a split second, everything goes silent. There is no sound of the explosion thumping in my ears, no heat wave. There is nothing. Only silence. Twirling lights start spinning around me. My breath stops in my chest, my hair raising. I'm so scared. The lights become brighter, the only sound ringing in my ears, the sound of my heartbeat. I squeeze my eyes tight, afraid of looking around me. What is happening to me? Is this the end? It can’t be. I have all my life ahead of me. I have so many things I want to do with my life. I may not be on Earth anymore, but at least I'm young… I still want to experience life, even if it’s one on this goddamn planet. I open my eyes and see the lights become lower, almost disappearing. How much longer will it take to pass through this portal? The spinning suddenly comes to a stop. I'm not moving anymore. Am I dead? Is this it?
I openmy eyes and look to the ground. I don't have it in me to look up. Where am I? The first thing I see is the green color of the grass. There is grass under my feet. I'm standing on the grass. It's real grass, like on planet Earth. I really can’t believe it. The ground isn't blue like the one on Valkrya. I raise my eyes and look around. I'm surrounded by lush vegetation, and beautiful trees shivering in the warm breeze. The same breeze brushes against my face, the heat of the sun warming my skin. The same suns tower over the horizon… like the ones on Valkrya. It's warm here. I’m not freezing anymore. I get my feet and take a few steps toward the lush plants in front of me. I brush the leaves with my fingers, touching the texture of the leaves. I close my eyes and tilt my head, enjoying the warmth of the sun, It's amazing. It almost feels like I'm on earth.
"Anil’ha!Where are you? Are you here? Catleya? Anyone?" I yell from the bottom of my throat. Nobody answers me. They're not here. But they promised they would come. Where are they? Am I all alone here? I take a few more steps and search all around me. I drop to my knees and start crying. The tears run down my cheeks, my hands wiping them away. I rub my hands together and I can't stop crying. What will I do here on my own? I don't even know where I am. I walk a few meters away, searching for anything familiar. There is nothing I recognize. One thing is sure… I'm not on Valkrya anymore. But where am I?
I don't see any signs of technology on this planet. It looks nothing like Valkrya. The sky is blue and the green color of the vegetation brings me a feeling of comfort and relaxation. My heart slows down and I can breathe with ease. Everything is serene and so peaceful. For a moment I almost forget that Anil'ha and Catleya are still back on the spaceship. I hope they managed to pass through the portal and perhaps they landed somewhere else. My breath quickens the moment I hear some voices in the distance. I can recognize the language... Valkryan. My heart starts beating like crazy as if wanting to escape my body. I don't know what to do. I turn my head from side to side, but there is nowhere to hide. I want to run but I don't know where. The voices appear closer than before. Oh my God, what do I do? Where do I go? My legs start shaking. A cold shiver runs through my spine, my hands trembling.
"Stay where you are."A male voice speaks from behind. I turn my head and see four alien males standing right behind me. My eyes bulge as I look at them. Their bodies are massive, the same blue hue as the Valkryans. For a second I think I'm losing my mind. They are Valkryans But how?
"Don't hurt me," I say and raise my hands above my head. I don't want them to hurt me. I've been hurt by Valkryans before. I don't want it to happen again.
"She's female,but I've never seen her species before," one of the males tells the one on his right. He's a little bit larger than the rest of them and is clothed in animal skins. If I didn't know any better I'd say he's from a tribe. They all look somehow savage. Not a single thing reminds me of Valkryan technology. They walk barefoot, their bodies only covered in a skirt-like piece of fur. They speak the same language, they look exactly like Valkryans, but somehow they are not.
"Who are you?And how do you speak our language?" The larger male comes closer.
"I don't know how to explain. I came here through a portal of some kind. There was an explosion and I don't know what happened to my friends," I tell them almost in tears. My breath slows down and my heartbeat returns to normal.
"Portal? Do you speak the truth? The portal was destroyed 10 years ago," another male says. "Maybe she's the spy, trying to destroy our village."
"I'm not a spy. Believe me. I don't know how I landed here." My eyes fill with tears and I drop to my knees. This can't happen again. I was a prisoner once before. I cannot be a prisoner again.
"I have never seen your kind before. You're a new species and as far as I'm concerned you may as well have come here to destroy us."
"No. That's not true. Trust me. I'm as clueless as you are." I try to explain that, but their expression remains the same. They look at me from head to toes, their faces expressing no emotion. They are Valkryans. At least everything about them says that and somehow they are not. This is really weird. Two of them come near me and grab my arms, forcing my body to stand. "Please don't hurt me," I beg them but I don't fight back.
"Come!We will take you to the village," the larger male tells me, his eyes fixing me as he turns around and leads the way. The other one follows him and I'm forced to walk behind them by the two males grabbing my arms. They start walking through the dense vegetation, sharp leaves scratching the skin on my leg and arms. Lines of red blood appear on my leg, the stinging sensation almost bringing me to tears. "Stop! You're walking too fast. I can't keep up with you guys."
"Slow down. She is not as strong as us." One of the males holding my right arm shouts to the one in front. The large male turns his head for a second and looks, slowing his pace and I'm able to catch my breath. The chief, because he looks and acts like one, stops for a second and turns. His eyes look menacing, his brows brought together almost forming a single brow.
"Fine. You know the way. I'll go ahead and inform the others. Don't let her out of your sight!"
"Understood."
