Mastered by Her Mates (Interstellar Bride Book 0)(18)

I had no idea yet exactly how it was different, but I tugged at the sheet. "Anything will be better than this sheet. Thank you. But I'd love to shower first."

She smiled then. "Of course."

Mara spent the next hour showing me how to use the bathing units-there was both a shower and a bathtub, although she told me they were for pleasure and not strictly necessary. She showed me the S-Gen, where the green lights scanned my body and created new clothes for me to wear. The living space was completely unlike those on Earth as there was no kitchen, no closets and I followed her around almost blindly, with a curiosity only seen in small children. Several compartments were hidden in the walls and I anticipated finding and opening them all just like a treasure hunt. I felt like an excited child being hand held and I was thankful for it. I told her so.

"You're welcome. I will take you to the cafeteria. After that, you should be set with everything. Oh!" She spun on her heel and faced me. "Your mating box. I understand it was not claimed in the medical unit."

"Mating box?"

She waved her hand through the air. "It's a box of supplies for new mates. We'll just go and retrieve one from the commissary. Would you like to see some of the ship before we eat?"

The idea of seeing more than just Grigg's quarters was appealing and I ignored the rumbling in my stomach. I was hungry, but I could wait. Not only would it slake my curiosity, but it would allow me to investigate and study the ship so I could report back to Earth.

"Yes, please."

Dressed now in a midnight-blue uniform of dark pants and matching tunic, I finger combed my hair and left it down in a wild tangle around my shoulders and eagerly followed Mara out into the hallway. There wasn't much to see, only a plain orange hallway. The walls changed from orange to green to blue as we progressed through the ship, Mara explaining as we went that orange or cream shades indicated we were in civilian or family areas, green was medical, blue engineering, red was command and battle stations. The ship was color-coded, as were the uniforms, with gray being general support staff, the color of the insignia on their chests indicating in which area of the ship they served. High-ranking officers, such as doctors and engineers wore uniforms that matched their ship's section. Which explained Rav's dark green uniform.   





 

Warriors, like my Grigg, all wore an intriguing black and dark brown camo armor that Mara insisted was nearly indestructible, explaining, "The commander has tested it, often."

I didn't like the sound of that.

We passed several people who all nodded their heads deferentially. At first I thought it was how they said hello, but it appeared they were only doing it for me, not Mara.

"Why are they nodding to me? They don't even know me."

"They know you are the commander's mate, our Lady Zakar. We have waited several years for your arrival."

I frowned as we turned a corner. "How do they know it's me?"

Mara pointed to my neck. "Your collar. Your clothing. Your alien appearance. The commander insisted you wear the Zakar family color. The color is different for each group of mates. See-" She pointed to her own neck. "My mate's family line, the Myntar warrior clan, is represented by dark orange."

"I'm honored, but confused. Why would anyone here be waiting for me?"

Mara stopped walking and turned to face me. "The commander's mate has great power and influence. In regards to civilian matters, your orders are to be followed by all on board, warriors and civilians alike. None but the commander himself may order you around, and all on board would die to protect you. You are like a princess now, or a queen. Our queen."

What the fuck? I couldn't keep the shock, or the nerves from my voice. "Why? What am I supposed to do? Why would a warrior follow my orders? Am I supposed to go into battle?"

"Oh, no, dear." She patted me on the sleeve, then dropped her hand. "No. Although, if you really wanted to, and could convince your mates to allow it, you could. No. I will help you find a job that suits you. As the highest-ranking Lady of the ship before your arrival, I have been in charge of the civilian side of life in space. The warriors are busy fighting and expect the non-combat personnel to handle the rest."

Holy shit. "Like what?"

"Adoptions, matings, maintenance, socialization, community, schooling-"

I held up my hand, interrupting, "So, they fight and we take care of everything else?"

"Exactly." She grinned. "And I would love to have your help, if you are interested."

"But, how do you know I won't make a horrible mess of things? I don't know anything about your ships, or your way of life. I didn't even know a space ship existed outside of movies until recently."

Mara's smile was fill of confidence, and I couldn't stop the warm glow her words elicited. "You are his match. Perfect for him, which means you must also be perfect for us. The protocols would not have mated our commander to a woman who could not handle him, or responsibilities of her own."

Stunned, I felt my mouth open and close, which made her laugh.

"My mate is Captain Myntar, the third-highest ranking officer in Battle Group Zakar. And since neither the commander nor Captain Trist was mated, I've been running things around here by myself. And between you and me, I could really use some help."

Excitement tingled up my spine at the prospect of having something meaningful to do. I should have been excited at the opportunities I would have to gather information in my new role, but, if I were honest with myself, it felt good to be productive. I loved the idea of contributing to something, building something, rather than destroying it.

"How long have you been a mate?" I asked.

"Five years. We have a son." Her face lit up. "Would you like to see him?"

"Oh, um … sure."

"Good, because I took him to his school-he's only three, so it's more for play-but I always like to peek at him and see him having fun."

We turned a few more corners, the wall color changing again to a soft, sandy brown. Zara stopped in front of a door long enough for it to slide open, then I followed her in. We were in an entry area, an odd blue-skinned woman sat behind a desk. Her hair was as black as her eyes, but her features were stunning, cover-model gorgeous.

"Lady Myntar," the woman said.

"Hi, Nealy. This is Lady Zakar-"

The woman stood, nodded her head. "The commander's mate. Welcome."

I smiled at the young woman. "Thank you. And you can call me Amanda."

Mara was practically glowing. "I just wanted to take a peek at Lan. I won't disturb."

Nealy nodded and we approached one of the windows that offered a view into the adjacent rooms. There were various-aged children playing in each, adults with them and playing too, some helping with coloring or rolling a ball.   





 

"There." Mara pointed to a little boy with the same golden coloring and rust-colored hair as his mother. He was busy stacking blocks with a little girl with flaxen hair, similar to my Rav's. The scene was straight out of any preschool back home.

"He's adorable."

Mara beamed, clearly enthralled by her child. "Yes. He is so strong. Already so protective. He punched another little one yesterday for pulling on little Aleandra's hair. His fathers were so proud."

Okay, so they encouraged fighting.

No, they encourage their little boys to protect the little girls. I couldn't say I disapproved.

We watched for a few minutes, enjoying the simple joy on their faces, their innocent delight in such basic things. I realized these children were just like little boys and girls on Earth. They were no different. One stole a toy from another, one had fallen asleep on a blanket with a book. Another sat in one of the teacher's laps, tears on his cheeks. She was waving a small glowing wand over a scraped knee.

I pointed. "What's that?"

"The ReGen wand?"

"The thing in the teacher's hand."

"Yes. It's a healing wand."

Within seconds, the boy's knee was completely healed, no sign of the scrape remained. His tears stopped and he was smiling.

"I've never seen one before," I commented.

"We should go before Lan sees me."

We left the little school and took to the corridors again.

"You'll find a ReGen wand in all of the community areas. In the work areas as well. They heal minor injuries, but if you're truly hurt, you can go to the medical stations, that's where they have the ReGen pods."

"It heals things quickly, too, like that boy's knee?"

"Yes. They're actually called Regeneration Submersion Units, put we call them pods."

Wow. I had visions of a coffin-style pod, straight out of a sci-fi movie. Lie down in the pod, wait a few minutes, completely healed? Earth could really use something like that.

And the ReGen wand? It was portable, easy, quick. It could change the face of medicine on Earth, but we didn't know about it. I had to remember to look for the one Mara had said would be in a community area. If all else failed, I would have to swallow the bitter distaste rising in my throat and steal the ReGen wand in the preschool. Surely, they would replace it immediately. They had to have thousands of the things.

I accompanied Mara to a large cafeteria-style dining area, which was mostly empty. She showed me how to order food from the S-Gen unit, told me I could also order food in my room, but that eating alone was frowned upon in Prillon society and the warriors and their mates would take it as a slight if I did not join them in the common areas, especially me, their commander's mate. Their Lady Zakar.