Page 71 of Us Dark Few

“They make it look so real,” she said in awe.

A stunning rock waterfall extended from the dome, roaring down into a long, winding river. The water was the clearest shade of blue, and a cloud of beautiful mist floated over the air. A gorgeous, white-stone bridge lay directly in front of them, built over the river that stretched ahead and circled a sparkling city.

The city of Genesis.

The city was far, and only tall white buildings were visible from this distance, but even from over there, it was beautiful. A torrent of emotions threatened to overcome Khalani, and tears prickled the back of her eyes.

If only her parents had lived to see it.

“Stop dawdling!” the guard with the copper beard yelled.

The guards strode toward the stone bridge, and the four of them quickly followed suit. They walked through the sun-lit, grassy meadow until they reached the river crossing.

The waterfall roared next to them, and a myriad of colors appeared through the mist. She’d heard of this before.

Rainbow. Yes, that’s what it was.

A rainbow.

She stopped momentarily, mesmerized by the sight, when Serene grabbed her arm.

“C’mon, Khalani. We have to keep going.”

Khalani could barely tear her eyes away.

It was like being transported into a real-life fairy tale filled with color, after living in a black-and-white world.

When they crossed the elegant bridge, a winding road made of cobblestone led to the city. The buildings in Genesis were ivory-colored, some as high as the dome, with elaborate pillars for support.

As they approached the buildings, she noticed statues of animals—gargoyles—embedded on top of the pillars. From animal history class, she vaguely remembered the names of some of the creatures. Lions. Elephants. Horses. The whole city was a mesmerizing work of craftsmanship, designed to attract attention.

Her neck ached as she craned her head at the wondrous sights.

Genesis citizens milled about as they were escorted through the city. The women wore a mix of metallic, silver, and white dresses, and the men wore silver, gold, or black tuxedos. Each person dressed as if they were about to enter a ball.

Everything about them was different. Even the way theywalked.

In Apollo, everyone kept their heads down, hurrying to reach their destination and complete their work. There were rarely any smiles or greetings exchanged between strangers. Happiness was as absent as the sun.

But there, everyone smiled and lazily glided along the streets as if they had all the time in the world at their fingertips.

Khalani glanced at some of the shops lining the street. The windows were filled with dresses, tuxedos, jewels, furniture, elaborate cakes, and even gold bicycles.

Everyone gave their group a wide berth, as if they could sense the underground on their clothing. Khalani made eye contact with two older women holding golden umbrellas as they strolled past. Their faces twisted in disgust, and they abruptly turned the opposite direction.

Khalani scowled, and she had half a mind to take the umbrella from their hands and smack them across the head with it.

What kind of idiot blocked the sun anyway?

“Unbelievable, isn’t it?” the dark-haired prisoner whispered next to her shoulder. “They live like kings up here while we fight for scraps underground.”

Something inside Khalani tightened as the prisoner’s words made her think of Takeshi.

“Someone once told me that Genesis was beautiful on the outside, but up close, it’s just as empty and corrupt as Apollo. I didn’t know if I believed them then, but I’m starting to now.”

“Whoever told you that is smart. What’s your name?”

“Khalani. That’s Serene,” she whispered, nodding at Serene, who flipped her finger at two old men who were noticeably leering at her.

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