Page 57 of Tricked By the Alien Prince

“There were no dragons,” Melvall says flatly.

“How do you know? Were you there?” Zoran counters.

I clear my throat pointedly. “You were saying?”

“Right,” Melvall says, shooting Zoran another look. “The fighting pits were particularly profitable, attracting criminals from all over the universe. You could watch, or even join if you felt brave enough.”

He runs a hand along the wall, tracing what looks like an old scratch mark. “But the pirate king’s gladiators kept dying in them—though to be honest many of them weren’t true warriors. Most were slaves, stolen from their home worlds.”

A distant scream makes me flinch. How many have died in these pits over the years? It’s timing is all too relevant to our discussion.

Melvall’s telling a dark and terrible story… and I prefer the light-hearted ones. You know, the ones where the people actually live at the end.

“The King found a way to keep them fighting; achieving what many thought was impossible,” Melvall continues.

“The medicine,” Zoran cuts in, his voice suddenly serious.

“The ability to heal all wounds, no matter how severe,” Melvall explains. “He had help from several parties, of course. After all, everyone, including entire planets and species, wants such a power for themselves, or at the very least wants to stop their enemies from getting hold of it.”

“Long story short?” I prompt, rubbing my arms against a sudden chill.

Melvall stops pacing and faces me directly. “Supposedly the ‘investors’ found out about each other, and weren’t happy. During the fighting, the slaves took the opportunity to rebel.”

“And that’s when it gets good!” Zoran interrupts, mimicking sword fighting with an invisible opponent.

“You see,” Melvall continues, “when someone uses too much of the medicine, it becomes a part of them—they no longer need more in order to rapidly heal even the most serious of wounds. At that point you only need to give it to the younglings. In this case, so many of the slaves had been forced to fight, over and over again. They’d been healed countless times...”

“The gladiators and slaves won?” I ask, leaning forward.

“Compared to the pirate king’s men, they were unstoppable. Unkillable,” Melvall confirms.

The implications hit me like a physical blow. “The king was a slave?”

“He would have been quite young at the time,” Melvall confirms, his voice softening.

I lean my head back against the cool metal bars, the pieces clicking into place.

“It makes so much sense now; why there are buildings already on the planet. Even why Earth came here, especially under the pretense of mining.” I shake my head. “I’d like to say that I’m shocked that they even knew about this... but I’ve seen what power does to people; it makes them think that they can do anything they want, sacrificing anyone that gets in their way.”

Through the bars, I can see a guard walking past, deliberately not looking in our direction. His armor gleams in the dim light, too fancy for the grim surroundings.

“The King’s not a bad guy,” Zoran tells us, sitting back down with a thump.

Melvall snorts.

“He’s right, Melvall,” I tell the blue male.

“Oh, not you too!” He gives me a pitying look, like I’m the one that’s crazy here.

“He’s scared,” I insist. “He feels all alone in this universe, trying to hold everything together even when it’s all falling apart around him.”

Melvall shakes his head in disagreement, refusing to listen.

“He is. Trust me. I know what it’s like to feel alone, to feel like you can’t trust anyone around you at all.”

That sense of loneliness, of isolation, of having no one that I could lean on for support... it was all in my mind. All this time, I’ve been the one to make my reality worse. For so long now, I’ve been driven by this false belief—just like the King has.

In reality, I haven’t been alone for a long time. I had my friends Ariana and Stacy by my side. Then there was Volan, who came out of nowhere to offer me aid. He saved me, so many times. Even Melvall and Zoran are here caring, companions in a way that only accused-criminals can bond.

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