Page 64 of Dark Prince's Captive

For exercise, he takes me to an inner courtyard with a garden and a fountain in the center.Sparkly purple and red flowers turn their heads toward any movement, and trees with rubbery black trunks and white ropey vines draped over their branches give off a sweet, spicy smell that reminds me of aniseed.We stroll along the paths that cut through the exotic plants without saying a word to each other.Neither of us mentions our mating again.

Although it’s hanging like a prison sentence over my head, we refrain from discussing that subject at all costs.We’re both avoiding the inevitable fight and the uncomfortable strain that, as I’ve recently discovered, apparently goes hand-in-hand with conflict.

Sadly, that avoidance also prevents me from asking him questions about Zerra.I’m eager to solve the mystery of this world.Not knowing drives me nuts.But I can’t bring myself to give in first and break our silent war.My pride and self-preservation are at stake.

When Aruan can’t escort me to the interior garden himself, he sends Gaia or Vitai to do it.Sometimes, Kian accompanies me when neither Gaia nor Vitai are available.

Gaia and I have become friendly.I like her straightforwardness that never lacks tact or kindness.She takes me on a tour of the palace, showing me the majestic Great Hall and the Sky Bridge.

The Great Hall boasts life-size statues of all the Alit kings and queens that have ruled over Lona.They stand in circle upon circle around the hall, their stony faces stern and serious.

The Sky Bridge is the bridge I saw from Aruan’s balcony, the one that connects to a platform in the center and a smaller cliff on the other end.The drop below is impressive enough to give me vertigo.From what I’ve seen, I thought there was only one set of stairs carved into the cliff, but as it turns out, there are two.On one side, the steps lead to the sea, and on the other, they go down to a hill.

Just as I get excited about going outside, she tells me that the waterfall can only be opened by authorized Alit, which is just another way of telling me how trapped I truly am.

I don’t hesitate to pepper her with my questions, but she can only tell me the things I’ve worked out for myself already, namely that the Alit are a humanoid species who somehow ended up sharing their world with dinosaurs and other species, like the Phaelix.She seems clueless as to how their powers work from a scientific perspective, or how it is that she’s able to open portals—though she does say that she’s practiced portal work since she was a child.

Her power, like that of other Alit, seems to be something between an ability that she was born with and a skill that she’s perfected.

Secretly, I like the brothers too.Kian is austerely quiet, but I’ve come to appreciate his silence.Only once have we chatted during a walk.As Aruan and I don’t speak, he’s never given me any information on how the investigations are progressing.So, one day, I posed my questions to Kian.

Have they found the person who let the Phaelix into the palace yet?

What about the person who tried to poison me?

He gave me a cryptic no, and then stopped abruptly to warn me in a serious tone to be careful.

What were his exact words?“Not everyone is happy that you’re here, Elsie.Be vigilant, trust no one, and always watch your back.”

Yeah, that didn’t help me feel at home.

Vitai, on the other hand, is the chatty one.I’ve learned more about Zerra from him than anyone else.I know, for example, that the Alit are spread across five kingdoms, and that their lifestyle is very much medieval-ish—exactly the vibe I got when I first arrived here.Nowhere on Zerra is there electricity or the modern inventions of Earth, yet the people possess these inexplicable powers.There are many types of “dragons,” too many to count, not that I ever get a chance to see any.Aruan makes sure I can’t get outside.

I’ve taken to snooping around, especially in the kitchen where most of the gossiping seems to happen.The cook, an elderly lady called Jina, has told me I’m not allowed to take anything from the pantry.It’s not that she wouldn’t like to feed me, but after the poisoning attempt, Aruan gave them strict orders that only he’s allowed to prepare my meals.It’s strangely sweet.Then again, he’s only protecting his own interests.He can’t let his possession perish, can he?

But Jina is content to let me hang around her working space where she shouts orders at a team of cooks and cleaners as long as I keep my fingers out of her cooking pots.Unfortunately, the gossip mostly involves personal matters, and I don’t learn much from them.

I did discover that the king’s quarters are on the opposite side of the palace from the queen’s—a strange arrangement for a “mated” couple, if you ask me.More importantly, the doors are always guarded.There’s no chance of getting in.The rest of the royals avoid me like the plague.

Deciding to resort to books for more information, I asked Gaia where the library was—because every respectable palace has a library, right?—and she shocked me by saying they don’t have books on Zerra.

“But what about history and science?”I asked her once I’d explained the concept of books.“How do you teach that to your new generations?”

She just smiled and said, “It’s in our heads.That’s all we need.We tell it to our children, and they tell it to theirs in turn.”

“But what about the scrolls?”I asked, at which she laughed and told me the scrolls weren’t books.

I bombarded her with more questions.For starters, if the scrolls weren’t books, then what were they?But she only waved a hand and changed the subject.

Which left me no closer to figuring out how this world came about or what it is.All I can do is speculate and come up with theories, gleaned mostly from my favorite books and movies.Such as the multiverse in Marvel comics—that’s a real thing, right?Not Spider-Man and all the superheroes but the multiverse concept itself.Certainly, inThe Big Bang Theory, the physicists seemed to think there could be multiple universes, each with its own unique Earth.So maybe that’s what Zerra is—a parallel universe’s Earth, one where history took a different turn, and the asteroid did not wipe out the dinosaurs.

That would explain why this place is so similar to Earth yet so very different.If this were truly an alien planet, I would’ve died within moments of setting foot on it.The atmosphere, the force of gravity, the surface temperature—everything would be drastically different and likely not compatible with human life.Case in point: Jupiter, Mars, or any other planet known to our scientists.But Zerra is not like that.Venomous critters and giant bugs aside, it’s quite welcoming to humans… or at least to humanoid Alit.Which is yet another point in favor of my theory.

If Zerra were not a parallel Earth, there’s simply no way there would be a humanoid species on it, not even one with crazy powers.

Yeah, I’m all out of theories on that one.

Mulling all this over takes up some of my mental space, but not any of my free time.So, with nothing better to do, I try to escape.

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