When Worlds Collide (MxM)

Chapter 5 - The Banquet

The most frustrating part about living in the castle was that Kade wasn't allowed to go anywhere else. Not to the market, not to the lake, not even to the road.

This made shopping around for new food difficult. Eira was willing to help pick up a few things at least, but he always got met with questions on why he wanted such unusual items.

To the Terran, it looked like Kade was eating condiments as a guilty pleasure, and agreed to keep this unusual habit a secret.

Kade tried asking why he wasn't allowed outside of the castle, but no answer was ever given. At least he had plenty of work to keep himself distracted.

Aino's oil lamp was presented to be mass-produced for the upper class. They also had a small demonstration of Kade's bike design. This was the first time Kade had seen the king since arriving at the castle, and the white-haired man watched in amusement as Eiro rode the device.

Kade suggested getting a wagon attached to the back for delivering goods, and thus they decided it would be marketed toward shopkeepers.

The king and his assistants gathered around the bike after the demonstration to admire it. "You've outdone yourself again Aino."

"It was Kade's design." The cantankerous Terran admitted.

The royal glanced curiously at the human. "How grand. I take it that means you two are getting along then?"

"He's proven adequate to remain at my side for now."

Kade's chest puffed with pride. He'd done it. He finally got Aino to approve of him.

Then he noticed how the king's cobalt eyes were scanning the pair with renewed interest. "So you won't be demanding he be released like the others?"

"Released?" Kade spoke without permission, earning a shocked look from the assistants. "Er...I have to ask. Have I been a prisoner this whole time?"

The group laughed as though they'd heard the most ridiculous thing on the planet. "Oh my...If you were being held prisoner, don't you think you'd be manacled at least?"

"But I've been told I'm not allowed to leave?"

"Of course not." The king agreed. "Someone as unique as you would be picked off the streets the second you stepped foot outside."

"So I've been confined for my safety?"

"Yes, so to speak."

In a way that made sense, but he still didn't like it. He'd rather have the freedom to explore the rest of this world. Being stuck in one building, no matter how large, would drive him mad over time.

The assistants murmured amongst each other and then were dismissed. As Aino led the way back to the lab, the Terran's ears drooped slightly. Kade tried not to think about what the man's mood must be like after acknowledging a newcomer's invention over his own.

"Do you not like it here?" Aino suddenly asked, but remained facing forward.

"How do you mean?"

"You sounded like you wanted to leave."

"I do," Kade admitted, missing the twitch in the Terran's ear. "I've only been to the villages, and here at the castle. I'd like to see what the city is like someday."

He waited for the Terran's thoughts, but the man said nothing.

Almost as soon as they were back at the lab, Aino was summoned to the throne room. Kade took this opportunity to mess with the glow stones and see what else he could do with them. He'd already ordered plenty of supplies, and Aino adopted his makeshift pencils over quills. So that meant he had the material for a wick. All he'd need is a circuit and they could make a light bulb.