No Escape From Fate

"Once a year, throughout the entire kingdom, they gather young beautiful girls for him, hoping that one of them will suit His Majesty as a wife. But no one suits him, and afterward, no one ever knows anything about the girls. For some time they live in the palace, and with time there are fewer and fewer of them, until they disappear completely, every last one. And not all of them even make it to the palace - the road is long and dangerous, full of many threats."

"Strange... seriously, in all this time not a single one caught his eye?" I don't understand, because everyone here is so beautiful. A traveling modeling agency!

"Most likely not," the woman sighs. "If he's a shapeshifter, then he's most likely looking for his mate. Or maybe the king simply wants to find his love, and with his looks... Perhaps when he's angry, he does something to the poor girls." The woman's lip twitched, and her eyes filled with tears.

"And what about his looks?" I ask carefully, freezing inside.

"He looks very... specific," the brunette grimaced. "It's very hard to call him handsome - like, not at all."

"Listen, as I understand it, the king needs virgins for this... candidacy, right?" I ask cautiously, because maybe there's a way to solve my problem. "And I, well, haven't been one for a very, very long time..."

To this, Alaya only laughed bitterly and, scooting closer, lifted my shirt, examining my stomach.

"I don't know what happened to you in your world, but in this one you're still a maiden," the woman stunned me. "The drawings on our bodies are called karpits. They are unique to each person, and the design never repeats. They also show different stages of your growing up and the development of your body and life, so they change throughout your life. What you have on your stomach indicates that you are still untouched."

My eyes go as wide as saucers and move down to my stomach, examining it.

"Your bud hasn't bloomed yet, which means there hasn't been a man there - at least, not in our world."

For fuck's sake! And why the hell do I need this here?!

Alaya lifted her own shirt, and on her flat stomach I saw a beautiful, large, bright, colorful flower in the center, and next to it three smaller flowers and one very dull little bud. No matter how you look at it, it's very beautiful and interesting.

"Holy crap!" My eyes fly up to my forehead. "Why are there so many flowers?"

But Alaya suddenly grew sad and lowered her gaze.

"The central, biggest flower is my maidenhood. And the smaller flowers are my pregnancies and children."

"But... in the house you're alone..." My heart starts to clench as I realize how much grief and sorrow this wonderful woman has had to endure.

"Yes," the brunette whispered, a tear slipping down her cheek. "I had a husband... and besides Sariya, two older sons. After my daughter disappeared, my boys couldn't bear the loss and set off toward the capital to search for her. But they never returned. You see, the road to the capital is long, difficult, and at times deadly. We also have seasons of earthquakes in the mountains, caused by wandering stone giants known as gorts. It was during one of those seasons that my sons were on their way back... when the gorts were nearby. There was a massive rockslide. They all died."

"Alaya..." I whispered, embracing the grieving mother who had lost her entire family. "I'm so sorry."

"And this small bud," she said sadly, touching her stomach, "it represents a pregnancy that never came to bloom-a life that never had the chance to grow." She stood up quietly to prepare some kind of herbal brew for us.

After a few minutes of silence, I finally asked, "Alaya, why are the markings on everyone's bodies colorful, but mine are black?"

"That," she sighed, "I truly don't know. We're all born with colorful carpits. Maybe it's because you're from another world."

More questions, and still no answers...

"Tell me," I asked carefully, "just theoretically-if I were to... sleep with a man, would that mean I'm no longer a suitable candidate?"

"Oh," Alaya smiled faintly, "that won't be an issue here. Manar gave strict orders-no man in this settlement will even dare to look at you that way. And once the king's scouts for brides arrive, they'll either cast a special spell to prevent such things, or watch you very closely. So..."

"I was just asking for reference," I muttered awkwardly, realizing I had no idea who I could even sleep with here-and, honestly, didn't want to with just anyone. But still... better to know my options.

We continued talking for a few more hours until I began to yawn.

"Iza, you should rest," Alaya said gently. "The scouts will arrive any day now-it depends on how long their journey takes. Gather your strength for the trials ahead."