Chapter 89: Path to the fea realm
"Bring the divided book," Queen Elena commanded, her voice cutting through the tense silence that had fallen over the room. Her eyes remained fixed on Commander Maria, who nodded once before departing swiftly.
Lyra watched the Thornvale queen carefully, noting the subtle shift in her demeanor. There was something in Elena’s expression—a tightness around her eyes, a tension in her jaw—that suggested she knew more than she had previously revealed.
’She recognized the name of this realm immediately,’ Lyra thought. ’What else does she know that she hasn’t shared?’
Commander Maria returned moments later, carrying the ancient tome wrapped in protective cloth. She placed it reverently on the table before Elena, who unwrapped it with careful hands.
"The Fea realm," Elena began, her fingers tracing the weathered edges of the torn book, "is mentioned in our oldest texts. Not as a physical place that can be found on any map, but as a space between spaces."
She opened the book to a particular page, where faded illustrations depicted a strange landscape of impossible architecture—buildings that seemed to defy gravity, structures that merged with their natural surroundings in ways that shouldn’t be possible.
"According to this text, the Fea realm exists in parallel to our own, accessible only through specific nexus points where the barriers between worlds grow thin," Elena continued, her voice taking on a scholarly tone. "Few have ever entered it willingly—and fewer still have returned."
Elysia leaned forward, studying the illustrations with growing concern. "And the warriors of this realm? What does your book say of them?"
Elena turned another page, revealing detailed sketches of tall, elegant warriors with markings similar to ritual scarification across their bodies. "They are formidable beyond measure," she said grimly. "Trained from birth in combat techniques our warriors would find alien. Their strength doesn’t lie in numbers but in their individual power."
Her finger traced the image of a warrior with a symbol etched into her forehead. "And then there are those the text refers to as ’the marked ones’—the top seven. Elite warriors, each bearing a number that designates their rank and the element they control."
"Kiran is part of this top seven," Elysia said softly, her voice tight with anger. "She must be."