REALM'S END (BOOK OF FEY 1)

by Jules Hancock

  Lisl and Lindel turned to the human child. “It’s true what your father says. Even the creator of a world cannot stop its eventual destruction. All of life must pass away; it is the way of an ever evolving universe. Change is the foundational law of the Universe. It is the only constant, all life must evolve and to do so there must be death and transformation. In the beginning, your father was a young brash God, but as you’ve seen even Gods evolve. Wisdom has finally come to live within him during this last awakening. So while it breaks our hearts to pass away, as it would for anyone, we understand and accept the law of change.

  Gwenth stepped away from her family and made her way too Briok’s side. She looked up at the beautiful Fey. She barely recognized him now, the transformation was so great. Gwenth wiped her tears away and smiled bashfully up into Briok’s glowing face. “I guess you and I need to finish this then.”

  Briok reached out his hand and Gwenth took it. She looked up at the pair of yellow eyes twinkling back at her.

  “Trust me?”

  Gwenth smiled up at Briok. “Of course, only promise not to flit nervously upward toward any ceiling. Ok?”

  Briok laughed, “Don’t worry I’m nervous anymore,” and the two blinked suddenly out of sight.

  Inner World of the Fey

  “Where is this,” Gwenth asked, as she looked out at the brightly lit forest.

  “This is the inner world of the Fey, he said, flying low through the strange shaped trees. These are all the past keepers of time and the future keepers of time as well. There is a tree here for each second of life, one for all the seconds in all the worlds. Briok banked hard and flew straight upward. Eventually he leveled out and Gwenth could see a world covered in a great unending forest. Waves of light and dark green tree reached as far as she could see in every direction.

  “But how can this be? I thought your world is relatively new?”

  “It is new, but as time never fails, never stops there have been many times our world has been born, and it will continue till the forests fail. See there where that great pine with its sunlit foliage is standing alone,” Briok pointed westward.

  Gwenth nodded. “Yes.”

  “That will become the next keeper of time. The light colored ones have not been keepers before, so they are more vibrant with their color. After being keeper they come back dark and heavy with time.”

  “So this is where Sephoria brought Lillith?”

  Briok nodded and flew straight on into the growing light.

  “Briok where is all the light coming from,” she asked, pointing below?

  It is the depository of all knowledge, each of the keepers shares their knowledge and that knowledge is here. All the knowledge is stored as light within the trees’ leaves and bodies and then after they come here that light is shared amongst them and even released into the world. The Rowan will have left an imprint of its knowledge too, though I don’t know how dying as it did will affect the sharing. Sephoria will be here of course, waiting for us.”

  Briok flew on and on, his wings rising and falling as he quickly covered the miles of forest that lay below. Hours passed and the light began to mellow and as the darkness settled over the track of forest the night sky became visible above them.

  Gwenth found herself growing more and more restless as she watched the forests passing far below. She was tired and longed for food and a rest. She wanted to stand on her own two feet, to feel hard ground solidly under her. “How much longer,” she asked?

  Briok looked at the young woman. He saw that exhaustion had crept into her face and realized in his zeal, he had forgotten to care for his charge. “You’re tired and need food. “I’m sorry Gwenth, let me set down here, and I will forage for some food while you drink from the river.” Briok slowed his pace and changed his direction flying down to the river’s edge. He set Gwenth carefully down upon the river bank.

  “Oh my legs don’t seem to work.”

  “You will be fine in a few moments; flying is a lot like swimming, you just feel funny till you readjust to the ground. Briok’s strong arms held her till she felt she could stand on her own. Will you be alright, while I find food for you,” he asked, as he stepped away?

  Gwenth smiled and nodded up at her handsome friend.

  Briok leapt into the air and his great wings lifted him swiftly away.

  Gwenth turned carefully round and round looking all about the glade. The forest was darker from this level, but she didn’t feel any sense of fear. Smells of the forest wafted on the air currents. They were familiar, though at home there were few trees on their bit of land; still somehow she knew she was safe. She knelt on the mossy river band and cupping her hands she sipped from the passing stream. The water was teeth chattering cold and it numbed her hands, but she felt so refreshed, she reached for another palm full. Suddenly, she heard the murmuring of voices. She held still, crouching low on the bank and stared back into the dark undergrowth. She listened, straining hard to find where the sound was coming from. The dark forest seemed suddenly forbidding and she wished for a better weapon then her staff. “Who’s there,” she hissed. The forest grew quiet making Gwenth strain all the more to hear the talking again. “I have a weapon and I’m not afraid to use it,” she said firmly. Then the night became silent. Not a sound, not even a whisper of wind penetrated the glade.

  “Here now, what are you hollering about,” Briok asked, as he landed with a nesting bag of fruit in his hand?

  Gwenth started at Briok’s voice and whipped about ready to protect herself. “Oh you scared me!”

  Briok let out a laugh. “Sorry about that,” he said. Briok conjured a glowing light that hung before them in the air.

  “Oh. Well that would have been nice to have while you were gone,” she said, as she blushed in embarrassment.

  “So what scared you? It couldn’t have been the dark, I know you highlanders are used to the dark, remember,” Briok said, teasingly as he settled himself on the ground and began laying out the meal for them.

  Gwenth sat upon the leaf covered ground. “No, it wasn’t the dark. I heard voices,” she whispered.

  Briok’s head jerked up and he warily looked all about. Suddenly his shoulders relaxed and he began to laugh.

  Gwenth watched as Briok laughed and felt her anger bubbling up to the surface. She was just about to cry out in protest when Briok cut in.

  “I’m sorry Gwenth,” he said, trying to curtail his laughter. Chuckling still, he looked over at the angry young woman and asked, “Did you hear the voices before or after you drank from the river?”

  She took a great breath and blew it out slowly. Gwenth struggled to control her anger. Taking another deep breath, she tried to concentrate on Briok’s words. She considered his question. Had she heard the voices before or after? “I think after,” she said hesitantly. Her mind tried to be sure of what order things had taken place in, while Briok was gone.

  “Good, then here,” he said, as he handed her a bright red fruit. You ate these before so I got several for you.” He bit into a red fruit of his own and casually slurped up its refreshing juice.

  “So,” she said, taking the fruit and biting into its tough exterior.

  “Huh?”

  Were men really so dumb, she wondered, as she ate her fruit and stared at her changed friend. “Aren’t you going to tell me why I heard the voices after I drank the water?”

  Briok finished the fruit and flung the center seed pod out into the woods, so it could grow into another tree. “Well I suppose I could,” he said, “but you already know the answer.”

  Gwenth stared at him questioningly. “What are you talking about…. her voice trailed off. Oh I think I do know. It’s like the sacred waters!”

  Briok’s deep voice broke again into laughter. “You must have been hearing the forest talking.”

  “The sacred water is here too?”

  “It originates from here; in fact it’s only here.” Briok nonchalantly picked up a barbed fruit and began to op
en its husk.

  “Wait, how can that be? It was on your world, so how can it be only here?”

  Briok lifted the small inner fruits from the husk gently so as not to waste their juice. He popped all three into his mouth and chewed quietly for a moment. “It’s kind of hard to explain. I guess the best way is to say this world is the more real of the two, at least for the Fey. This world comes first, anything here can come into any existing Fey world, but here it is real, there in the other world it is just less present.”

  Gwenth took up another apple like fruit and began eating it as she considered Briok’s answer. “It all seems so confusing,” she said shrugging.

  “I would have agreed before the awakening,” Briok nodded. It’s even more confusing then you realize right now.

  Gwenth sighed, “Ok let’s change the subject for now. So what’s different,” she asked? “I mean besides the obvious outside package,” she said motioning to his bodily changes.

  Briok stood and collected the rest of the fruit returning it to the sack which he tied to his waist. “So much it would be hard to explain it all,” he said leaning down to help Gwenth up. “I think we need to fly on. It is a long way yet. You can sleep while I travel. Take your staff from your back.”

  Gwenth let her fruit’s core land softly on the ground as she reached up and took Briok’s strong hand. Her heart pounded as she felt his strength ripple through his body, as he helped her to her feet. She removed the staff and held it against her chest as Briok lifted her up, cradling her in his arms. She smiled up at him as she laid her head against his shoulder. “Fine for now, but later you will have to answer the question.”

  Briok leapt into the air and soared high above the trees and flew on toward the growing night.

  Gwenth lay quietly against Briok’s chest. She tried to relax, but she could feel Briok’s muscles flexing against her body and the feeling of arousal made her blush. Thankfully the darkness had enveloped them and she was glad to keep her secret safe. As they traveled she thought she heard occasional whispers from the trees far below. Letting herself relax against Briok’s strong body she realized a soft breeze had come up over the forest and it tenderly caressed her cheek until she finally slipped into an restful sleep.

  Reunited

  Lillith lay beside the river of sacred waters listening as the water sang a sweet lullaby. She combed her fingers lazily through the water, enjoying the tingling coolness as it refreshed her skin. Sitting up she turned to where Sephoria sat resting. “Won’t the waters heal my wings if I submerge myself in the river?”

  Sephoria sat her back against a great Oak. “No child I’m afraid not. There is no cure for your wings,” she said, shaking her head sadly at the young Fey.

  “Why not? I don’t understand? The water healed you!”

  Sephoria looked down at her body, which once again was all Fey, with no trace of tree left. “Child the water didn’t bring back my old body. My body simply changed back because the Rowan’s energy withdrew.”

  “Well couldn’t we try it at least? How can I be a Fey without wings?”

  Sephoria patted the ground next to her. “Lillith come and sit here with me.”

  Lillith begrudgingly walked over to the Oak tree and slid down next to Sephoria.

  Sephoria reached out and touched the young girl’s face. “It is time for the race of Fey to travel to other worlds. Do you understand that?”

  Lillith shrugged, struggling hard to contain her frustration.

  “It isn’t always easy to understand the ways of the Gods,” she said, patting Lillith’s knee. “Long ago it was decided that a red haired child would change our world forever. To most of the Fey that was a scary idea. So when you were declared to be that child, those in power full of their fear locked you away inside your Rowan friend. None of them knew that you weren’t the red haired child of the prophesy. Gwenth is that child.”

  “So Gwenth should have been the one locked up?”

  Sephoria took a deep breath and looked down at the un-awakened Fey. “Well yes and no. She was the girl spoken of in the prophesy, that is true, but she only came to save you and to open a way for you and Briok to travel forward in time, to begin a new colony of Fey in a new world.”

  “But there are people on her world already.”

  “Yes that’s true in her time there are people, but in the beginning, when her world was still young, there were no people. You and Briok will be those first people, and where you are going your wings will become only a hindrance. Understand?”

  Lillith hung her head and sighed. It all seemed so complicated. She didn’t want to be the matriarch of a race of people. She wasn’t even awakened yet. She looked up into Sephoria’s deep eyes. “Why can’t I stay here with you and the Rowan?”

  Sephoria laughed brightly. “Child you will always be here with me and the Rowan, but you must send your energy out into the world as well. This place will always be within you. You and Briok will come home many times while you are away and when you finally take your rest you will come home to us and we will rejoice and celebrate your return.”

  Lillith looked out over the river; she watched the singing water as it made its way past where they sat with their backs against the old Oak. The world here was so beautiful, so peaceful. Tears began to slip down her cheeks, making orange streaks against her blue skin. “I don’t want to go,” she cried out, clutching at Sephoria’s arms.

  “There, there, child,” Sephoria said, stroking the young Fey’s hair. “It will be alright, once you awaken you will want to go off with Briok and make a new world. The river has sent a message via the trees and your parents will be here soon. We will awaken your spirit then.”

  Lillith stopped crying and leaned back so as to look up into Sephoria’s face, “My parents are here?”

  Sephoria smiled brightly at the child. “Yes of course they are. Nothing is lost in the world of Fey, all of our people since the beginning of time immemorial are here. All the Fey and all the trees are here. It has always been so and will always be so.”

  Gwenth jumped up. “Please grandmother, please fix my hair and my shift. I don’t wish to be ragged when they arrive,” she pleaded with Sephoria. Lillith bent down and tried to pull Sephoria to her feet.

  Sephoria laughed. “Hold on now. I don’t need to get up for that,” and she waved her hand in the air.

  Lillith looked down at her shift. It was as bright as her hair had once been. It lay against her skin like a soft petal of a bright flower. She ran to the bank and looked into the water. There staring back at her was a flaxen haired young woman. She smiled, the water image smiled too. Turning she looked at Sephoria. “This is me,” she asked?

  Sephoria smiled nodding. “Yes child now that you are free of the Rowan’s magic you are catching up to where you should be. Even your natural hair color has returned.”

  Lillith turned back to the water and stared at the image. She saw that she was no longer the young child who had gone to live within the great Rowan, but was now becoming a young woman. She smoothed down her shift and felt the changes that lay beneath the shift.

  “Lillith? Honey is that you?”

  Lillith turned around and her mother was hovering before her. “Mother,” she said, and ran into her open arms.

  “Oh my beautiful, beautiful, darling daughter.” Lillith’s mother stroked Lillith’s long flaxen hair as tears ran down her cheeks.

  Suddenly Gwenth felt another set of arms encircling her. She looked up into the love filled eyes of her father. “Hello daughter.” His voice broke with the rough emotion.

  Lillith’s parents held their daughter close and allowed their joy to lift them off the ground. The three of them twirled about in the air, heedless to all but one another.

  “We missed you so much child.”

  “I missed you more than you’ll ever know mother,” Gwenth whispered, through her tears.

  “Well this is some celebration,” her father’s voice broke through, “All o
f us crying like this on the day of your awakening.”

  Lillith hiccupped, and laughed and felt the weight of her parent’s loss lifted from her. “I don’t think we will need a ceremony. I feel awake already,” she said, laughing as she hugged both her parents closer.

  Lillith’s mother breathed in the familiar scent of her child’s skin, reveling in its sameness. “I think she may be very close to right. Let’s go down and ask Sephoria.”

  The three allowed themselves to slowly descend down to the Oak and Lillith’s parents bowed low in front of the matriarch. “Thank you for caring for her,” Lillith’s father said.

  “I was glad to have the opportunity to be her protector, as was the Rowan,” Sephoria said, bowing her head before them.

  “Lillith doesn’t think she needs the ceremony. Is that true?”

  Sephoria looked hard at the girl. “I do see that your return has opened the gates and it may be that she will not need any ceremony as much was done to assist by the years with the Rowan. Perhaps we should await for Briok’s return, before going further.”

  “Briok? Is he coming here too,” Lillith asked?

  Both her parents and Sephoria smiled at the young Fey. “Yes child you it’s time for you and Briok to become partners, he is coming to take you home even now.”

  “What? Partners, I don’t want to be Briok’s partner now. I don’t want to leave now that I’ve found you again.”

  Sephoria pressed back against the Oak’s great body and used it to raise herself into the standing position. “Child you have to go.”

  Lillith stared at the adults around her. “No! I’m tired of being told what I must do. I will not go,” she said, stamping her foot on the soil.

  Lillith’s father flitted forward and taking his daughter into his arms, he hugged her closely. “I know you don’t want to go child, it is not easy for your mother and I to let you go again, but you must.”