Magic

Nymphs and Elves

Chapter 13 ~ Nymphs, Elves and the Shea

Tenaniaå: ten-AN-yay
Taniaa: TAN-yuh
Piarallis: pie-RAL-lees
Iaonina: yoh-NEE-nuh
Xialia: CHY-lee-uh
Remember ae is formally used as å

I hear words from the Healer. "Well, I must be going!"

"Ever so posh," David says, putting on that accent Americans think we all have. "How're you going?"

"Teleportation. I'll probably be gone before Blu gets here." The voices are getting nearer.

"Lucky! That - you know - you can Teleport without Light Travel."

The Healer chuckles. I hear a sparkle.

I feel my feet drifting down, and I open the eyes I didn't know we're closed.

"Woah.."

A garden like I've never seen is before me. It was GINORMOUS. A meadow, with paths made of earth - in... surprising colours. Pink, green - you name it.

And in the centre, with all the paths leading to it, a magnificent castle.

And by magnificent, I mean glorious.

It was a whole different story -

"Sixty-seven, to be exact - but, you know, this story isn't very accurate." David chirps. (FIX THE FOURTH WALL, FIX THE FOURTH WALL)

Anyway, it's a pretty tall building.

Tall, wide... some crystal pillars in different colours, glimmering in the fortunate sunlight.

The whole thing - no, it can't be called that. The whole masterpiece is draped in vines which were imbedded with flowers. I stand, my mouth agape for... goodness knows how long.

I turn, after a while. The light that had swallowed me in is slowly minimising, a spark flickering as it disappears. I realise that behind where it was is a murky forest, that surrounds the whole area, adding another layer of mystery to the already layered... Cake of Mystery... I dunno.

Maybe I'm just hungry.

I spin, a beam on my face. "Well, what're waiting for?!" I start to march up to the castle.

"Woah, woah, woah." David grins, stopping me with a hand on my shoulder. "You think you can enter the Shea - just like-" he snaps his fingers. "-that?"

I turn to him, nodding rapidly, eyes wide. "Mhmm."

"Sorry to burst your bubble..." David bursts an imaginary bubble, making a 'pop' sound with his mouth. "Buuuuut... drumroll please... You can't."

"Why?"

He sighs. "We have to-"

"Wh-wh-wait..." I say slowly, interrupting. "You said "Shea". What's that?"

"Ahh.. you don't know. It's where The Tenaniaå - a... queen of sort - lives. But it's also a base for Nymphs and Elves."

"Nymphs and Elves?"

David bites his lip for a minute. "Kinda like princesses and princes but WAAAAAY cooler. That's why..." He groans. "you have to go through the trap system. The Nur- Healer gave me a card that will disable them for two minutes. And a paper showing us the Codes to the traps if we can't, for some reason. Convenient, right?"