The Veiled Lands (REWRITING)

Chapter One

Chapter One

World Beyond Words

The sound of glass shattering echoed through the house along with shouting that cam after by my father's voice. I flinched. I wish I could learn not to, I should be used to this by now. My father threw a plate across the kitchen towards me after I dropped one of his favorite coffee mugs. I dodged the plate, and made a quick escape out of the backdoor and headed to the one place where I can escape from this shit world, the bookstore.

I'm from a small town where almost everyone knows everyone, which is my bad in my case because gossip travels fast. When I was a freshmen in high school, my father had one of his worst episodes ever. I tried to cover the bruises the best I could at school the next day, but someone saw them. A rumor was started by my neighbor who went to school with me who heard the commotion that night. I got sent to the counselor's office because of the rumor. I was so close to being eighteen and getting out of there for good, so I denied everything. Now, anytime I walk down the street and the hallways of the school, I get stared at by everyone with pitiful looks.

The bookstore was just a few blocks away from my house and is nestled between a laundromat and diner that smelled of burnt coffee. I finally arrived at the front of the store and stared at the large sign of the bookstore's name, Leaf & Vine Bookshop. As I walked into the store, the bell above the door chimed softly, and the rich scent of aged paper and leather instantly soothed my frayed nerves.

"Back again so soon?" the shopkeeper murmured, a gray-haired woman with spectacles perched at the bottom of her nose.

I offered her a small smile. "Books don't judge."

The shopkeeper chuckled and returned to her crossword, and I left to wander the narrow aisles of the store. My fingers brushed the spines of the well-loved tomes, their faded titles whispering promises of adventure and escape.

I almost reached the back of the store when something caught my eye. There was a faint glimmer, like sunlight filtering through the leaves. I turned to face where the light was coming from, and it was a book like I have never seen before. It was laying on a high shelf, bound in a deep green etched with silver filigree. The title of the book was nearly illegible, as though the letters were shifting under my gaze, but I could just make out the words, The Veiled Lands.

I felt drawn to the book by an unexplainable pull, and so I reached for it. The moment my fingers touched the spine of the book, I felt a jolt electricity shot through my arm. I yanked my hand back, my heart pounding, but the book was already in my grasp.

"Careful with that one," the shopkeeper said from the counter, her tone unusually serious.

"Why? Is it cursed or something?" I joked.

The shopkeeper's lips twitched into a fait smile, but her eyes stayed sharp. "Some books choose their readers. That one's been waiting a long time."

I hesitated with the thought of buying the book, but curiosity got the better of me. I paid for the book and tucked it into my bag, feeling its weight as if it were more than just paper and ink.

-

Later that night, I sat cross-legged on my bed with the mysterious book laying open before me. The pages were blank, and I sat confused as to why the shopkeeper would sell me a blank book. Then suddenly, words began to appear, flowing across the paper like ink spilled on water.

"To the one who seeks escape", the text read, "the realm awaits you."

I blinked, thinking I was seeing things. I ran my fingers over the words, but they seemed to just vanish beneath my touch. The air around me became heavy, the shadows in my room deepening as though the light from my lamp was being swallowed whole.

Then the pull came, exactly like I had felt in the bookstore. It was a gentle, insistent tug in my chest as if an invisible thread was winding its way around my heart.

Before any sound could leave my mouth, the world tilted.

My room dissolved into a swirl of colors of green, golden light, and shadows darker than midnight. The air was alive with sounds I couldn't recognize, whispers, laughter, and the rustling of leaves.

When the spinning stopped, I was lying on soft moss and was able to see my breath in the cool, fragrant air. Above me, the sky shimmered with hue of colors I couldn't name, and the trees stretched so high their branches seemed to scrape the heavens.

This wasn't home.

This wasn't anywhere I have ever known.

-

First official chapter!! So excited to post more!

<3