Secret of the Mystic
Chapter 3

Between the leaves of the large trees of the forest, the soft rays of afternoon light shown in beautiful patches. Aniki listened to the songs of the animals in the trees, playing a soft melody to stir waking thoughts. After what felt like ages, he forced open his tired eyes, his head still pounding with a gushing pain. He was surprised to find himself in a delightfully soft and comfortable bed, with a quilt of pleasant blue and white patterns. As the pain eased, he carefully sat up and removed the quilt, only then realizing that his clothes were different. Instead of his faded black jeans, grey t-shirt, and black hooded sweater, he now was wearing a white linen shirt, Victorian age in fashion, and black trousers, which seemed to be the standard in this world. Despite his distaste for the clothes, he found them quite comfortable. With a sigh, he examined the unfamiliar room around him.

The room was quite large, yet strangely empty. The headboard of the bed was pushed up against the wall, and centered along it. Directly across from the bed, about fifteen feet from its end, was a window that opened into a small balcony. Thin white curtains hung from the top of the window to the floor, and drifted softly on the breeze. To the right of him was a small, decorative table, with a glass oil lamp adorned with a shade that matched the blue of the quilt in color. To the far right, about another fifteen feet, was an open door that immediately led to a curved stairway to the bottom floor.

Curious, Aniki got up from the bed and walked to the door. He stood on the first step and gazed at the enormous front room before him. He could not see the ceiling, for it was lost amongst the shadows of the tower. There were tall doors that opened to the outside, directly across from the stairway. On both sides of the doors were towering French windows that reached as high as the doors themselves. The windows were open, allowing soft light to flood the wooden floor below them. Beneath the window to the left of the door was a white grand piano, an old Celtic song piece rested on the stand. On the left side of the large room were two more sets of open stairs, one on the north wall to the far left of the doors, and one between these two stairways. To the far right was an open kitchen and dining area.

Aniki walked down the stairway and wandered nervously, searching for someone who could tell him where he was. He sighed in relief as the large front doors began to open, but that relief quickly faded as the door shut behind its opener.

“Ah, Aniki, good to see you awakened finally!” His voice was light and thickly accented with an old, Irish tone. Aniki stared at him in curiosity. The creature was tall, around six feet in height, and appeared to be a wolf standing upright on his back legs. His fur was almost purely white, streaks of silver grey bled through to show his age. The wolf’s hind legs were like those of a regular wolf, his front legs more like human arms, and his front paws more like hands with opposable thumbs, yet still paw-like. He wore a deep blue robe that reached the ground and fastened at the top by a pin, strange symbols covered the robe with black thread. His eyes were gentle and pale green in colour, and his left hand held onto a white staff, a large gem with the appearance of a diamond cradled at the top.

The wolf laughed a bit at Aniki’s expression. “My name is Veinta, and this is the village of Felwren. My dear friend, Faron, pulled you out of Lake Heron and brought you and your friends here.”

Aniki suddenly remembered what Elwyn had told him the night before. “Felwren? You’re a hwervag, then. Now I understand why Elwyn said I would have to see one for myself… Does Faron live here?”

“Yes, he is one of my great grandchildren, and one of our tribe’s finest warriors. He was chosen to stay with you while you are here to protect you, until you are trained well enough to defend yourself.”

“So wait, that means Faron is a hwervag? But he looks like a human...” Aniki’s brow furrowed in confusion.

“Hwervags are quite special creatures, you see, we are both human and wolf. Here we typically stay in wolven form, it is more comfortable for us. But we can take our human form whenever we choose, as you saw Faron do.”

Aniki grinned as he made the connection in his mind. “Wow, so you’re like werewolves! Only, not scary like the ones in stories.”

Though Veinta did not understand the reference, he tilted his head and smiled. “Oh, my people are quite friendly, not scary at all, unless you are a deer or a rabbit…” He laughed softly.

Aniki smiled, then thought about the Phoenix, how terrifying and powerful it was, and wondered how he could ever be trained to fight such terrible beasts. “What happened to the Phoenix? Did they kill it?”

“Oh no, none of us have the power to destroy such a creature. I sent a few members of my tribe to watch for the Phoenix, they told me it has returned to the Leaite Valley in the Black Lands. You don’t have to worry about it now, and you are safe here in my village.”

Veinta’s ears twitched as the doors behind him opened, and Elwyn stepped in with a smile, followed by another, much younger hwervag.

“Good to see you up and awake, Aniki. We were worried about you. How do you feel?” Elwyn asked, seeming genuinely concerned about his feelings for the first time since they’d met.

“Not bad I guess, considering I fell off a cliff…” He smiled a bit.

“That’s great. And, I have news… There was a great rebellion yesterday, spies of the Darkside led an army of demons and one of the Dark Lords into Brynmeir. There is so much destruction, and many were killed. That’s why the Phoenix was this far north.”

Veinta’s ears laid down a bit against his head, despair filtering through the cheerful features of his old face. “Such a tragedy… The Dark Forces have been so quiet all of these many years, people were finally beginning to feel a sense of peace, that perhaps the Darkside had given up…”

“In reality they were only biding their time, strengthening their forces and building up their armies. The queen will give her order soon, as to how the Sacred Alliance will retaliate.” The other hwervag spoke, his voice deeper than Veinta’s, and with not so thick of an accent, and Aniki quickly recognized it as Faron’s. In his wolven form he was all white, aside from a light, smoky grey blaze from the tip of his muzzle to his forehead. He now wore a white robe that reached only to his thighs, and his bushy tail curled very slightly around his right thigh as he stood in thought.

Upon recognizing his guardian, Aniki couldn’t help but rush over and hug him. “Thanks for saving me, Faron… again.”

Faron took a step back in surprise, but gently touched the boy’s head with his hand-paw. “Oh, well… You’re welcome, of course. I’m just glad you’re alright.”

Aniki smiled, then glanced at the room once more. “This house is really beautiful. It must have taken forever to build…”

The old hwervag smiled. “Not as long as you might think, nature did most of the work for us. You see, we build the homes of our village into the trunks of the enormous trees of this forest.”

“You mean this house is a tree? That’s awesome!” Aniki grinned with excitement. He had always wanted a tree house, but this was much better. His new caretakers laughed with one another as they walked through the doors outside. Aniki followed along behind and was stricken with awe at the giant trees of the forest. They were far taller and wider than even the biggest redwood trees, some reaching over 550 feet.

Light sparkled down through the gaps in the colorful autumn leaves, creating beautiful streams of glittering gold that flowed to the ground. The canopies rang with a soft chorus of life as animals sang to nature, hidden far above. Lanterns hung from the lower branches of the trees all around the large village. Sᴇaʀ*ᴄh the Find_Nøvel.ɴet website on Gøøglᴇ to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.

Aniki stared in wonder, carefully looking all around him. “This place is amazing. I’ve never been anywhere like this before… The trees are so tall, they go on forever…”

“There’s no place like it in the entire world. At least, not that I know of.” Aniki glanced behind him at Faron. The young hwervag half-smiled, but there was a serious expression in his brown eyes.

“So you’re a werewolf… or, hwervag?”

Faron smiled shyly. “Yes. I gather that my kind is extinct on earth… That is why the Mystic instructed me to remain in human form while I was there.”

“None of the creatures here exist on earth. No werewolves, elves, unicorns, whatever Fitz is…”

“That’s a shame… sounds like a very bland world.”

Aniki nodded in agreement. “Yeah… I always thought so.” He glanced up at Faron, noticing that he still had his bow and arrows strapped across his back. “Veinta said you’re the best warrior of the tribe, and that you were chosen to be my guardian.”

Faron’s expression became somewhat shy. “Well, I don’t about being the best, but the Mystic chose me when I was a young pup to be the guardian of one of the warriors. I remember that night so well…” The young hwervag paused, fondly thinking back over the memory. “Everyone was so excited after receiving a letter from the Mystic, stating that he was going to choose future guardians for the warriors that night. All of the young pups took their turn showing off their skills to the Mystic, and much to my surprise, he chose me and my cousin… I couldn’t believe it. Ever since, I’ve been training for this very time.”

“Wow… The Mystic chose you? What was he like, Faron?”

“Well… He really was very quiet. He watched everyone in silence, completely focused on determining which of us were best suited for the task at hand. When he looked at me… It felt as if he was seeing into me, I don’t know. It’s hard to explain.”

“He sounds kinda scary. But, I’d like to meet him, as long as you’re with me.” Aniki’s voice was uncertain as he looked up at Faron.

Somewhat flattered, Faron gave the boy a half smile.

“Can I look at your bow? I’ve never seen a real one before…”

The young hwervag nodded and removed the bow from its strap. He knelt down before Aniki, holding it out to him in both hands to allow the boy to see its many carved details.

Aniki smiled. “That’s so cool… I wish I could use something like that.”

“You will. I’ll teach you how to use it. Long range is best for you, you’re way too young to fight close combat.” Faron placed the bow back in its place as he spoke.

The boy looked down a bit. “I think I’m too young to fight at all. I’m only seven...”

“That’s when most children learn to defend themselves. You’ll be alright.”

Aniki sighed and looked down at his bare feet, blades of grass poking between his toes. A soft sadness was filtering through the beauty of the village in his mind. “If this realm wasn’t so pretty, I don’t think I would like being here at all…”

Faron made an expression of confusion. “Why? Surely you didn’t like the Banished Realm better.”

“Well, I didn’t like living there much either. It feels like no matter where I go, I still feel alone. I miss my mom…”

The hwervag was uncertain of how to respond. Being only twenty, and having spent much of his time for years training and working with older hwervags, he had little experience with children. Even less experience with troubled ones. He sighed in relief as Veinta came to his rescue.

“What do you think of our village, Aniki? You’ll be staying here for a little while, until the Mystic comes for you.”

Aniki perked up a bit. “It’s great, Veinta. When will the Mystic come? Soon?”

Veinta smoothed the fur behind his cheekbone with the side of his paw. “Well, I’m really not sure. But, don’t worry, he’ll be here. Until then, I will take this time to teach you a little about the realm. Tonight, though, is the Night of Valzben.”

“What’s that?”

“It is a festival, one in which we celebrate the coming of autumn and the balance of life.”

Aniki looked around and noticed the other hwervag gathering various baskets and setting tables, all of them seemed to be in good cheer despite the tragedies surrounding their small village. Still, he couldn’t help but feel worried. He had noticed that Tai was nowhere around, and hoped that nothing bad had happened to him during the Phoenix attack. He walked over to Elwyn and gently tugged at his sleeve to get his attention.

“Elwyn, where is Tai? Is he ok?”

The older elf looked down at the elvish boy, slight annoyance in his expression at first, but quickly replaced with concern. “I don’t know... We lost track of him when the Phoenix attacked the village. Faron sent out one of the hwervag warriors to search for him, but… he hasn’t returned.” Elwyn paused with a slight grimace. “And you shouldn’t pull on people’s clothing like that, it’s not very polite.”

Aniki sighed with disappointment. “Sorry…”

“You have northern elvish blood you know, you need to learn to act properly if you are to be presentable as one of us.”

“Why, are northern elves different from other elves?” Aniki questioned sincerely.

Elwyn smiled with pride. “Of course, we’re the last of the pure bloods. Although, you have non-elvish blood in you…” He paused, a hint of distaste noticeable in his face, but smiled a bit again. “But, you supposedly have half the aura of legend, so that makes up for it.”

“Aura? What’s that? And why does everyone know me?”

The elf sighed. “You ask a lot of questions. The aura is like the essence of you, part of your spirit. It’s just a symbolic word, I think… Anyway, not everyone knows who you are, we’re trying to keep that on a strictly need-to-know basis. But almost everyone knows of the legend.”

“Well, what legend? None of this makes any sense…”

“The Mystic’s legend. The legend of the ultimate destruction of the Dark Forces. Only you, Tai, and the Mystic can stop the Dark Forces.” Elwyn spoke with a rather flat tone as he focused on re-stringing his bow, rather bored with the boy’s curiosity. Noticing that the other elf was busy and did not desire to speak with him, Aniki sighed and wandered a bit through the forest village. It was quite pleasant, most of the tree homes had lovely gardens around them, as well as little stone garden statues and bird baths. At the center of the village was a large, circular area covered with flat paving stones. The stones that made up the circle were close together, though not touching, blades of grass grew up in between each stone. At the very center of the stones was a small tree, about twelve or so feet, with spade-shaped leaves of deep maroon. From its delicate branches were strung many colorful stones; rubies, sapphires, emeralds and opals, quartz and topaz and many more.

Aniki slowly walked up to and around the tree, admiring its beautiful ornaments. When he noticed Veinta sitting on a lovely wood and iron bench just outside of the circle, he walked along the little stone pathway to the small garden area, which was decorated with lovely orange and white lilies.

“Veinta, what are all of those stones in the tree for?” He asked, taking a seat on the bench beside the old hwervag.

“It is the tree of Theala, or family. When a pup reaches a decade, he or she must find a stone of their own and tie it to one of the branches. It is a very special tradition… Whenever we look at the tree, we see the stones of many generations and families.” Veinta smiled fondly.

“That’s neat… What does your stone look like?”

“I picked a sapphire stone, it is a lighter blue on the lowest branch. It has been so many years since that evening… 63 years ago! But I recall it well. When you reach your tenth year, you may place your own stone in the branches of Theala.”

As evening settled amongst the forest, the lanterns in the trees were lit and glowing with a soft, orange light. The hwervags were gathered in the center of Felwren in front of the tree of Theala, many of them holding a single candlestick, the flames glowing softly. Faron lead Aniki outside to them, the wolves parted to make a path for them to Veinta. The stone atop Veinta’s staff seemed to glow brightly in the light of the moon, reflecting the aged silver hairs in his face. Faron stopped in front of Veinta and stayed by Aniki’s side, with Elwyn at the boy’s other side.

“You may all sit down now. We are gathered beneath the moonlight tonight, as you all know, to celebrate the Night of Valzben, the coming of autumn, and the balance of life and death. Let me begin by telling the stories of the wolf brothers, and the legend, what little I know of it that is.” Veinta laughed, and the hwervags laughed with him.

“In the beginning, our world was kept in balance by great beings, two of which were the wolves, Sheraga and Avira. Sheraga brought us the warm light of life, through which the land grew and prospered in peace. Avira brought forth the storm of chaos, raging upon the land and tearing it down, but Sheraga would always rise and chase him away, leaving the land to heal in peace until the next time.” Veinta paused.

“That’s scary… Avira sounds like a terrible monster.” Aniki said with despair, hoping that the aura of Avira was not within him.

“Oh, it may seem that way. But in truth, the world needed Avira as much as it needed Sheraga. You see, after the storm of Avira would pass, the land would regrow even stronger and healthier than before. Life, death, and rebirth… it is the Law of Nature. We see it even in the seasons. Though the land dies in the autumn and lies still through the long winter, in spring it is reborn and flourishes through the summer months.”

Aniki nodded as he began to grasp the idea. “I guess that’s true. What happened to them, Veinta? The two wolves?”

“It is said that a powerful sorcerer used the darkest of magic to craft the Aethereal Chain, and with it he bound the wolves so that they could not stop him from taking control of Origynn. He awakened the power of the Phoenix, and ordered the beast to burn the land while his armies slaughtered the people. All hope was lost, for none could stand up against such power… That is, until the Angel, the last guardian of Origynn, brought the kingdoms together and lead them against the armies of the Dark Forces. He made a daring attempt to free the wolves from the binds of the Aethereal Chain, but the sorcerer knew and sent the Phoenix to destroy them… The Angel could not save them, but it is said that he captured their auras within a quartz stone before the sorcerer struck him out of the sky, killing him.”

“That’s terrible… I don’t think I like this story.” Aniki looked down in sorrow.

“It is history, Aniki. But it is not all bad… The army of the united kingdoms succeeded in forcing back the dark armies, and they came to be known as the Sacred Alliance, a grand alliance of all the kingdoms of the peoples of Origynn, that still remains to this day. And, it is said that the stone was given to the Mystic before the Angel died of his injuries, along with the legend, telling him how the Dark Forces could be destroyed forever.” Veinta smiled with reassurance. “Well, let’s have dinner, shall we? And some music and dance too!”

After Veinta’s invitation, the hwervags scattered about the village circle, some getting their instruments together, others gathering the food they had prepared to place at the tables outside. The hwervags were quite cheerful, smiling and laughing as they chatted with one another. Aniki sat upon the bench where he had sat with Veinta earlier that afternoon, watching the lively creatures. Even Fitz seemed to be enjoying the evening, laying in the grass beside Gwynen while eating pears in a dish the hwervags had brought out for them.

Aniki smiled at them, but curiosity was strong in his thoughts, and he walked over to Veinta and Faron.

“Does this Legend tell how I am to help destroy the entire Darkside? I could never do something quite like that…” Aniki asked them, his voice soft so as not to incite interest from others.

Faron placed his paw on Aniki’s shoulder. “Maybe not, but you will not be doing this alone. You will grow to understand your true power and destiny, and we will be here by your side. I will train you how to fight, and Veinta will teach you. We will help you fulfill the Mystic’s legend.”

Aniki smiled at Faron, but curiosity quickly came to him again, and he turned to Veinta. “Tell me about the Mystic. What is he, exactly? He seems to sort of control everything...”

“I’m not sure exactly how to answer that, it’s all a bit complicated, so much so that I don’t really understand it myself. The mystics are quite a mysterious group, no one really knows much about them, not even what they are.”

“Wait, there’s more than one?” Aniki spoke with surprise.

“Oh, there are ten, actually. The Mystic himself has nine apprentices that often accompany him on the rare occasions that he appears to the public.”

“What do they look like? Have you ever seen them?”

Veinta shook his head, and as he opened his mouth to speak, Elwyn interrupted him. “No one knows what they really look like. When the Mystic came to me, instructing me to travel to Earth to retrieve the chaos warrior, the only part of him visible was his clawed and furred human-like hands. They are all giant in size, ranging nine to eleven feet in height, I’ve heard.”

“Wow… But why are they so secretive I wonder... Never even showing themselves.” Aniki stared off in curious thoughts.

“I don’t know. They follow every order that their leader gives them. He is the most mysterious, many myths and legends are associated with the strange Mystic leader.” Veinta responded.

Aniki was intrigued by this. “Like what?”

“Well, many say that he is the oldest living creature in Origynn, that he has been alive since the time the world was created. There are often two common ways he is viewed, some believe that he is cursed and dark in nature, but most view him as the most holy and pure of all beings. There is a myth here that tells of him being a fallen angel himself, a legend there that classifies him as a mysterious phantom, ah, so much is rumored but who knows what is true and what is not. But there is one thing for certain, and that is that the Mystic is imbued with all the wisdom and knowledge of the world, and that he holds magic more powerful than anyone could ever imagine.”

The little elf smiled with wonder. He was beginning to feel more interested in meeting the Mystic, feeling less afraid of the strange creature the more he learned about him.

For the remainder of the night, the hwervags danced and sang old songs into the building wind. They may have celebrated well into the morning hours if it were not for the approaching storm. As lightning set the trees aglow in white, and thunder shook the branches, with wind rattling through the leaves, the hwervags packed up their instruments and fled for the warm safety of their tree-homes.

Aniki laid awake in bed for a while, for he could barely sleep in this strange realm on a peaceful night, let alone with a raging storm thundering over the forest while staying in a tree. The wind thrust against the walls with waves of rain, which pelted the windows like tiny pebbles. Every now and again there would be a powerful gust and a crack of thunder so strong and loud it made the room creak and shake.

Not long after his eyes finally fell shut, a strange and eerie dream came to his mind. There was a tower, tall and dark in a black and barren land. However, within the first floor of the tower were two rows of blossom trees lining either side of the room, their petals covering the floor in soft shades of peach and white. All was still and silent, until a shadow crept from behind the open door. A creature, tall and clothed in darkness from beneath his cloak, moved with slow certainty between the rows of blossom trees. At first Aniki focused on the creature’s black paws, the only part of him visible from the shadows, and slowly looked upward, glints of silver here and there, until finally their eyes met. Like Aniki, he had eyes of beautiful gold, but his eyes were filled with anger, a searing hatred that burned into Aniki’s very soul. From his left side he drew a dagger, its blade reflecting Aniki’s face in the dull light of the room. He raised the dagger and struck down, quicker than Aniki would ever be able to elude.

He awakened with a start, his heart pounding in terror. The sun was just about to cross the horizon line to begin its journey across the sky once again, and as Aniki laid still to relax his mind, he noticed that the storm had ceased. A tranquil breeze drifted through the window, touching Aniki’s face like a soft breath. The air was cool and moist, but the freshness of it helped to clear his thoughts of the awful dream.

Aniki was uncertain if he wanted to get up, as he had no idea what to expect. He had barely been in this realm for three days (though technically only one full day, as he arrived in the evening the night before last, and this day had only just begun) and already more surprises had happened than he would have liked. Aniki was not a very adventurous person, he preferred things to be more simple and routine. He liked things to be predictable and quiet. So far, Origynn was his worst nightmare, full of danger and excitement, and surprises around every corner.

The sun’s first rays had just barely touched the shadows when Aniki heard the high notes of a violin from outside the tree. The sound was pleasant and joyous, a song of bliss for the new day. Despite his indecisive feelings, he suddenly felt almost anxious to go downstairs to see the others. He pulled off the covers and took one incautious step on the floor, but the shock of cold caused him to recoil and climb back up on the bed. Aniki wondered what had ever happened to his shoes… Perhaps they had gotten lost in Lake Heron, he thought.

Aniki checked under the bed to find a pair of old-fashioned leather sandals, similar to the ones he had seen the other elves wearing. Though he was not fond of them, he was just glad that they were of simple brown leather as opposed to the green vine-like sandals the other elves wore. He put them on and tightened the straps around the ankles a bit, then hurried off down the steps.

Though the day had barely begun, the village was alive with enthusiasm. The women were cooking and tending to the young pups, who were already eager to get on with their chores so they could play, while the men were busy talking about their plans for the day’s work. Elwyn, Veinta, and Faron were gathered together around a small table in the main room, a large map and other documents spread out before them.

“I think it would be best to take the forest route north and then west… It is a longer way, but certainly safer than crossing the Verdant Hills, for now.” Elwyn said as he traced the route on the map with his finger. Veinta nodded as he handed a few document scrolls to Elwyn. Faron was the first to notice Aniki, and he smiled slightly through his critical expression.

“Good day, Aniki. Did you sleep alright through the storm? It can be rough the first time in our village…” Faron’s voice, though rough as always, was kind. The others looked back at Aniki as Faron addressed him.

“It wasn’t too terrible.” Aniki decided to make lighter of the subject than he truly felt, for he was more concerned about what they were doing. “Where are you going?”

Elwyn placed the scrolls safely in a bag at his side as he spoke. “To Risola. I am taking the warriors that traveled with us here, as well as a few of the hwervags to the city. The queen requested backup, she’s a bit worried after the attack on the neighboring kingdom of Brynmeir. The Festival of Zurin is coming up, and people from all across the land will be pouring into Risola. Doubled security is a must this year.”

“Can I go with you?” Aniki pleaded.

“No, you have to stay here where it is safe. I’ll be back in a few months.” With a nod of farewell to Veinta and Faron, he slung the bag over his shoulder and made for the doors, but paused for just a moment to glance back at Aniki. “Take care kid, and behave for the hwervags.”

The little elf frowned a bit as Elwyn shut the doors behind him. Though he was often impatient and forceful, Aniki was starting to like having him around, as he was another elf after all. Not only that, but Aniki was getting a bit restless with the way everything changed from day to day and people came and went, as though nothing in this realm was constant. He sighed as he turned back to Veinta and Faron, though Faron had already left the room. Veinta smiled and spoke in a cheerful tone.

“Don’t worry Aniki, he’ll be back before you know it. And, who knows, he may have a message from the Mystic. Elwyn is a messenger, you know. That is why he was sent to bring you here from the Banished Realm.”

“That must be hard work since traveling takes forever here… In the Banished Realm, we have machines called computers that we can use to send mail to people. It gets to the other person instantly, even if they are all the way on the other side of the world, so we don’t need messengers anymore.”

Veinta stared at him blankly for a moment, trying to comprehend the simple email system that we take for granted each day. In his mind, he imagined a large device with many tunnels that connected to every part of the world, and when mail was dropped into it, the device sorted out who each letter was to be sent to, and in an instant the letter traveled through the tunnel to the person’s home. “That sounds fascinating. Almost like magic.”

Aniki tilted his head a bit, an unimpressed expression on his face. “Not really, it’s just technology… But, you don’t have technology here, do you?”

“Nothing like that. We live in a simple world, here… It is at times harsh, but we are happy here. Well… We were. It is hard to say what changes will come as the Dark Forces grow in power.” Veinta sighed and shook his head a bit at the thought, and Aniki stretched up on his toes to look at the map that had been left upon the table. The map was old and drawn in black ink, words in red decorated the paper in labels. The continents were shaped similar to the continents in the Banished Realm, at least a few of them, Aniki thought. Where the United States would be, there was a large continent that was not connected to the land north east of it (which is in a similar place to Canada and Greenland), labeled as Anchairi. The land north east of Anchairi was labeled Tirpona, and across the vast Marset ocean was the largest continent of Kalaven. Kalaven was as large as Europe, Russia, and Asia, though shaped quite differently. South of Kalaven, was a small island continent, labeled Milsog. Aniki noticed that there were many blank places on the map, pieces of land that were not labeled and seemed to be guessed at in shape and area.

“Where are we, Veinta?” He questioned, guessing that they must be in Anchairi since it was in the same place as the United States.

Veinta placed a finger on the map upon the center of the largest continent. “We are here, in the country of Talmactir. Our village is almost right in the middle of the country, on the west side of the Maidin mountains. This forest is known as the Kabedjer Forest, Kabedjer literally means ‘moss covered mountain.’” Veinta said the last bit with a soft laugh.

Aniki gave him a confused look. “Why would they call a forest a mountain?”

“The people were referring to the towering trees of this forest. After all, these trees are great giants, and grow even taller the further south you travel. Though, some say it was actually named for the soft blanket of moss that layers the forest floor, and parts of this forest travel quite far up the mountains, so the foothills of the mid and southern Maidin mountains are indeed covered in moss.”

“Well, what does ‘Talmactir’ mean?”

“It comes from the words ‘talmac,’ meaning ‘land,’ and ‘tirvag,’ meaning ‘wolf.’ So in essence, it means ‘land of wolves.’ Quite fitting, actually.” Veinta smiled.

“Land of wolves… But I haven’t seen any wolves, I mean, other than all of you.”

“Oh, there are many wolves that live across this vast country. Though, not as many as there used to be…”

The day and the next went by at a sluggish pace, which was quite fine for Aniki, who was happy to finally have some uneventful time to get used to this new world he was forced into. Veinta had been using this time to give him an overview of important historical and cultural facts.

The more Aniki learned of this “new” world, the more he began to like it. The world of Origynn seemed so much more fresh and sensible, and the people he met and observed each day were so much more aware of the world around them, and how their actions and lifestyles affect it. He wondered what caused the people in the Banished Realm to forget where they came from, why they chose to detach themselves from the earth and all that is natural. As the days passed in a peaceful spell, Aniki was beginning to feel that perhaps this world was not as dangerous as he had initially thought, and was glad that he had been brought here after all. However, every dream has its wake up call.

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