Chapitre 10: The Realm of the Shadows
Lady Saelther didn't speak for the few moments that she held Aelanor to her bosom; tears wouldn't stop as easily as she held on to her daughter for the longest time. She reluctantly let go.
"Be safe, my children," she whispered. "I will be praying to the Elements to watch over you. Please, take care of yourselves."
"We will, Aunt. You take care of yourself, and give our regards to Lord Daylor when he comes back."
Nimuel couldn't speak, but she smiled through her tears at her Mother, who kissed her forehead before letting go.
"Farewell, children."
"Farewell, Lady Saelther."
As they stepped out of the manor, they saw Khoral and Nexus waiting for them by the gates. Nimuel stood beside Nexus as she stroked his golden mane in contemplation.
"We should get a move on, cousin. We are not helping anyone by delaying the inevitable," Aelanor urged.
Nimuel jumped on her horse without a single word, and pulled the reigns, and Aelanor joined her. They travelled for a few minutes before Nimuel looked at Aelanor.
"Do you think you will see your Mother again?"
Aleanor's eyes filled with tears so swiftly that she wasn't fast enough to hide them from Nimuel, but the latter didn't look at her. She knew.
"No, Nimuel. I don't think I will."
They exited The Eternal Utopia in silence that was weighing down on them. It was mid afternoon by now, and they had no idea where their destination lay. The two guards who had let them in kept looking at them, and whispering behind their hands. But the two she-elves were lost in their own worries.
After a while, Nimuel spoke.
"We should go."
Aelanor nodded. "No use staying here, where we can do nothing."
"Where do you suppose we should go?"
"I would say West. I trust Lady Saelther's instincts."
"I had a feeling you would say that. But what about the dangers that she warned us about?" Nimuel asked, not really caring about the answer.
"I say we face them when we have to. I, for one, do not believe in rumors, and whatever information we have about the Kingdom that lies in our West is through rumors."
"Then what are we waiting for? Let's go, and , meet the Princess of the Shadows."
Khoral and Nexus galloped down the path less taken towards the West, which was still green and sprinkled with dewdrops. The She-elves rode in silence as twilight approached and then began shifting to a deeper hue of dusk. The cool air that accompanied them from The Eternal Utopia started getting chilly, which made the hair on the back of the riders stand.
"I think we are approaching the Realm of the Shadows," Nimuel whispered through her teeth.
Aelanor said nothing, but her teeth clattered like broken windows.
A few moments later, it became apparent that the realm in question was indeed approaching fast. In front of them was a something that looked like a solid wall of mist, sparkling in the moonlight. The Female stopped right in front of it.
"What do you think?" Nimuel asked.
"We should approach it, cautiously, perhaps," Aelanor suggested.
"What if it's dangerous?"
"We wouldn't know until we do approach it."
Aelanor took the lead as they slowly approached the wall of mist, her hands outstretched. Apprehensively, she touched it, but nothing happened. She let out a sigh of relief.
"Almost anticlimactic, isn't it?" Nimuel chuckled.
"What, you were hoping I'd be jolted out of my senses or something?" Aelanor pouted, crossing the barrier easily.
"Of course, not. I just don't think this wall was here just for decoration. But what it is, I cannot say," said Nimuel, following her into the mist.
They started walking into the Realm of the Shadows, without any other hinderance. The entrance to this realm was very much like that of their home. The only difference was that instead of the tall, lush green trees, this one seems to be more of an orchard.
A dark, shiny, lethal looking orchard.
Trees with coal-black barks and roots that grew out of the moss covered ground dominated the entrances. These trees had leaves of shamrock green, which were shining like stars under the night sky. From the ground grew enormous purple flowers, and red mushrooms, which glowed like lanterns against the black backdrop.
The Female started walking towards the entrance, but there seemed to be none. All around them were the same trees, and it was impossible to discern anything in the absence of a proper light source.
"Where next?" Nimuel said, not in an octave above a whisper.
"West?" Aelanor whispered back, "That is where we were supposed to go, right?"
"But where is that?" Nimuel pointed to the sky, which was black.
"But the stars...? Where did they go?" Aelanor asked, stumped.
"Stars do not light up in shadows," a voice whispered.
From inside the jungle came the voice that was enough to chill even the gargantuan monsters shiver with fear. It was a deep, low, gurgling sound that seemed to swell, not in its physical dimensions, but inside the core of the heart itself.
It was the whooshing of the wind on a cabin in the rain. The silence in the cold winter nights.
"You have passed the first barrier of loyalty, as you have crossed the Barrier of Truth without the visions of the infernal agonies, and pain.
You must, however, pass the next step to gain entry to The Realm of the Shadows."
État de l’alimentation hebdomadaire
-- Classement
Power Stone 
-- Power
stone