The Seventh Chapter | The Mirror of Alternates
"So, how do we go through this?" Alvera asked.
"Just walk right into it," he said nonchalantly.
"Seems easy enough."
"Don't be misled, not everyone can access the Realm of-"
Alvera breezed past Cedrick, and stepped right through the mirror without a second thought. The once hard glass pane felt like more of a soft jelly-like material as Alvera passed through it. Her view was disoriented and she could barely see what was around her. She took a few steps forward, then suddenly, felt like she was falling. Under normal circumstances, she would have been screaming, but oddly enough, she didn't. It felt... natural.
The world melted and moulded as it morphed into a darker-toned color scheme, all the colors blending together and swirling around her. It made her feel more and more like she was in a fever dream. Her fall came to an abrupt end, suspending her in the air for a couple of seconds before her boots kissed the dirt under her feet. It took a few more moments for her vision to clear, but when it did, she was surrounded by twisting trees.
The leaves were dark and hooded. The dirt beneath her feet was grainy, and she crunched leaves and sticks as she walked around. The sky she could see through the winding branches was a darker version of the sky outside that Realm. It was raisin purple and had streaks of teals drawn across it, looking very much like a permanent aurora. The sky was somewhat clouded over and seemed like it was in a constant state of deciding whether to rain or not.
She heard a few birds making noise in the distance, they sounded like ravens, but she didn't pay much attention to it. She was more concerned with where Cedrick was. As if hearing her thoughts, she heard footsteps behind her, crunching more leaves. She turned around swiftly thinking it was Cedrick, but instead, she saw a girl coming her way. The girl was young, definitely no older than twelve. Her airy, gray hair was pulled into a loose fishnet braid, and dull red eyes scanned Alvera up and down as she came to a stop in front of her. She had a strip of black fabric wrapped around one of her wrists, was clothed in a dark dress that stopped at her knees, and had a satchel across her body. A pair of fabric shoes covered her feet and gray wings were stapled to her back.
The wings were similar to Cedrick's, so naturally, Alvera assumed this was his native Realm.
"๔รɭ չเש ๒ɭŦ?" The little girl asked, confused, "г รչєש๓'ﻮ ђשש๓ ๒ɭŦ รשเש ץשยɭเש."
"I'm... new. My name is Alvera," she replied without a second thought, crouching down to the girls' height, "Now, who are you?"
Alvera was shocked. How on Earth did she know what that girl just said? She'd never heard that language before in her life, but somehow she could translate it perfectly. She didn't know if the girl in front of her could speak English, so she wasn't even expecting a reply.
"г'ภ Norvella," she said, pointing to herself. "You speak English but you know ץչאק๔ɭเฬђ. Are you a Translator as well?"
So that's what the language is called.
"What's a Translator?"
"A Translator is someone who's born with the knowledge of how to speak all the different languages of the Realms."
"So I assume you're a Translator?"
Norvella nodded her head rapidly.
"Apparently, I'm super rare. I don't even know any other people like me."
Alvera paused before asking her next question. "Where are we, Norvella?"
"You really are new, huh? Welcome to the Mirror of Alternates. We're in the Warped Forest. We should probably leave though. This place can get dangerous sometimes." Norvella started walking in the opposite direction she came from, probably expecting Alvera to follow, which she did.
"How did you find me in the middle of a forest?"
"I sensed your aura; It's very loud. That's a good thing by the way. It's easier to sense a louder aura than a duller one."
"Do you, by any chance, know Cedrick Everille?"
"Everyone knows Cedrick. He is a trusted advisor after all."
"Can you take me to him? He came with me but I think we got separated."
"I don't exactly know where he is, but if you came in with him, it shouldn't be too hard to find him."
Alvera nodded, even though Norvella couldn't see it. The forest around them was gradually thinning out, and they didn't have to step over nearly as many fibrous tree roots. Soon enough, they had escaped the clutches of the Warped Forest and made it to a large town.
The houses were scattered around, lacking any uniformity, some even sitting on small hills. They were either made of dark wood or bricks and mostly had mansard or gable roofs. They were somewhat tall, maybe two or three stories maximum, and some of them gave off haunted house vibes. A couple of fairies flew above them, and several people were walking around.
"Take it all in Alvera."
Alvera was startled for a split second, before she swiftly turned around, almost hitting whoever was behind her as a reflex. However, the person caught her fist, but she calmed down when she identified the unknown person as Cedrick.
"Cedrick! Don't scare me like that! And where on Earth have you been?"
"Sometimes the mirror portals act up and send people to random places. It's always been that way. There's not much we can do about it," he explained, letting go of Alvera's fist, "I see you've met Norvella."
"Yes, I have. Thankfully, she was able to lead me out of the Warped Forest."
"Good Job, Vee," he said, turning to Norvella. "What were you even doing out there anyway?"
"I was taking a walk."
"Try to not take a walk through there anymore, it's dangerous. You know this. Now, you should get home, your mother's probably looking for you."
Norvella nodded at him and ran away, presumably to her house.
"Her mother is basically my mother's sister. There's no blood relation though, they're just really close, so Norvella is like a sister to me," Cedrick informed.
"So, do you have any actual blood-related siblings?" Alvera questioned.
"I have a half-sister. We have the same mother. My mother married her father after mine passed away. You should really meet her."
"I'm sorry to hear that. I'd be delighted to though, but aren't we on a strict schedule?"
"Don't worry, we don't have anyone else to see here. This is your Realm after all."
"I had a feeling it was."
"Really?" Cedrick replied, somewhat amused, "What tipped you off?"
"Mainly the fact that I can somehow understand ץչאק๔ɭเฬђ, but couldn't understand the language they spoke in the Faux Shores. Besides, I assumed we'd be from the same Realm, because, why would the council members send an advisor from a different realm for me?"
"Not surprising. Now let's go find my sister. She's probably around the tree somewhere," Cedrick said, pointing to the massive tree in the distance. It was so large that they could both see it from the edge of the town.
"The tree?"
"Yes. That's where the past ruler used to live, and where you're going to live too."
"So, why is your sister there?"
"She was a close friend of the former ruler. She has been taking his death... particularly hard."
"Maybe I shouldn't meet her now..."
"No! Trust me, seeing you will definitely make her feel a bit better."
Alvera wondered how that made any sense, but chose not to ask.
Nothing short of ten minutes later, Alvera and Cedrick stood in front of the massive tree. It looked like a Weeping Willow, and the saggy branches blew in the wind slightly. Instead of bright green leaves, the leaves were all a pale, dull pink. They acted like a deep contrast to all the other dark colors of the leaves on the trees in the Warped Forest. The trunk was thick and winding, with some miscellaneous creepers growing on it, but strangely enough, no roots were coming out of the ground.
Cedrick guided her to the back of the tree, and before they even got all the way around, Alvera could hear crying. Not loud crying, more like someone trying to cover up their sobs. Once they got around, they were met with a spacious area and a single gravestone in the middle of it. The grave was surrounded by vibrantly colored flowers and luscious green grass. A young lady kneeled in front of the grave, facing away from them, holding a bouquet of flowers, and weeping. She had long, curly, salmon pink hair and was clothed in a black cloak, however, she wasn't wearing the hood over her head. A raven sat next to her silently as if it was mourning as well.
The girls' cries pierced her heart and really hit home for Alvera. Sadness coursed through her veins. It was exactly how she felt when her own mother died. Spending most days at her mother's grave, crying or just talking to her, pretending she was still alive. She felt the need to comfort the girl, even though she didn't even know her.
She stepped closer, reached out a hand, and laid it on her shoulder. The lady flinched but relaxed almost immediately as if she knew who was there. She wiped her tears and looked up behind her, purple eyes meeting hazel ones. Before Alvera even knew what was happening, the lady had gotten up and pulled her into a hug, sobbing onto her shoulder. Alvera hugged back immediately.
It took a few minutes, but the lady finally calmed down and pulled away. Cedrick was quiet the entire time.
"I apologize Your Majesty. This is not appropriate behavior. I'm not usually like this, it's just... you remind me so much of him. Even your auras are similar."
Alvera was curious what that actually meant, but now was obviously not the right time to ask.
"Oh no, it's quite alright. You're clearly grieving right now. I'm... so sorry for your loss," Alvera reassured, holding the lady's hands in her.
"Lodema, you shouldn't come here so often. It's... it's not good for you. You haven't been home in two days, mom's worried about you," Cedrick said, concern laced in his voice.
Alvera had gone through all the stages of grief when her mother died, and her heart went out to Lodema. Her father had also been concerned about her when she was doing the same thing. She learned that there was no way to rush the cycle, everyone grieves at their own pace. You don't just get over it. It was a process.
Cedrick held Lodema's hand in his, after Alvera had let go, and walked her to the front of the large tree, leading her inside. Alvera followed behind them, but as she stepped into the tree, she started to feel light-headed. She ignored it at first, thinking that it was just a one-off thing, but it wasn't. Before she knew what was happening, the room was spinning. She called out for Cedrick as she felt herself falling. She tried to stay awake, but eventually, couldn't. The last thing she remembered was Cedrick running to her, and then...
Black.
Frantic footsteps.
"Is she going to be okay!?"
"Calm down. She'll be fine."
Alvera was slipping in and out of consciousness. She couldn't identify exactly who was talking, but the second voice she heard around her wasn't speaking English. She could decipher it though. It was a language she had learned before. Latin.
"Is there anything I can do?"
"Not for now. She just needs to rest. I've done all I can. Take her."
That was all she heard before she succumbed to the darkness once more.
Alvera's eyes opened and she was lying... somewhere. She sat up, very confused. Everything around her was too blurry to identify, but it didn't seem like there was much there anyway. The ground beneath her was... covered? Whatever it was, it didn't feel like dirt, and it made a sort of crinkling noise as she moved slightly. Alvera heard a loud rumbling in the distance. She looked up, and the iris purple sky was being shielded by a set of deep, gray clouds. They moved and swirled in the center of the sky, covering the three suns and making darkness fall over... wherever she was sitting.
She stood up abruptly, and it was only then she realized that her gown had been torn up, all the way to her knees. The ends were frayed and scratched, as if done so in a hurry. She looked up, alarmed, as a shrill scream could be heard coming from somewhere far away. She tried to navigate around her, despite her hooded vision, looking for whoever was screaming. However, she failed miserably and was soon pushed to her knees by some unseen force, the rumbling in the clouds getting louder. She tried to get back up, but she couldn't.
She was grounded, and she was scared. She was forced to sit there as the rumbling and screaming got louder, and louder, and louder! It was filling up her ears fast, and she winced in pain. Her head was spinning, and it was too much to process at once. She was on the verge freaking out, not knowing what to do.
Then suddenly, silence.
Everything stopped.
The swirling and rumbling in the sky and the shrill screaming around her froze in time. The force on her lessened slightly, and she felt a presence loom over her. She lifted her head, trying to catch a glimpse of whoever was there but was met with nothing more than a dark, airy figure, shrouded in a black, hooded cloak.
Its red eyes looked on, staring her down. It reached an airy hand out to her, and she hesitated, feeling the urge to reach out and grab the limb that was being offered, presumably, to pull her up. Although the gesture seemed friendly, Alvera knew better, and before her body could do something stupid, her brain decided on not taking it.
The figure looked at her for a few more seconds, as if already knowing her choice. Its eyes squinted slightly in disgust before the rumbling and screaming continued. The wind blew harshly now, and it started to rain, soaking her to the bone. Everything grew louder at a steady rate, and it was overwhelming her too much.
Her mind cleared slightly when she heard the figure address her.
"This is the reason they fear the darkness, they stay away from the forbidden, and they hide the truth."
Then in the blink of an eye, the figure disappeared, leaving her there. On her knees, and in the midst of all the chaos it had created.
Alvera's eyes shot open, and she sat up abruptly. She awoke in a cold sweat, and her eyes scanned the room frantically, wondering where exactly she was. She recognized it as her room in the castle and tried to steady her racing heart.
She was trying to decipher whether the entire night was just a dream, but everything with the Realms felt a bit too real for her to pretend it wasn't. The one she just had, however, was probably an actual dream. The entire thing was still fresh in her mind.
The rumbling, the screaming, the dark presence.
It was scary, but it was just a dream. She was getting chills just thinking about it.
Alvera was still dressed in her sapphire blue gown from earlier, which thankfully wasn't actually torn up, and she was, quite frankly, too tired to change into something else. She checked her clock, and it was just past two am. Did time pass slower in the Realms? Probably.
Alvera felt around for the lamp on her bedside table, but before she reached it, her fingers glided over a piece of paper. She hadn't put anything there, so she was confused as to what it was. She eventually found her lamp and switched it on, grabbing the paper that was on the table right after.
It was folded in half, so she opened it and leaned closer to the lamp, trying to get as much light from it as she could. The note was written in fancy, cursive writing and wasn't in English. It was in ץչאק๔ɭเฬђ.
If you need me, just call.
- Cedrick
At least that was confirmation that the entire thing wasn't a dream. Alvera wanted to call for him and ask him what happened to her. She wanted to ask who she had heard and tell him what she saw in her dream, but it was late at night. She needed to sleep for however long she could before she needed to get up and perform her duties. She could ask him later.
She laid down in bed again, trying to not think too much about the dream, as her eyes fell closed and she drifted off to sleep.