CHAPTER 4

The air between us seemed to still.

    My thoughts spun wildly. The accident, the cold water, waking up in a tent filled with glowing crystals… and now this?

    Pointy-eared people and kingdoms that didn’t exist on any map I’d ever seen.

    I pressed my palms to my eyes, trying to steady my breathing. “ This can’t be real,” I whispered. “ It can’t be.”

    But when I looked up again, Corin was still standing there—solid, real, and watching me with eyes that seemed to see more than I could ever understand.

    And deep down, I knew—whatever this place was, however I got here—it was real.

    And somehow, I ended up here.

                                                                             ----

It had been three days.

Three long, boring, endless days of lying on the cot while Elara insisted I rest

    Every time I tried to stand, she would appear out of nowhere, her silver braid swinging like a warning flag.

    I was tired of sleeping. Tired of staring at beige canvas walls and listening to the quiet hum of the camp outside. But more than that—I was tired of my own thoughts.

    No memories had surfaced since I woke in this small tent. Every time I tried to remember, I hit a blank wall. Like someone had reached into my mind and torn that pages of life out.

    When Corin stepped into the tent, I almost sighed in relief.

     He came every day after his shift as a crystal guardian. Just before sunset he would come check up on me. If I must admit, I have been looking forward to his little

visits—even though he and Elara still haven’t told me why they had those pointy ears like elf.

    “ You look restless,” he said, a faint smirk tugging at the corner of his mouth.

    “ Three days in bed will do that,” I muttered.

    “ Then come,” he said simply. “ Walk with me.”

    “ Wait, I’m allowed to?”

    “ Your not a prisoner,” he said so effortlessly, and that was all the convincing I needed.

    The moment I stepped outside, my breath caught.

    The world beyond the tent was… glowing. Rows of beige tents stretched across wide green fields, each one fluttering gently in the soft evening breeze. The air was warm and smelled faintly of herbs and lavender.  Between the tents, narrow pathways wound through the grass, lined with crystals that grew straight from the ground.

    They were incredible—tall, sharp, and glowing in soft shades of blue, pink and gold. Some glowed brighter than others.

    It was beautiful. Otherworldly. Like the land itself was breathing light.

    “ They’re beautiful,” I said as we walked. “ Do they grow like that?”

    Corin nodded slightly. “ They do. Lunara is alive in ways most lands aren’t. Magic flows through everything here—the ground, the air, even the crystals.”

    Magic. The word felt strange and heavy on my tongue. “ So it’s real then… magic?”

    He gave me a look, one brow lifting. “ You’ve seen enough to doubt it?”

    I couldn’t argue with that.

    We walked a while in silence, the soft glow from the crystals dancing across his face. There was something calm about him—steady, but hard to read. I studied him quietly, remembering how he’d brushed off my question before.

    “ You never answered me,” I said finally.

    He glanced down. “ About what?”

    “ About what you are,” I said, stopping in the path.

“ You avoided it last time.”

    He sighed softly, looking ahead instead of at me. “ I was hoping you’d forget.”

    “ Forget?” I crossed my arms. “ I’ve been stuck in bed for three days. I’ve had nothing to do but think about it.”

    A faint smile touched his lips, but it didn’t last. The silence stretched until I started to think he wouldn’t tell me again. Then, finally, he spoke.

    “ We are Fae.”

 The word lingered in the air, strange and ancient.

    “ Fae,” I repeated slowly. “ Like… fairies?”

    He gave a short laugh. “ Not quite. We don’t have wings or sprinkle dust if that’s what you’re thinking.”

    I frowned. “ Then what does it mean?”

    “ It means we are part of this land,” he said quietly.

“ Born from its light, shaped by its magic. The Fae and Lunara share the same breath.”

    I stared at him, unsure what to say. The glowing crystals, the way the air shimmered, the strange energy in the ground—it all made sense now. And somehow, it made me feel even more out of place.

    “ So you’re telling me,” I said slowly, “ that I’m surrounded by magical people in a magical land, and I don’t even know who I am?”

    He looked at me then, his green eyes steady. “ You’re safe here, Liora. That’s what matters right now.”

    Safe. The word didn’t feel real—but the warmth in his voice did.

    I looked out over the glowing fields, the crystals shimmering softly in the wind. “ Fae,” I whispered under my breath. “ Of all the things I could’ve woken up to… I guess that one wasn’t on my list.”

    Corin chuckled quietly beside me. “ Welcome to Lunara, then.”

    We walked in silence for a while after that. The breeze carried the scent of wildflowers from somewhere nearby, soft and sweet. The crystals embedded in the ground shimmered faintly, catching the last of the sunlight as it sank behind the hills.

    Corin finally glanced at me, his expression unreadable. “ Tell me something, Liora,” he said. “ About your world. Where did you come from?”

    I frowned, kicking at a pebble near my feet. “ I don’t really know,” I admitted. “ Everything feels… fuzzy. Like it’s right there, but just out of reach.”

    He waited quietly, so I tried again, closing my eyes and letting the fragments come. “ I remember cold. So much cold. And a bridge. There was a truck… the lights were so bright.” My voice dropped. “ Then the sound of metal, and ice breaking beneath me. My car sinking into the water—it was freezing. I couldn’t breathe. And then…”

    “ The light,” Corin finished softly.

    I nodded. “ Yes. A bright light in the water. And your hands. I remember that too. You were pulling me out.”

    Corin stopped walking. His eyes widened a little, like something in my words had struck him deeply. “ You saw the light?”