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Stories posted in this category are works of fiction. Names, places, characters, events, and incidents are created by the authors' imaginations or are used fictitiously. Any resemblances to actual persons (living or dead), organizations, companies, events, or locales are entirely coincidental.
Note: While authors are asked to place warnings on their stories for some moderated content, everyone has different thresholds, and it is your responsibility as a reader to avoid stories or stop reading if something bothers you.
Note: While authors are asked to place warnings on their stories for some moderated content, everyone has different thresholds, and it is your responsibility as a reader to avoid stories or stop reading if something bothers you.
Into the fields of Summer - 65. A New Place 3
I asked Patri how the Hall of Maktar worked.
“Come over here” he said, bringing me over to an altar carved into the wall. The altar held a large green stone that had streaks of vines of green stone connect it to the marble walls. “These green stones are called Lakasi stones, in an enclosed space like this and in a place where there’s a high density of Lakasi stone, feeding it magical energy will cause the area to form a bubble in space-time that results to anyone inside to experience time differently.
“Meaning what?” I asked.
“Depending on the amount of energy you feed it, a day outside can be stretched into a week or two in here, meaning 7 minutes here could just be a minute outside”
“You can do that?” I asked in a surprised tone.
“Yes... although the amount of energy needed is quite high,
I’m sure you can sufficiently muster enough energy to stretch 2 days into a month” Patri said.
“A month huh?” I mused, thinking of all the things I can do with that amount of time.
“I see you’ve brought with you several books, start with the meditation book then move on to Spyora and then the book about water magic” Patri suggested.
“Ahh... I see, thanks Patri”
“Chris... so do you want to try this out?”
“Of course Patri, this is just what
I needed” I replied, thinking that things have been happening too quickly the past few months, that now I had to take a breather, and at least attempt to make sense of everything that’s happened to me so far.
“Chris... don’t overdo it okay?, I’ve done this several times before, in times I needed deep reflection or a crammed training program, there’s been times I’ve stretched a day into 10 or 12 days, however it drains you of energy and can take quite awhile to recover from, especially when the time dilation ceases and you return to the normal time stream.”
“Wow. 12 days?”
“Yes, however the record is by the High Mage, with the help of several magical talismans he’s stretched a day to 21 days”
“Okay... let’s do this” I said with a little bit of over enthusiasm on my part, but I mean, time dilation, how cool is that?
“Wait for a moment Chris, I’ll have this arranged, don’t worry, it’ll take me an hour or so”
“Arrange what?”
“Your meals and stuff, someone has to bring you food from the outside, I’m guessing you’re planning on extending your 2 days to 30 days, that means I’ll have to organize a meal for you to be delivered here every 24 minutes from our end”
“Ahh... I see”
“Also...” Patri added he paused then continued “I’ll have to gather several staff members that have at least bronze skills in magic to handle the delivery of your meal”
“Why is that?”
“When the room is in time dilation, crossing into areas of different time streams takes a toll on the body, the feeling for the one from the outside is that there is a heaviness in the air in here that sucks the energy out of them, so we need strong servants for that, the stronger the time dilation the worse it is for outsiders crossing”
“Ah, Okay I see” I paused then thought of something,
“So how do I monitor the time I’ve spent here?”
“Here...” Patri pointed towards two dials on the wall on our right side, “this one on the left tells you of the time you’ve spent in here, and the one on the right tells you the time that has passed outside”
“Ah. Okay I see”
Patri then explained further, “the door their on the far end leads to a small bedroom for yourbuse, there’s also a small kitchen, and shower for you as well”
“Ah. Okay. I was starting to wonder how I’d deal with my bodily functions once I start” I chuckled at that.
“Come on let’s get back to the palace, let’s have a light snack with your grandmother as I have everything else arranged.” Patri said.
Over the light snack, Patri and Matra tell me that the Hall of Maktar is seldom used, mainly just by either Patri, my uncles, the High Mage, senior government ministers that are at least Gold Level in Magic and senior military officials as well. At most the Hall is used one to two times a year.
After several more minutes of talking about other stuff everything under the sun except that of Victor, a servant knocked on the door and was allowed in.
The male servant looked like a 16 year old, which obviously he wasn’t, he stood probably and inch shorter than me, most likely he’s 5’7, he was wearing a green vest with a darker green jacket and white pants and brown shoes. He had a beautiful face, he had dark eyes that sucked the breath out of you, long eyelashes that accentuated every facial expression, he had dark wavy hair, and had a slim yet toned body. He had Turkish features, his facial features chiseled yet not intimidatin, his skin almost as fair as mine but with a bronze undertone, from what I gathered from Yal, this elf most likely is from the Heradeya Tribe and most likely from the Eastern Province.
“Your majesty, your highnesses, all preparations for the Hall of Maktar have been accomplished” the young elf said as he made a small bow towards the three of us.
“Thank you, Etalos, we will be there shortly” said Patri said to the servant.
The servant left us and Patri stood and asked for me to come with him.
I said a short goodbye and a hug to Matra and Patri and I were off the palace corridors and made our way back to the Hall of Maktar.
As we walked through the gardens,
I asked Patri “how does this work?”
“I’ll show you when we get there, it’s actually very straightforward” Patri replied.
“Ah, okay”
“I’ll have to warn you though, once you get back, it can be quite confusing, for you it’s been days if not weeks while for the rest of the people you’ve come back to, it’s just been a day or two”
“Yeah, I can imagine the confusion, but I guess the rewards will be worth a day or two of being confused, hehe”
“Certainly grandson, I’ve done it several times now, and I’ve always come out stronger and better” Patri remarked as we continued our walk, the aroma of the flowers and plants around the garden helped in calming down my nerves.
We then both made our way inside the large cathedral like structure of Taha Hall and then down the stairwell into the Hall of Maktar.
We reached the room and reached a large green stone near an altar like structure near the dials.
“You pour energy into this stone, this stone is connected with all the other stones in the walls, there is a smaller dial beneath that will tell you the level of time distortion, I suggest for you Chris, anything in less than a 1 day dilated to 16 days ratio, let’s not over exert you just yet,
and I don’t know what the High Mage will feel if you break his record.”
“Ah, I see, sounds cool, so I just look at the dial right?”
“Yes..., I’ll have to leave the room before you start, and the servants will only be able to stay in the Hall for one minute with you, two minutes maximum when they bring over your food” Patri explained.
“Ah... yeah, right, okay”
Patri gave me a hug before he left me alone in the Hall. Alright, this is it I thought, I really didn’t know what would become of me after this but I had a feeling I’d come out better, stronger, and more stable after this.
Before I poured in my energy, I noticed that Patri also had several books and scrolls delivered into the hall as well, theres no tv or tablet or anything for me to use as entertainment though, shoot, anyway most likely this is for self introspection and self discovery, any additional technology will only distract me from my goal.
I approached the stone and dials, Patri said to stop when the ratio reaches 1:15 but I thought otherwise, I wanted to stretch 2 days to 90 days and not just 30, I’ll be aiming for 1:45, that’ll surely break the High Mage’s record.
I put my hands on the stone, slowly pulled from my energy pool, and I gently poured over my energy to the stone, at first there was no change, the dial barely moved at all, then I continued and the stone started to feel warm, and my body felt tingly all over, I saw the dial move from 1:2 to 1:10... then 11, 12, a few seconds later I’ve passed the High Mage’s record of 21 then I pushed forward, with a little bit of more effort, I’ve now reached 30,31... then a minute later I’ve reached 45, then I stopped.
Sigh, I started to sweat a bit and become tired. But other than the slight strain, I feel fine. I decided to nap a bit as I wanted to be fully rested before I started on my meditation.
I went to the room behind, and found a single bed with just enough space to move around, other than a reading lamp on top of a bedside table, there wasn’t much in here.
At least the bed was comfortable.
I ended up napping for more than two hours and i was already feeling better.
I went to the middle of the Hall, sat on the floor and started a quiet chant of the meditation mantras I’ve read in the elven scrolls. I regulated my breathing, thought of the inner peace that I sought, and myself and myself alone, it took me several minutes to get the hang of it, this is something Yal and Patri has showed me before but it did take awhile to get used to.
After 15 minutes or so, I’ve gotten my groove and found myself lost in my inner self. The room was quiet except for my slow breathing and murmured chants. I felt connected to myself and myself alone, I felt a sense of awareness of myself, feelings and thoughts, and to some extent my powers as well.
I lost myself in my meditative state but later on I snapped out of it as I heard my stomach grumble in hunger.
I walked to the dial and saw that it’s been 10 hours since I’ve meditated, why is it the food hasn’t arrived yet. Then I realized my error, I’ve extended my powers too much and they didn’t know, they were supposed to deliver food to me every 6-8 hours but since I’ve changed the ratio from 1:15 to 1:45, my food won’t be arriving for another 4 hours or so. “Shit” I muttered to myself as I went to the small pantry which was thankfully stocked with boxed and canned foods and some fresh bread which will go stale very soon, so I had to eat those first.
I prepared myself a sandwich and thankfully there were some juice as well. I think I was more hungry than I expected coz I easily gobbled several sandwiches in a span of a few minutes.
For the next few hours, I read through several scrolls on meditation and energy regulation.
Then I heard the door to the Hall open and a young familiar looking elf was about step into the room. It was the beautiful male elf from earlier, Etalos. He stepped through the boundary and the reaction was almost immediate, he started to feel week and his knees almost gave way, I rushed to him and I was able to help him balance himself, good thing he didn’t drop the tray of food he was carrying.
“Are you okay?” I asked him as I helped him stand straight.
He was barely able to reply “Yes... your highness, I’m fine”
“You seem you’re not” I say as I took the tray from his trembling hands.
“It’s just that... this is so much stronger than when I served for His Majesty, the King”
“Oh, shoot” I muttered. This is something I forgot about as well, the servants would be having a hard time staying in the room, shit, I had to fix this. I pulled some of my energy, and transferred them to him.
“There? Better?” I ask.
“Yes” the effect was almost immediate as Etalos was able to breathe normally now. “What did you do your highness?”
“It’s just Chris... uhm, anyway I gave you some of my energy”
“Oh, you didn’t have to, it’s my fault, I wasn’t just at full strength entering the Hall” his replied with his mellow voice.
“Oh, believe me it is my fault, come on we gotta get you out of here, and ... can you help me with something?”
“Anything your highness”
“Can you bring some more bread next time, and some boxes of packaged food? I’m getting hungry all the time here”
“Oh... okay, I’ll have that arranged”
“Okay... thank you Etalos” i said to him as I escorted him to the door.
“It’s a pleasure to be of service to you Your Highness” he said as he went through the door.
Sigh. I gotta think things through next time, and goodness, I don’t know how much time has passed outside as Etalos stayed in the room, hopefully the rest won’t notice yet.
I spent the following hours meditating again, I stopped my mediation just in time for the door to open again, this time it was a different elf servant that entered the hall and the effect was again almost immediate, I ran over to the teenage looking elf servant.
“Hey are you okay?... here let me fix that” as I took the tray from him and have him some of my power.
“Sorry, Your Highness, it’s just this is so different to the times before” the elf servant said.
“It’s okay, it’s my fault, what’s your name by the way?” I asked as I rubbed his back for him to relax, his breathing was going back to normal.
“It’s, Mikaros”
“Thank you Mikaros, anyway, how’s Etalos, he gave me quite a scare earlier as well”
“He hasn’t returned yet, Your Highness”
“Huh?”
“I entered just 8 minutes after he entered, he must have been left the Hall a few hours ago here but to us outside, he hasn’t returned yet, most likely if you’re working on a 1:15 ratio, he’ll be back in our place 15 minutes after he entered, which means I entered the hall before he has appeared back in our time stream”
“Oh.o I said...”
“What’s the matter Your Highness?”
“Well.. just between us, I’m working on a 1:45 ratio right now”
“What? Your Highness!? This means I haven’t fed you at the right time, oh my” the elf servant was panicking “I have to tell the rest to triple the rations”
“It’s okay Mikaros, I’ll be fine, anyway, I’m taking your time, you must already be almost an hour behind now, come on let me escort you out”
After that, I went about my meditation for several hours again and then back to helping out a distressed elf, I cycled through 18 servants, which was four and half days for me, before I was able to meet the entire servant line up and it was now back again to Etalos.
“Hi, it’s finally you!” I said back to him.”
“Sorry, your highness, we had to triple the contingent of your servants as your unexpected level of time dilation has all sent us way off schedule into the future, I was expected to come back after 15 minutes but I stayed here for 2 minutes that together with the higher level of time dilation, sent me back to the outside world 90 minutes late.”
“Wow... that bad huh?”
“It’s not bad, your highness, it’s just so impressive actually... your grandfather was heard to bellow out in laughter the moment he heard you went a little above of the ratio he suggested”
“I’m feeling I’m gonna get some talking to when I get back”
“From what I’ve gathered, he’s more proud than annoyed” Etalos smiled back at me. Oh my, his smile can be quite enchanting, sigh. For him it’s only been almost two hours, for me it’s been four days since I saw him”
“Okay... as much as I like spending time with you, we have to get you back” I said as I ushered him to the door.
“Really?”
“Really what?” I asked.
“You like spending time with me?”
“Of course I do, you’re a nice guy”
I said to him as I patted his back.
He left the room smiling and slightly blushing.
The days went on as I worked through my meditations, practicing of energy manipulation, water magic, and spent a lot of time exercising as well.
All the 18 Elves that were part of my kitchen contingent are all very nice, but I did end up cozying up more to Etalos than the rest.
It’s been a month now for me now, but barely 16 hours in the outside world, and now it was Etalos again that was serving me my meal. As he entered. I stood at the ready to give him some of my energy, something I’ve done every time a servant sends some food to me.
“Thank you, your highness”
“Don’t mention it Etalos, you know it’s kinda my fault as well” I smiled back at him as I got the tray of food from him.
For a second or two, Etalos stood quiet in front of me.
“What’s matter Etalos?” I asked.
“It’s just that, looking at you now Your Highness, I see you’ve become more mature, healthier, and happier, compared to the first time I’ve seen you”
“Really?” I asked.
“Yes, certainly” he said.
“Well.. thank you” I said as
I escorted him out.
After Etalos left, it got me thinking, am I really happier? Well... it’s been a week since I last cried about Victor, it still hurts and the thought of seeing him again made my stomach feel sick. But then again, at least I’ve stopped having nightmares of the images of him fucking Gustav, that’s a step in the right direction I think. Thinking of it, I think the meditation has certainly helped, and burying myself in reading and exercise and magic practice certainly took my mind off him.
For the first week or so, I did try to avoid thinking about Victor, but the thought of him kept creeping back on me, was I unfair to him? Should have I allowed him to explain? Explain what though? I’ve seen the treachery right in front of me, with my very own eyes, sigh, however,
I do admit that what we had was definitely something special, however was it special enough for me to dwell more on? Am I willing to get hurt again?
Six weeks into my time in the Hall of Maktar, I started to long for human connection, the minute or two contact with a servant as they brought in my food was never enough. Although I longed for human contact, it wasn’t as bad as what I expected, I did miss my Dad and Leo, I’ve thought of Victor, but the disappointment and heartache just came rushing back as I recalled the way he looked at me with love and wonder before all this shit came to be. At least now, the pain was that bad anymore, maybe I could now tolerate being in the same room with him even if it were just in passing or us being on either end of a large restaurant. That’s still the same room right?
As I was trying to wear a fresh pair of clothes, I noticed that it didn’t fit me anymore, I looked at myself in the mirror and I notice I’ve gained more muscle, my body and arms, and legs now more toned, more defined than before. I then heard the door open, and again I came rushing to the aid of the now nearly panting Etalos.
As I took the tray from him, he stood frozen.
“What’s the matter?”
Etalos blushed and then looked away from me. Then I realize that I’m only wearing my underwear which barely left anything to the imagination as my boxer briefs hugged my crotch and bum very tight. “Oh, sorry bout this” I giggled at him.
“No, don’t be, it’s just that... you’re really good looking Your Highness”
I laughed a bit and said “oh, thanks Etalos” I winked back at him. As he made his way out of the Hall.
The days went by, I’ve gotten a huge hang out of water magic, based on the texts and scrolls, my water magic abilities can now be considered High Gold level, almost platinum, now I’m able to control water without any gestures, just a small tug from my mind, I’m now able to form balls of water or ice, water barriers, and create pillars of water from the moisture around me.
Spyora which apparently is about the energy of life, is something I’ve started to learn as well, basically it is related to the energy blasts and energy barriers I’ve been able to do before, but now I’ve gotten the fundamentals and basics of it and have progressed to an intermediate understanding of the craft, apparently aside from the four elements, and spell casting, Spyora is something that only less than a percent of the Elven population is able to control.
The days went by, and at some points the servants came in pairs and brought more books for me from the Royal Library, they told me that these books weren’t as good as the ones from the Tower of Knowledge but these were the best that that realm could offer aside from the ones in the tower.
From then on, things went by like a blur and just like that, by 90 day stay at the Hall of Maktar has ended.
Now I’m looking at myself in the shower mirror and I can barely recognize myself, well... it’s still me, but I’ve grown 2 inches, now I’m 5’10, and I’ve gained at least 15 pounds of muscle, my former six pack now bordering on an 8, I was lean and cut like never before, all the energy manipulation I’ve been doing must have affected my hair growth, coz now my platinum blonde hair has grown to about 10 inches long. I’ve been tying my hair in a man bun for a week now.
I dressed myself in a light gray jacket that hugged my body, I paired it with darker gray pants and dark blue boots.
I then went to the green stone, pulled back some energy from it and slowly the time dilation stopped, within seconds the dial now shows 1:1. I breathe a sigh of relief as the feeling of personal accomplishment flow into myself.
I open the door to the stairwell and climb up, back in the Main Hall of The Royal Chapel, I’m greeted by an ecstatic Patri and Matra, they were both accompanied by my uncle Selvenus and Yal.
Patri came rushing to hug me, and Matra wasn’t far behind her.
Pulling back from our hugs, Patri says “my... my... you’ve certainly grown a lot grandson”
“2 inches!” I proudly stated as I huffed my chest.
“Chris, you’ve certainly outdone yourself” My uncle said as he hugged me as well.
“Thanks, uncle”
“Look at all that hair” Yal remarked as he walked over to me.
Yal came over to me and gave me a tight hug, as he hugged me he whispered “Now... you’ve become even more of a sweetheart, you were a heartthrob back then but now... you’re making my straight mind think twice” he winked at me as he pulled back from our hug.
My grandfather then said to me “The High Mage is pretty upset with you breaking his record” Patri wore a smile that told me he found the matter quite amusing, at least the record was now back in the family.
“Sorry bout that Patri”
“No need to be, so are you feeling okay? Are tired?” Matra asks as she fixed my hair.
“I’m fine...”
“Well... that’s good to hear Chris, come on dinner is ready” Matra said as we all started to walk back to the residential palace. It was now almost night time in the realm, which meant it was almost Monday sunrise back at home.
Before dinner, I went to the royal hairstylist, I kept the hair on top of my head long, while I asked the stylist to closely cut the hair on the sides, it now seemed that I had an undercut, while I tied the hair on top in a semi-bun.
Dinner was festive, Patri, Matra, Uncle, and Yal were very happy to see me again, well, I think I was more happy to see them, as for me it was 90 days of almost complete solitude. During dinner we had roast turkey, chicken, ham, mashed potatoes, salads, Taka Bread, and other Elvish dishes like Koshbe Slices (Meat from some sort of smaller cow from the realm) and Betaska Rolls (rolled roasted meat from a bird in the realm).
It was now 8pm in the realm, should be 8am back home now. I think dad will forgive me for being late a bit, I just had to have a last stroll at the Royal Garden before going home.
I hugged the people around the dinner table as I said my goodbyes to them.
“I’ll be backs soon” I tell Patri.
“You’re always welcome here” he replied.
“I’ll just have a last quick stroll at the garden, then I’ll be off” I said.
“Want us to be with you?” Yal asks.
“No need, just some me time for now” I replied.
“Oh, I see, enjoy then” Yal said as he gave me one last hug.
I walk out of the dining hall, and walked through several corridors which I’ve now started to be more familiar with, well not all of them but I knew the way from the dining hall to the garden.
I was now walking through the paths
in the garden, the only thing I could hear, was the water from the fountains several feet away from me and the occasional sound from the insects around. The smell of the flowers calmed me, the moonlight together with some light from the lamp posts made the atmosphere conducive for thinking, looking back I realize that so much in my life has changed recently, a few months ago I was a homeschooled child of a single father, with only a single friend to speak of, a teen who spent most of his time either playing soccer or hanging out in a diner, now I’m a prince, had a vampire for a boyfriend, met werewolves, battled vampires, and now spending weekends on a grand palace, and to top it all off, I’m apparently a very powerful elf, I come to terms with the changes in my life, I didn’t ask for this, but do I hate this life, certainly not, does it freak me out? Hell yes! Am I gonna run away from this? Hell No!
As I walked through the garden,
I hear a voice, it was a beautiful voice, and it was singing... in English! It was male, and the voice was familiar. I turn a corner and see a familiar elf servant, singing a very soulful rendition of a song I’ve grown to love from a movie I’ve watched again and again during my childhood.
Etalos was singing, and a stood several feet behind him, and I enjoy his beautiful singing.
He sang
Every night in my dreams
I see you, I feel you
That is how I know you go on
I see you, I feel you
That is how I know you go on
Far across the distance
And spaces between us
You have come to show you go on
And spaces between us
You have come to show you go on
Near, far, wherever you are
I believe that the heart does go on
Once more you open the door
And you're here in my heart
And my heart will go on and on
I believe that the heart does go on
Once more you open the door
And you're here in my heart
And my heart will go on and on
Love can touch us one time
And last for a lifetime
And never let go 'til we're gone
And last for a lifetime
And never let go 'til we're gone
Love was when I loved you
One true time I'd hold to
In my life we'll always go on
One true time I'd hold to
In my life we'll always go on
Near, far, wherever you are
I believe that the heart does go on
Once more you open the door
And you're here in my heart
And my heart will go on and on
I believe that the heart does go on
Once more you open the door
And you're here in my heart
And my heart will go on and on
You're here, there's nothing I fear
And I know that my heart will go on
We'll stay forever this way
You are safe in my heart and
My heart will go on and on
And I know that my heart will go on
We'll stay forever this way
You are safe in my heart and
My heart will go on and on
As he finished the song, I started to clap. Which caught him by surprise.
“That was beautiful Etalos!” I said as I walked nearer to him and gave him a hug, something that surprised him as well.
“Thank you, Your Highness”
“No... no... thank you! That was magnificent, I didn’t know you spoke English, let alone sang in it” I said.
“Well... I really loved the movie, a friend of mine gifted me a copy of the movie a few years back” he explained.
“Hmm... you have a great voice, please sing more often, I’d really love to hear more from you” I said to him with a smile.
“Oh, it would be a pleasure, Your Highness”
“Etalos, it’s just Chris okay?”
“But...”
“No buts, at least when we’re alone, you can call me Chris, all this royalty thing is really something new to me, and I really can’t imagine myself getting used to it... ever!” I laughed as he laughed a little as well.
“Alright, I’ll be going now” I say to him.
“So soon?” He said.
“Well.. I have to get back to my dad” I replied.
“Oh, I see” he looked sad to see me leave.
“Don’t worry, I’ll be back soon”
I said to him as I hugged him goodbye and kissed his forehead.
The teenage looking elf, stood silent and just blushed in front of me.
I smiled back at him, waved goodbye and then thought of my Father, the connection was immediate and then I find myself in our kitchen.
The song triggered something deep inside me, a deep seated realization, realization that what I indeed had with Victor was special, and maybe even once in a lifetime, I may not have forgiven him, but I did owe it not only him but to myself as well to find some closure with the end of our relationship, I’ll just have to talk to him, maybe ... for the last time.
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Stories posted in this category are works of fiction. Names, places, characters, events, and incidents are created by the authors' imaginations or are used fictitiously. Any resemblances to actual persons (living or dead), organizations, companies, events, or locales are entirely coincidental.
Note: While authors are asked to place warnings on their stories for some moderated content, everyone has different thresholds, and it is your responsibility as a reader to avoid stories or stop reading if something bothers you.
Note: While authors are asked to place warnings on their stories for some moderated content, everyone has different thresholds, and it is your responsibility as a reader to avoid stories or stop reading if something bothers you.
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