The Five Realms

Chapter 1

"Focus on the realm"

That's what you’re told when voyaging through the realms. Whether it’s good or not, not very many people voyage from their native realm. It's not forbidden, but it’s just that people are never given a good enough reason to leave where they are from. That is unless you leave willingly to start new… or you’re banished.

Amealia felt her ears pop and her stomach drop at the sensation of her surroundings change and the change in temperature. In that moment, she knew she had entered the Crystal Realm when it felt a push out of the dimensional barrier.

Her eyes took in the dim lighting and cobblestone architecture. She wasn’t completely aware of what was happening until shouting flooded her surrounding. Her disorientation caused her to barely react to a single this around her.

A great amount of pressure was felt behind her knees. She fell forward and caught herself from face planting into the cold and rough floor. Her arms were then pulled up and brought out to her sides in a T-pose.

“Don't move! State your native realm, name, and reason for voyage!” A knight yelled out in a slight Irish accent, holding his spear to her abdomen. Amealia’s body jerked when the drawstring bag on her back got slashed in all the contents of her bag spilling out.

A guard used the sharp end of his spear to sift through the items. He pushed aside few crystals in mesh pouches and boxes filled with cards the guard couldn't identify. The blade on his weapon made markings and cut up all of the candles that spilled out. And then it made tiny tink when it hit a shining dagger, the handle was wrapped in golden coloured twine and the blade was sharp.

“Amealia Garcone. I was banished from the Divine Realm. I chose to be here on my own volition. I need to speak with King Merrik Ⅲ.” The girl tried to explain frantically. She had only then realized the spears pointing at her midsection and that they had been getting closer to piercing her skin.

“Reason for banishment?” The same guard then asked. His voice is less defensive but the weapons are un-moving. It took her a second to think of my answer. In that second, he inched the spear closer.

“I’m not supposed to tell you! Only the King can be told!” She yelped out frantically.

The guard grunted, retracting his weapon, the other guards following suit.

“Throne room! And collect her...items.” The guard said. You could hear him suppress a laugh.

Amealia was pulled up by her arms harshly. She stood up and felt a wave of relief accompanied by enervation wash over her. The tiredness could have been from the voyage or how her life had been threatened only a few seconds ago. One guard behind her pinned her arms and wrists together and held them tightly in place.

They pushed Amealia forward and forced her to walk down a narrow hallway and up a flight of cobblestone stairs twisted upwards. She watched as they speedily went up the stairs, past the halls of dungeons. Each hall seemed to be as empty as the next, as if none had been used in years. Soon, the dungeons stopped. Amealia was getting tired of the long stairs. She felt as though it would never end. At some point, Amealia had closed her eyes and continued stepping upwards. She only opened her eyes when she felt they came to a sudden.

They had stopped at the top of the flight of stairs. A fairly large group of teenage boys walked past them, all of them shooting the outsider a glance before continuing forward. Amealia was sure they assumed she was being pulled from the dungeons that lay only a few meters below them. She watched as they walked by, looking them all in the eye and hoping to intimidate them to some extent. She then chuckled and looked down when one of them caught her eyes longer than the rest. His eyes had filled with fear and his cheeks turned red for a moment, she had found it amusing.

A young man behind the group stopped and was speaking with one of the guards in front. He wasn’t like the boys in the group, he was older and looked like a far more experienced fighter than the others. He took glances at Amealia as the guard spoke to him. He nodded along and then turned, waiting for the group to pass.

Once the group passed, he walked forward. That’s when the guards walked forward and pulled Amealia along. She glanced down the hall the group disappeared to, noticing the arcade corridor letting sunlight pour in. When she turned back to face the front she saw the same architecture down the long hall.

A guard tugged on Amealia's arm when they slowed down a bit. She glared at the guard who continued looking ahead, unbothered by her piercing gaze. She scoffed and looked down at the ground, matching her footsteps to the abnormally in-sync steps of the guards.

Their long walk continued for another 5 minutes and just as Amealia was about to complain, they came to a large room from a small doorway. They walked past large concrete columns, towards a large red carpet that sat in the middle of the room. The carpet ran along the entire length of the hall, all the way down towards a large throne.

The throne was golden with light blue tinted glass running along the arm rests. At the foot of the large chair, there were three steps going up that brought whoever was sitting in it to be half a foot above the ground. The seat of the throne was wide and long, two people could be sat in it without much trouble.

On the throne, sat a man with thick dark brown hair, silver spiking through in some places. His eyes a classic blue that scanned her figure with wariness as she approached. He sat tall and regal, waiting to be informed of what was happening. To everyone else in the room, he suddenly seemed more intrigued than before.

Amealia looked up at the man, staring him in the eye. The people in the room gasped quietly as they watched Amealia's unwavering gaze. No one in the Realm would have dared to look The King in the eye, let alone with such lack of empathy.

The King, perched high on his throne, turned red from the neck up with anger. He was appalled by such a bold girl. A girl that looked barely strong enough to take on one of his best men.

“My King, this girl appears to have been banished from the Divine Realm.” Stated the guard on Amealia’s left arm. He seemed to try to cover a chuckle at the mention of the girl’s native land.

The King then laughed loudly, the anger disappearing and causing the rest of the room of people to also laugh, chuckle, or snicker in some way. Amealia looked down in shame at the mockery of her old home. She winced when someone started wheezing with laughter.

“What did those spiritual clowns banish you for?!” The King said, laughter hidden behind his words. An Irish accent clinging to his words. “Was it for not using special smoke for a card reading game? Or not using the proper rock?” He mocked, causing him and everyone else to crackle with loud laughter. Amealia’s jaw clenched with anger as they insulted the ways of spirituality she studied since birth.

While the laughter calmed down, Amealia finally spoke. “My name is Amealia Garcone. I was banished for murder, possession of weapons, and trying to build an army of strongly trained individual's.” The throne room went silent. The air was no longer light with humor, instead an unspoken fear and respect fell. “Well, an army of strongly trained women.” Amealia said, changing her sentence.

“You’re ridiculous for thinking women could do a man's job.” A boy, in his teens, called out from next to the throne. “I can prove you wrong.” Amealia said, looking at the boy in the eye, then glancing at the King. He looked at Amealia with intrigue. And she took that as a ‘go ahead’.

Amealia pushed her body back, taking the guard, who was pinning her wrists, by surprise. She elbowed the small space with no armor from the neck of the right guard as she heard the other one fall down. Understanding what was happening, the guard on her left drew his sword.

The King watched in amusement and interest as Amealia ducked a s***h of the sword , slipping under the arm of the guard and kicking in his knee. The man tumbled to the ground, his grip on the weapon releasing. Amealia took the chance to grab the large sword.

She pulled the helmet off the man and gripped a tuft of his dark brown hair. She then placed the blade of the sword against his neck. He knealed in shock and his breathing audible staggered. Amealia then roughly moved the man to face the King, who sat impressed and amused.

"It's a ridiculously dangerous to assume a woman can't do a mans job." Amealia said, looking the boy in the eye and her British sounding accent dripping with venom. She looked back at the King who's face was adorned with a confused expression.

Amealia forcefully let go of the guard and threw down the sword next to his trembling body. She huffed and marched past him towards the throne. The guards standing next to his throne went into a defensive stance.

Amealia kept her gaze fixed on the King as he motioned for the guards to stand down. The guards reluctantly went back into a waiting stance, but their demeanor went rigid.

Everyone watched her take steps closer and closer to their ruler. No one did anything but watch in anticipation for her next move. And everyone went still by her actions when she finally stood in front of the throne.

She then looked King Merrik in the eye and finally bowed her head. She knelt down on her knee and spoke.

"I pledge allegiance to the Crystal King. The leader of this Realm," She looked back up and caught the King's eye again, "The only true royalty across all five realms. I am loyal to you and you alone."

And for the first time in his time of ruling, King Merrik Ⅲ looked concerned.