Chapter Thirty-Five: A Brief Breath

  Jace’s eyes fluttered open, greeted by a warm, amber light. His surroundings were blurry, but a figure hovered above him. He blinked rapidly, trying to clear his vision.

  “Welcome back, Sleeping Beauty,” the woman said with a wry smile, the amber shard in her hand emitting a soft, healing radiance.

  Jace took in his surroundings. The room was sterile yet inviting, bathed in a soothing amber glow from several healing shards mounted on the walls. White linen curtains framed the tall windows, letting in beams of natural light that danced across the polished wooden floor. The air was tinged with the faint scent of antiseptic, mingled with something floral, possibly lavender.

  “How long?” Jace croaked, his voice rough from disuse.

  “Two days,” she replied, her tone kind yet clinical. “You were out cold.”

  Panic set in as Jace’s mind raced. “My friends?”

  She chuckled lightly, a comforting sound. “They’re fine. Took a break from Terra Mythica and went to your homeworld. Guess they needed a vacation.”

  Jace exhaled, a mix of relief and worry flooding through him. He thought about logging out too but felt a strange hesitation. Something was keeping him here.

  Beside him, a note caught his eye, sealed with amethyst magic. It was marked private, clearly meant only for him. Curiosity piqued, he reached out and broke the seal. The note’s text unfolded before his eyes:

  “You have questions. Some I can answer, some I can’t. Meet me in the gardens before you log out. Tell me when you have woken up. —Theon.”

  “Can you let the Archmage know I’m awake?” Jace asked.

  “Tell him yourself,” the nurse replied, gesturing to the letter and quill near his bed.

  Jace scribbled a quick note on the back of the letter, then watched as the paper folded itself into an origami bird and fluttered out of the open window. He dressed swiftly, his body still sore but functional. He marveled at the effectiveness of the healing, despite the lingering ache and mental fog. His muscles felt as if they had run three back-to-back marathons, without any preparation or warm-up.

  Jace stepped into the courtyard, the early morning chill biting at his skin, a sharp contrast to the warmth he had just left behind. The campus gardens sprawled before him, a labyrinth of winding paths, secluded alcoves, and vibrant flora. Magical luminescent flowers glowed softly even in daylight, their petals shimmering with a spectrum of colors. Vines twisted with an ethereal grace, snaking up ancient stone walls and trellises.

  Among the flora, snapdragons snapped at passing insects, their tiny, dragon-like heads adorned with iridescent scales. Flowers resembling pairs of lips, puckered and kissed each other softly, releasing sweet, fragrant mists into the air. Other plants, magically enchanted, hummed faint melodies or whispered to those who lingered close enough to hear. The air was filled with the soft rustle of leaves and the gentle hum of enchantment, creating a serene and otherworldly atmosphere.

  Despite his inner turmoil, the serenity of the place began to seep into him. He followed a cobblestone path lined with enchanted flora, their soft glows and gentle hums creating a tranquil ambiance. The peaceful environment worked its magic, slowly calming his racing thoughts.

  He spotted Theon by a bubbling brook, seated on an ancient stone bench. The soft trickle of water was the only sound in the quiet morning, adding to the garden’s soothing atmosphere. Theon’s face was impassive, but his posture betrayed a hint of urgency.

  Jace paused, taking in the garden’s ethereal beauty. The light cast long shadows, and the scent of blooming flowers filled the air, adding to the surreal atmosphere. He approached slowly, the gravel crunching underfoot until Theon’s eyes met his.

  Theon nodded, and Jace sat beside him, feeling the cold stone through his clothes. They remained silent, the garden’s tranquility enveloping them. The rustling leaves and distant chatter of other students provided a soothing backdrop.

  Jace looked up at the canopy above, where sunlight filtered through the leaves, casting intricate patterns on the cobblestone path below. This peace was a stark contrast to the brutal training he had endured.

  “Lovely, isn’t it?” Theon asked, breaking the silence. “I come here every day. It’s how I cultivate my aether and consolidate my gains.” He stood up, motioning for Jace to follow.

  As they walked, Jace noticed how the sunlight painted the cobblestones with intricate shadows and he felt how the ancient academy garden breathed history.

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  And then, as if responding to a question Jace had yet to ask, Theon said, “What is real, Jace? How do you define reality?” He looked at the canopy above, his gaze distant.

  Taken aback, Jace thought it over. “I suppose it’s what I can see, feel, touch.”

  Theon nodded appreciatively. “Picture a beach in your mind: the whoosh of the waves, the warmth of the sun. Can you not feel the sun on your skin? Can you not see the sand?”

  “That’s different,” Jace said. “It’s in my mind.”

  “Ah, so certain, are we? Much of our lives exist only in our minds. Politics, education, love… these things are within us. They are not real in the way this flower is real.” He gently plucked a flower from a bush, inhaling its scent. “But are they not real?”

  “I suppose,” Jace admitted.

  “True, a memory of the beach is not the beach itself. But it can still be felt, seen, and experienced. It can be shared and relived through stories. When we describe reality, we often do so only on the physical level. But are there not other forms of reality?

  “The reality of the mind is what we see when we close our eyes, what we feel when we talk—our sense of trust, partnerships, friendships.

  “And then there is the reality of the soul, where our dreams reside, where the distant future rests. It is just as real. Can a conviction not be felt? Can a belief? Does it not hurt when we fail? Can you not feel the connection between yourself and a friend, even if faint?

  “Your Earth body may not see or touch these levels of reality, just as it does not see or touch Terra Mythica, but does that make them any less real? If I pound my fist upon this bench, do I not feel its resistance, its texture, the ache in my hand?”

  “Why are you saying all of this?” Jace asked.

  Theon signed and continued walking.

  “Before Terra Mythica, my life was confined to a hospital bed. A rare neurological disorder was eating away at my nerves and muscles. Funny thing is, before that, I was a neuroscientist and teacher at Berkeley. Life has a twisted sense of irony, doesn’t it?”

  Theon inhaled deeply, savoring the scent of blooming flowers mingled with freshly cut grass. “If you had asked me then, I would have told you that life was nothing more than the random act of synapses firing. I was devoted to this belief, faith in the theory of man and mud. And it is faith, let no one tell you different. But now, I’m afraid, I am not so sure. I’ve been here for ten Earth years,” he said, his gaze sweeping over garden. His eyes sparkled with a depth of experience, hinting at the rich tapestry of his life here.

  Jace quickly calculated the time difference between Terra Mythica and the real world. “So you’ve been in-game for over four hundred years? Don’t you ever have to log out?” he asked.

  Theon chuckled, a deep, resonant sound. “Back in my day, they called it a Deep Dive. I was one of the first to get a capsule when they hit the market. A stroke of luck, really. A lifetime’s savings finally served a real purpose. I spent most of it on the best medical science money could buy. All for nothing. The greatest minds on Earth couldn’t fix me. But this…” He stretched with a yawn. “This was the best money I ever spent. Fifty years on Earth, four hundred in this world, and you learn something: assumptions are dangerous.”

  The rustling of leaves and the distant chatter of students filled the silence.

  “What happened in there? How was it able to block us from logging out? How could it hurt us? And why did it say it wasn’t safe to respawn? Who—no, what—was that thing?”

  Theon raised a hand, his eyes dark and somber. “Perhaps it’s best if we take one question at a time, yes? First, I’m genuinely sorry you had to endure that nightmare.”

  “Archmage…”

  “Theon will suffice for this conversation.” He reached into his robes and produced a small tin, opening it to reveal an assortment of tiny, intricately decorated cookies. Each was a different shape and color, like edible jewels. He popped one into his mouth before offering the tin to Jace, who accepted this time.

  “I’m sorry we broke in,” Jace said, biting into the red-filled cookie. The pastry was delicate. The flavor was rich, though the cherry wasn’t quite to his taste. Still, it was the first thing that truly had any flavor in Terra Mythica, and for that alone, it felt almost miraculous.

  Theon smiled knowingly. “I know,” he said, waving it off with a graceful hand. “What you endured is punishment enough. And, I have to admit, through fate or dumb luck, your recklessness might have saved my life and the High Council’s. That attack wasn’t meant for you.”

  “How did you know we were in there?” Jace asked.

  “Marcus, one of your friends, saw a flash of light from the dome and alerted us,” Theon replied. “That dome? It could only be shattered from the outside. No escaping from within.”

  Jace nodded, absorbing Theon’s words. The tension between them eased slightly as the weight of the situation settled in. The garden’s tranquility contrasted sharply with the chaotic events they had endured, offering a moment of respite in an otherwise tumultuous day.

  “As for what that thing was… we call it The Dark One. It’s had many names. It’s a minion of the Endless Void, a piece in the eternal war that’s raged in Mythica longer than its history books, and that’s saying a lot.”

  “I still don’t understand,” Jace said, his voice edged with confusion. “How did it know all that? It said it knew you and Hades.”

  “Yes, it’s true. This isn’t the first time it’s tried to kill me. Though it hasn’t been seen directly possessing anything in a long time. It usually sends its armies of undead, waging wars across Terra Mythica. But for it to personally, in a manner of speaking, show up... something is wrong. How it blocked the logout and transferred damage to your body in the chamber, I don’t fully understand. But it’s something I’ve been hunting answers for a long time.

  A chill ran down Jace’s spine. “I need to know—can what happens in Terra Mythica hurt us in real life?”

  “The lines between Terra Mythica and our reality are not as clear-cut as we once believed. The damage you experienced is a testament to that. I believe a small portion of it may have even affected your body on Earth, but far less than what occurred here.”

  “You knew about this? That we could be hurt from the game?” Jace asked.

  “I suspected it might be possible, yes. But suspecting is a far cry from knowing and potentially a great deal more dangerous. There have been rumors for years. At first, they seemed like just that—rumors. Conspiracy theories. But some time ago, I started down a path to uncover the truth, only to be blocked at every turn. There’s a lot you need to know, Jason.”

  Jace’s heart skipped a beat at the sound of his real name.