Mysteria, the magical world of supernatural’s, a realm with the tallest mountains, luscious forests, and precipitous waterfalls. From werewolves and witches to orcs, this enchanted land is the birthplace of imagination. The mystical beings were all made by many different Deities, including those of Selene, Cerridwen, Ogrun, and Valkrim. They fashioned new life forms in their own image to coexist in the realm of Mysteria.
After many years of peaceful coexistence, the witches accidentally opened a portal to another world inhabited by many animals and people called humans. Although they resembled each other, humans lacked magical or shapeshifting abilities.
Over time, the witches travelled in secret between realms, but some never returned to Mysteria. Witches had been caught casting spells. Out of fear of becoming cursed, the humans bound and burnt them at the stake.
The vampires, werewolves, fae and mages were amongst those who eventually discovered the witches opening the portal. Intrigued and curious many entered the human world to live, where they began new packs, covens and nests for their kind. They knew they could not show their abilities to the humans as they did not want the same fate as the witches. The world was vast, giving them plenty of land and places to reside away from humans.
When travelling to human villages, they did not shift or use magic and found that they got along well with humans. Some became the best of friends and shared each other’s secrets, including the portal to Mysteria. The humans begged to be taken there, and the witches and werewolves agreed.
The humans fell instantly in love with the land of Mysteria and chose to stay there.
Orcs were one of the few species who refused to enter the human world, warning other species that allowing humans into Mysteria might prove to be a detrimental mistake.
More humans and supernatural beings began to inhabit each other's worlds. Mysteria was a peaceful world until half a century passed, and it descended into war. Humans desired more territory and a king and queen of their own.
The supernaturals desired no more deaths in Mysteria, so they granted the humans additional land and chose a married couple, Asher and Merith, as King and Queen.
Even though their requests were granted, they were fearful that the other rulers would turn against them, and so, after meticulous planning, a second war erupted. Humans hunted and slaughtered many elemental sprites, leaving their corpses on orc territory and blaming the orcs for the deaths.
After this massacre, King Pyrus and Queen Lydia, the rulers of the sprite kingdom, consulted the leaders of all realms for help. It was agreed that all realms would protect any remaining sprites from the orcs.
King Asher agreed to help protect the sprites and convinced the alpha king, the leaders of the other realms, and King Pyrus and Queen Lydia that the orcs needed to be eliminated before the orcs killed them all.
The strongest of all species, the orcs managed to wipe out half of the realms throughout the war before being obliterated in reprisal for being accused of a crime they did not commit.
The Midnight coven of witches believed the Orcs were innocent, but the realms would not listen to them. The Orcs entrusted the coven of witches with the safety of their young, hiding them in their Covenstead to save the species.
In the aftermath of the war, every species was at its most vulnerable since every realm had suffered significant losses and many injuries needed time to heal. The humans took advantage of the opportune timing, knowing realms were ebbing at their lowest and attacked the realms successfully, wiping out the last of the mages, vampires, sprites, fae and Orcs except for the few that managed to escape to the human world through the portal.
Humans gathered witches and vampires in droves before burning them alive on stakes. They captured werewolves and locked them up with heavy chains of silver before torturing them to death.
The werewolf realms realised too late that it was the humans, and not the orcs, who killed the sprites. With all the orcs dead and with a population much larger in number than the other species, werewolves were the next strongest species.
The witches of the midnight coven, humans and werewolves were the last to remain in Mysteria. After the Midnight Coven used spells to hide as many children from different species as possible, a few managed to escape through the portal and lived out their days on earth, while the other two witches, Lou and Prunella, remained in Mysteria in hopes of finding more children to save before their demise at the hands of humans.
Werewolf King, Alpha Dominic, and King Asher agreed to an indefinite truce. The humans knew the werewolves were much stronger in strength and number. They agreed to keep to themselves and avoid each other's territory. The land was surveyed and reallotted to both rulers, precisely and identically halved. A large forest between the two halves became a no-man’s-land that neither party could lay claim to.
King Asher ruled West Wallow, and Alpha Dominic ruled Moon Crest Valley.
A thousand years later, knowledge of this great war and the existence of other supernatural creatures dissolved into fairy tales for children.
Then, one night the Moon Goddess Selene decided changes were afoot, and in time, the true meaning of fairytale would be uncovered.
The moon shone brighter than ever before, illuminating a tree in the forest. The tree shook, and its trunk opened, revealing a beautiful little elemental sprite inside, who crawled out, yawning from a lengthy slumber. Her existence went unknown for the next twelve years, and she lived in the forest happily until she was eighteen.
Maia: 6 years oldI wake up and yawn, stretching my arms high above my head. I’m sitting in a large hollow tree trunk. I have no idea why I’m here or how I got here. I feel soft moss under my feet and crawl out from the tree. Animals and critters in the forest gather around and approach me. They gently nuzzle their noses against my legs, and when I sit down on the grass, they curl up on my lap. There are rabbits, foxes, squirrels, deer, elk, birds, and mice. They follow me around and do not leave my side. I feel safe and loved in this forest, and I want to live here forever. The forest is my home, my safe place, my everything.I play a game of hide and seek with my new friend, a fox I name Ember. I introduce myself to him. ‘I’m Maia,’ I tell him. Ember nudges my head playfully with his and then runs in circles. He leaps at me and falls on my chest, and as we both roll backwards, we notice the entrance to a cave hidden by a curtain of vines. In awe at
MaiaThe following day I climb a tree near my cave and watch a woman holding a wicker basket. She kneels on the ground, plucks a few mushrooms from the soil and puts them in her basket. There goes my dinner. The woman, unaware of my presence, wanders off, and my stomach rumbles. I'm so hungry.I reluctantly follow the woman, knowing I need food. After a few hours, we reach the edge of the forest, and I watch the woman, with her basket, walk through a grassy field toward a small hill. I freeze at the forest's edge, admiring the clear blue sky, the grassy field, and the small hill ahead.‘I've never left the forest before. I need to know where they’re taking all my food,’ I tell Ember.Taking a deep breath, I step into the field of grass and exhale. I had been nervously holding my breath.‘Okay, that wasn't so bad,’ I tell Ember. Ember steps forward. ‘No, Ember. You must stay here. If anything goes wrong, I don't want anything bad happening to
I lean against a stone wall to catch my breath and wait for my stomach to settle. Then, composed once more, I notice a group of children playing a game, laughing raucously and enjoying themselves immensely.‘Hello. Miss?’ A young woman with a posh accent says. She has long dark-brown hair and brown eyes. She appears to be in her mid-twenties, and two young girls hold her hand.‘Hello,’ I nervously reply, saying hello to another human for the first time in my life. It’s odd yet liberating. I shade my face with my velvet hood, so she does not see my violet eyes.‘Is everything okay?’ She asks. I nod.‘Yes, I'm fine, thank you.’ I say.The woman tilts her head to the side, frowning.‘I'm sorry. It's just that you’re not wearing any boots, and it's not very ladylike or customary for a young lady to be barefoot in the street,’ she says. I look down at my feet, and boots were not something I thought about when I stole the clothes from the stall. I’ve seen the forest visitors wearing boots b
Alpha King Damon Women in all shapes and sizes, wearing all sorts of colours, gush and gape at me and run their fingers along with my vest as we dance at a ball held in my honour. Their behaviour would be socially unacceptable anywhere else.Damn you, Eric! I know you have told these she-wolves I might have to choose my own mate, get them off of me before I release my wolf and start ripping their heads off! I tell my Gamma Eric via mind-link.Sorry Alpha. You might have to consider it. If the rumours are true and King Fenris attacks Moon Crest Valley, you’re stronger with a mate and Luna. Eric mind-links back.Not if she isn’t my true fated mate, now get them away from me, Eric, before it’s your head I rip off.‘Ladies, ladies. Let the Alpha King compose himself. Being surrounded by your beauty is overwhelming for him. Let me escort you all to the drink table, where you can tell me your progress with Alpha King Damon.’ Eric says as he winks at me and ushers the she-wolves away. I cro
Beta TroyThe forest is the most serene, harmonious place I have ever seen. Trudging through thickets and bramble, I hear leaves and twigs crunch under my boots. The forest has a sense of magic about her. She truly is enchanting.Halfway through the forest, I hear the sound of trickling water. Feeling quite thirsty after such a long trek, I follow the sound and eventually find a stunning waterfall. I hold my flask underneath the stream for a while to fill it before having a drink.In the distance, someone with a very melodic voice sings a very beautiful song.I make my way toward West Wallow in human form and arrive a few hours later. Had I been in my wolf form, I would have arrived sooner, but going undetected by the humans when war could be approaching, is extremely crucial.I wander around the market in Wellmore and buy some of the juiciest fruit I have ever had. The King’s soldiers stop at stalls with carts and place half the contents on t
In Wellmore, the villagers are angry and on edge. They’re complaining about a tax hike and a food shortage, having cleared the forest of food. The market stalls are only half-laden with edible goods, from which I steal some apples and a loaf of bread. I sit down on a bench, and eat an apple, storing the loaf of bread in the hessian bag I kept from my first visit. Standing on Vivian’s doorstep, I knock on the side window and wait patiently for her to come to the door. ‘Maia! I'm so glad you’ve come to visit us. Come in,’ she says, smiling and standing aside so that I may go in.‘You’ve come at the right time. I’ve just boiled a pot of tea,’ Vivian smiles.‘Oh. That sounds lovely. What is tea?’ I ask her, and she pauses.‘Have you always been homeless and alone?’ She asks, pulling out a chair for me to sit in.‘No. I live with my friend Ember,’ Vivian places a warm drink on the table in front of me.‘This is a cup of tea. Be careful. Sip it slowly. Don’t burn yourself,’ Vivian caution
King FenrisArriving at the training fields, my most trusted knight, Sir Hugo, and I hop down from our thoroughbreds and tie them to posts with rope. Thousands of soldiers are in training. There is a cacophony of sounds: swords clashing, axes and maces thrown at wooden targets, tree stumps, and men grunting with exertion.A few hundred archers shoot at targets from varying distances and nod at me as I pass behind them. There is lots of yelling as men practice their war cries or call out to one another. A few training casualties hobble around with injuries to their ankles, knees, and feet.My Commander in Chief, James Boroughshaw, is stationed outside a makeshift tent and is observing the jousting closest to us.‘My King,’ James says as he kneels before me.‘Commander James,’ I nod, and he stands back up.‘I require an update of our progress,’ I say, sitting down in a wooden folding chair and accepting the glass of brandy Squire Thomas hands to
Maia‘Maia,’ Grace says.‘Yes, Grace?’ I smile at the young girl in front of me.‘Can we come to your forest and meet Ember one day?’‘Sure. I’d love to show you my home. And I'm sure Ember would love to meet you,’ I say excitedly and smile.‘Perhaps when this war is over,’ Vivian says, exhaling and folding her hands in her lap. The girls nod and run off again.‘Vivian?’ I say. ‘Where’s your mate?’ I ask.‘Only werewolves have mates. Humans have husbands. I had a husband: it was love at first sight. His name was Derrick. We were married a few weeks after meeting and had our girls not long after. When they were two, he died in a mining accident. The mine collapsed and killed him and twenty other men,’ Vivian says, wiping her eyes with her handkerchief.‘Oh. I'm so sorry,’ I say, watching her dab her eyes.‘I don't know if I could love another man. I know Derrick would want me to. He’d want the girls to have a father, but I just haven't be