Veil of Shadow and Rain ✓ [TSC #1]

Chapter 6 - A Darker Path Ahead

She couldn't sleep.

It was late, she knew. It was around 2 a.m., and Wren had spent the past hours reading and rereading about Nicaea Valdis over and over again. Apparently, she was a faerie, and an evil Faerie Queen.

Wren tossed in her bed. She was tired and all she wanted to do was go to sleep, but she couldn't.

You might as well damn go to sleep, Wren told herself, turning around to lie on her right. A few moments later, she flung off her blankets and sprawled herself across the bed, lying on her stomach.

It was no use. The more she tried to sleep, she couldn't.

Her mind was consumed with thoughts of Nicaea, then she decided not to think of her. Maybe it was the disturbing thoughts of the Faerie Queen that kept her awake. She tried to think of something else ... her uncle. He was probably at home, snoring contentedly. Her thoughts drifted to Tabitha. Well, at least she wouldn't have to deal with cat fur on her now.

Eventually, she drifted off to sleep. But suddenly, she wasn't in sleep anymore. She was not in her bedchamber - not in the palace - instead, she was standing in a dark, gloomy forest. Branches of trees blocked out the moonlight, and the silence was so heavy it felt like a physical weight.

As she walked, the trees parted to reveal a clearing. Suddenly, Wren trod on something. It was a shiny, green locket, with an otherworldly glow, with a map beside it. She picked it up, but it was blank. Wren looked around, confused. Instantly, she changed locations ... and found herself standing in a vast palace made entirely of sparkling white marble. As she looked around, she noticed that there were no people in sight, only the echoing sound of her footsteps. She wandered aimlessly, the locket and map in her hand, then she found herself standing in front of a metal plate that had been hammered to a pillar. It read "The Grand Palace of Iridia."

Out of the blue, Wren heard a voice. She looked around wildly, but no one was speaking to her. 'You must journey this quest well,' the voice said, female and sounding faraway. 'Find the locket, and you will be led to a series of events to help you defeat the Faerie Queen. You are in danger. Great, great danger,' the voice murmured, slowly fading away. 'Take this locket that the Great She wants to shape into a weapon that will kill you.'

Instantaneously, Wren felt as if somebody had pulled a chair underneath her and she bolted upright, drenched in sweat.

Oh damn.

It was a crappy dream. Just a crappy dream. But it had seemed so real.

The leaves rustling beneath her feet ... she could remember. Wren tried to race back in the dream, but she couldn't. She tried recalling it ... recalling the events of what had happened ...

There had been a locket. With a map. But the map had been blank. And she had been transported into a palace, just like the one she was in now ... and what was the name of the palace again? Iri-something. Iridawn. No. Iridale. Iri ... Iridere. Iri ... Iridia!

Wren's eyes jolted open. The Palace of Iridia. Iridia must be a kingdom. Wherever it was, a locket was there. A map was there. A useful clue was there, waiting for Wren to find it.

Damn. Wren pressed her hands to her face, feeling the sweat trickle down her fingers. She peered at the time on her alarm clock and groaned. It was only four in the morning.

Wren quietly got out of bed and tiptoed over to her window, gazing out at the night sky. The stars were bright and twinkling, like tiny gems scattered across the velvety blackness. She wondered if they had any significance in her quest, but quickly shook her head. She needed to focus on finding that locket and map.