novelraw Chapter 194: Depictions!
Chapter 194: Depictions!
The soft glow of the Faerie Realm deepened as twilight settled fully across the valley as Jax looked out the gallery, seeing the forests below pulse with life.
Massive trees radiated faint emerald light through their veins, their leaves glowing like constellations scattered across an ocean of green. Streams of liquid mana flowed between roots and branches, drifting like slow-moving rivers of starlight.
Above, the sky itself had begun to shift, light being more revealed as it got later into the morning.
Jax leaned back slightly in his chair, one arm resting along the edge as his golden eyes reflected the glow of the world below.
Elyndra sat across from him, her wings faintly illuminated, the delicate patterns along them glowing softly in rhythm with the surrounding mana.
For a moment, neither of them spoke, thinking about the earlier conversation.
The idea of the Internet, a concept so foreign to Terra and yet so dangerously transformative. Elyndra was still thinking about it, and Jax could tell.
Her gaze drifted slightly, unfocused, as if she was already imagining the possibilities and then, slowly, she looked back at him.
There was a different kind of curiosity in her eyes now, "Tell me something else," she said softly.
Jax raised an eyebrow slightly, "Hmm?"
Elyndra tilted her head, her long hair shifting gently with the motion, "On your world... Earth..."
She paused briefly, "Were there other races besides Humans?"
Jax blinked once.Then leaned back a bit further, exhaling quietly, "...No."
Elyndra froze, "...None?"
He shook his head, "Just humans."
For a moment, the Faerie Queen said nothing. Her wings stilled completely, "That’s..."
She struggled to find the word, "...inconceivable."
Jax chuckled faintly, "Yeah. I get that a lot when I tell people about Earth,"
Elyndra leaned forward slightly, her expression sharpening, "So absolutely no Elves, Beastkin or Dragons?"
Jax shook his head again, "Nope."
Her eyes widened further, "No faeries?"
Jax smirked slightly, "Not a single one."
Elyndra leaned back slowly. The disbelief on her face was almost amusing, "A world with only one race..."
She murmured, "How did you not go insane from boredom?"
Jax laughed, "Who says we didn’t?"
That earned a small smile from her, but the curiosity hadn’t faded. If anything, it had grown stronger as she wanted to learn more about Earth.
"...And yet," she said slowly, "you described the Internet. A system capable of storing vast knowledge."
Her eyes narrowed slightly, "If there were no other races...then how’d you already know so much about the various races when you arrived?"
Jax’s smirk deepened, "Because we imagined you."
Elyndra blinked in confusion, "...Imagined?"
He nodded.
"On Earth, we had stories. Books, films and games that created entire worlds with their imagination,"
Elyndra leaned forward again, her interest fully captured, "And in those stories, were there beings like us?"
Jax met her gaze, "Yeah."
He paused slightly, "Actually, a-lot like you,"
"What?" Elyndra’s wings flared slightly behind her, shimmering brighter as she was shocked.
Jax chuckled, "I’m serious."
He leaned forward a bit now, resting his elbow on the table, "In these stories, there were Elves, Dwarves, Demons, Dragons, Beastkin and even Faeries,"
He listed them casually, but with each word, Elyndra’s expression changed to shock, then confusion, and then something bordering on disbelief.
"That shouldn’t be impossible," she said immediately.
Jax shrugged, "Not really."
Elyndra shook her head, "You’re telling me that a world with only humans somehow created accurate depictions of races that actually exist?"
Jax tilted his head slightly, "Define accurate."
She frowned, "How close were these ’stories’?"
Jax thought for a moment, then smirked, "Close enough that if I dropped you into one of them people would probably recognize what you are."
Elyndra stared at him, a bit shocked as her mind raced.
"...That would imply..." she whispered slowly, "That your world had some form of knowledge of Terra, or other worlds where our species exist,"
Jax raised a finger, "Or.....Humans are just really good at imagining things."
Elyndra didn’t respond immediately. She leaned back again, her gaze drifting slightly as she processed and analyzed this information, reconstructing possibilities.
"...Describe them," she said finally.
Jax raised an eyebrow, "The faeries?"
"Yes." Elyndra nodded hurriedly.
Jax leaned back again, thinking, "Well, in most stories, they’re connected to nature."
Elyndra nodded slowly, "Accurate."
"They live long lives, sometimes immortal depending on how powerful they are," Jax said.
Another nod from Elyndra.
"They’re beautiful." Jax continued.
Elyndra smirked slightly at that, "Obviously."
Jax chuckled.
"They have wings."
Her wings shifted slightly behind her.
"And strong magic affinity." Jax said.
Elyndra’s expression slowly changed from curiosity to something more serious, "...That is... disturbingly accurate."
Jax shrugged, "Told you."
She leaned forward again.
"What about elves?"
"Similar vibe," Jax said, "Long lifespan, nature affinity, elegant and live within nature, long ears, excellent archers and scouts, strong magic users."
Elyndra’s fingers tightened slightly around her cup, "And demons?"
That question came differently and Jax paused for a moment, thinking for a while, "...Yeah."
Elyndra watched him carefully, "How were demons portrayed on Earth?"
"Similar to here on Terra, very evil," Jax said and Elyndra’s expression didn’t change immediately, but her wings stilled again.
"Evil...?" she repeated softly.
Jax nodded, "Not just evil, evil incarnate."
He leaned back slightly, his gaze drifting upward, "On Earth, in most stories, demons were seen as monsters. Creatures of destruction, corruption and chaos,"
Elyndra’s fingers tightened slightly, "And nothing more?"
Jax shook his head slowly, "In most stories, nope."
He glanced back at her, "They were the bad guys."
The atmosphere shifted slightly. The warm, relaxed tone from earlier conversations dimmed just a bit.
Elyndra studied him carefully, "And what do you think now?"
Jax didn’t answer immediately. Instead, he looked out over the glowing Faerie Realm, at the various beautiful forests, the light and life all around.
Then he spoke, "I think Earth was wrong."
Elyndra’s eyes softened slightly.
Jax continued, "I’ve met demons here, fought alongside them, seen how they live and live around them,"
He shrugged, "They’re not monsters."
He paused, "...Not any more than humans are."
That earned a quiet exhale from Elyndra, "And yet..."
She tilted her head slightly.
"You are their king."
Jax smirked faintly.
"Yeah."
"And you weren’t always," she added.
He nodded.
"Correct."
Her eyes narrowed slightly.
"There is something else."
Jax chuckled.
"You’re sharp."
Elyndra leaned forward slightly.
"Tell me."
Jax tapped his fingers lightly against the table.
Then said it plainly.
"I’m not fully human anymore."
Elyndra didn’t react immediately, but her gaze sharpened. She looked up and down at Jax. He looked completely Human in her eyes, and so did his aura.
"...Explain."
Jax leaned back again.
"You already know I absorbed the Goddess’ Blessings."
She nodded.
"That power changed me."
He lifted his hand slightly, faint traces of energy flickering across his skin for just a moment.
"Rewrote parts of my existence."
Elyndra’s eyes followed the motion carefully.
"...And?"
Jax met her gaze.
"I became part demon."
The words settled into the air and Elyndra didn’t recoil, just staring at Jax.
"...I see."
Jax shrugged slightly.
"And it’s not stopping there."
Her eyes narrowed.
"What do you mean?"
Jax smirked again.
"Soon..."
"I’ll be a full demon."
The Faerie Queen leaned back slowly, her wings shifting faintly behind her. Her gaze remained locked on him.
"...Do you fear that?" she asked softly.
Jax didn’t hesitate, "No, I live with them now and they’re my family, it’s only natural I’ll become them,"