It was a sunny day; to better describe that particular day, it was absolutely perfect. Yes, it was sunny, accompanied by a gentle breeze. A little boy of ten and his sister, two years younger, are playing through their own personal kingdom in the forest behind their cozy cottage. This is the place of mischievous fairies, helpful gnomes, wise spirits, and that which lies in the dark.

"Count to ten, Elias," Elyn said, gleefully running away. 
As stated before, the day the awakening happened was a harmonious and beautiful day. Two siblings’ cheerful laughter can be heard through the woods.

Then it happened: the sounds of nature suddenly disappeared.

There was nothing but complete silence, which could be fine in any other circumstance, but in a forest, silence doesn’t seem right. It has this sort of strange, eerie feeling, like one is being followed. Simply put, the unknown is the predator, and we, with our moral limitations, are the prey.

"Elias, where are you?" Elyn cried, her voice alone and scared, breaking through the silence.

"Elias, please come find me." She cried again.

Suddenly a small, bright orb appeared, accompanied by a man dressed in beautiful robes similar to those the royals might wear; he also donned a white owl mask that looked familiar.

"Good day, Lady Elyn; I am the tollkeeper at your service." The figure introduced himself, giving the girl a bow. 
"My brother, have you..." Elyn bawled, fearing the worst. Getting up from his fanciful now, the tollkeeper pointed to the orb. "Why, Lady Elyn, he’s right beside me."

It’s been nearly ten years since Elias disappearance, and even now Elyn has the same dream: the forest, her and Elias playing in their daily game of hide and seek. The forest that day was much louder than normal, and Elyn herself found a very good hiding spot. It was abandoned gnome tunnels; Elias wouldn’t be able to fit, but Elyn discovered the old homes to be quite snug and warm. Seconds turned into moments as Elyn waited eagerly for her brother to give up and make her the best hide-and-seeker. Except the game never ended.

"Elias," she whispers quietly, closing her eyes to block the flood of tears that were threatening to leak out.

"Haaavve you found everything to your liking?" The librarian was just as jittery as ever.

"Why yes, I especially adored the map of Adamas," replied the tollkeeper with a subtle hint of a smile in his voice.

"Oh, that’s one of my favorites," said the librarian handing him a book. The Toll Keeper grabbed the book with great curiosity. It was slightly tattered, the pages seemed like they were well loved, and overall, the book seemed normal.

"It's... the Journal of K...iiinng El...Zra..." the Librarian smiled nervously.

It was moments like this where she enjoyed her job, hoping to connect the right book with that special someone. You could say she had a special sense for these things.

"Well, thank you, my fair lady." He answered, "This is what humans say right when receiving a gift or something; it's the polite thing to say." At least that’s what Elyn taught him.

With a simple friendly wave, the tollkeeper left the library,book clutched in hand, as he summoned a small portal with his right hand.

"Ahhh, a truly wonderful spell." Toll Keeper said while putting the book inside.

"Now let’s see what Elyn is up to too."

The tears running down her face were the main reason why it’s been ten years since Elyn had a proper amount of sleep. The process always started the same: Elyn would close her eyes. Her younger version was there the last time she was truly happy. Elias and her were the hide-and-seek champions, and Elyn adored everything about Elias. The way he would explain the ways of the world,showing little Elly the different kingdoms and landscapes, and the ocean, which was the main attraction she and Elias always wanted to travel to, Yes, Elias was Elyn’s most treasured person. Sleeping didn’t rejuvenate Elyn , not like most people, and the only thing it brought was a lot of questions.