Chapter 24: The Realm Time Buried
The king, seated upon his throne of living crystal, rose the moment Okachu entered the great hall.
It was not custom for an elven king to stand for anyone—not even high elders or war commanders—but Okachu was different. She was not merely a citizen of the Elf Realm. She was its keeper of time, a guardian entrusted with magic so ancient that even the elders spoke of it in whispers.
"Okachu," the king said warmly, descending the steps to meet her. "Your presence honors this hall."
Okachu bowed respectfully, placing a hand over her heart. "You called for me, my king."
"Yes," he replied, his expression grave. "A visitor has arrived from another realm. A young man… broken by loss. He seeks your aid."
Okachu hesitated.
Visitors from other realms were rare. Dangerous, even. The laws of balance discouraged interference—especially where time magic was concerned. But the Elf Realm was built on compassion, not fear.
"What does he seek?" she asked.
"He claims his land has been ravaged by war," the king said. "That countless lives have been lost. He believes your gift may help him recover what was taken."
Okachu felt a familiar ache in her chest. She had seen too many timelines fracture under the weight of violence. Too many futures die before they could bloom.
"If there is even a chance I can help," she said softly, "then I must."
The king nodded. "That is why I trust you."
And so, trusting in the goodness of others—just as elves were taught from birth to do—Okachu agreed to meet the man.
She did not know his name yet.
She did not know his true face.
She did not know that this decision would erase her world.
---
The chamber where the man waited lay far beyond the borders of the Elf Realm, hidden within a neutral fold between dimensions. Okachu arrived alone, stepping through a veil of shimmering light that rippled like disturbed water.
The man sat calmly at the center of the chamber, hands folded neatly in his lap.
He looked… ordinary.
Dark hair. Pale skin. Eyes that seemed tired—haunted, even. When he saw her, he stood and bowed deeply.
"My lady," he said. "Thank you for coming."
"You asked for my help," Okachu replied, studying him carefully. "Tell me what has happened."
He sighed, the sound heavy with sorrow.
"My world has been torn apart by war," he said. "Families erased. Cities reduced to ash. I survived—but my soul did not."
Okachu felt the tremor in his voice. The pain seemed real.
"I have heard of your power," he continued. "They say you can touch the past… recover what time has stolen. I only wish to save those I could not protect."
She remained silent for a moment, weighing his words.
Time magic was not resurrection. It was not meant to undo consequences—but it could preserve fragments. Moments. Echoes.
"What you ask is dangerous," she said at last. "And costly."
"I am willing to pay any price," the man replied immediately.
That should have been her first warning.
But she saw only a broken soul pleading for hope.
"I will help where I can," Okachu said.
The man's lips curved—just slightly.
"Thank you," he said.
That was the first time Dehaska smiled at her.
---
Days later, Okachu traveled to his village.
It was nothing like he had described.
The land was not ruined by war—it was twisted. The earth itself seemed scarred, as though reality had been wounded. Structures stood half-formed, frozen in moments of collapse. Shadows clung unnaturally to the ground.
Time here felt wrong.
"This place…" Okachu murmured. "What truly happened here?"
The man walked beside her, gaze fixed forward. "A war," he repeated. "One that cost me everything."
Only later did she learn the truth.
The "war" he spoke of was not between kingdoms.
It was between himself and the elves.
Still unaware of his true nature, Okachu returned to her realm and convinced the council to send aid. An army—not for conquest, but for protection. For peacekeeping.
She believed she was preventing further destruction.
Instead, she delivered her people to their executioner.
Dehaska welcomed the elven forces with open arms.
At first.
Then his demands began.
"I need more," he told her one night, standing amid the ruins of his village. "Your magic alone is not enough. I need all of it."
Okachu turned sharply. "That is impossible. Time magic is not something that can be given. It is bound to—"
"To you," Dehaska interrupted, his voice suddenly cold. "Which is why you must surrender it."
She stepped back. "No. I will not."
The air around him shifted.
Darkness bled from his shadow, stretching unnaturally across the ground. His form twisted—bones cracking, flesh reforming. The illusion shattered.
Dehaska stood before her at last.
"No?" he repeated, amused. "Then you leave me no choice."
The sky screamed.
By the time Okachu realized her mistake, it was already too late.
The Elf Realm burned.
Dehaska tore through it like a storm given will—cities falling, forests collapsing into dust. The army she had brought was annihilated in moments.
She ran.
She ran until her legs failed, until her magic screamed within her veins.
And when she turned back—
Her brother stood alone against the darkness.
"Go!" he shouted, lightning dancing across his blade. "I'll hold him!"
"No!" Okachu screamed.
She felt the moment he died.
Time froze.
Her scream tore through eternity.
Consumed by grief and rage, Okachu did the unthinkable.
She reached deeper into time than any elf ever had.
She folded it.
The remaining fragments of the Elf Realm—its survivors, its lands, its memories—were pulled inward, sealed within a temporal cocoon beyond past and future.
Hidden.
Preserved.
Trapped.
And Okachu was left behind.
---
The memory faded, leaving only the echo of loss.
"So that's what happened," Okachu said quietly, her voice steady despite the storm behind her eyes. "You see, when the dragon called… I needed to be sure I could trust you."
She descended slowly from the air, landing with one foot pressed firmly against Lee Kung's shoulder.
The weight was immense.
Not physical—but spiritual. Timelines pressed against his consciousness. He saw flashes of futures that never came to pass. Worlds frozen mid-breath.
Lee Kung gritted his teeth but did not kneel.
"I won't fail," he said.
Okachu studied him carefully.
"Good," she replied. "Because failure is not an option."
She lifted her foot, releasing him.
"But understand this," she continued,. "Dehaska does not merely destroy worlds. He corrupts purpose. He turns love into obsession… sacrifice into hunger."
Her gaze hardened.
"And your brother is walking that path."
Lee Kung's fists clenched. "Then I'll bring him back."
Okachu's eyes softened—just slightly_toggle.
"If revenge is all you seek," she said, "you will lose him forever."
Silence followed.
Far away, unseen, Dehaska watched.
And smiled.
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