Jacob is a photographer and artist. One day, as he is walking through the woods, he catches a glimpse of a fairy, a tiny, flying human-shaped creature. He knows no one will believe him, not even his lover Robert, so the following day Jacob ventures back into the woods whereupon he discovers more than he bargains for. An old oak lying across the rushing waters of a small river is the gateway to another world. Fairy Land is a place of wonders where he meets Kellen, a fairy soldier, Faena, a vain beauty, and King Utrin. Jacob is eager to return home to Robert, but the fairy king gives Jacob a task he must complete before they will show him the way back. He must break the energy barrier between Fairy Land and the Demon Realm for the fairy soldiers to pass through. In the realm of the Demons, Jacob meets Xavier, from whom he discovers what the fairies have been hiding from him -- time passes differently in these realms than on earth. Devastated, far away in both time and distance from his home and beloved Robert, what is the twist that returns the smile to Jacob’s face? The surprise that brings the joy back to his now miserable existence?

Changelings

“One power we possess is telepathy. All sentient beings have the ability. Higher order animals have an especially developed ability,” Prince Arrok explained. “Another we have is what you call clairvoyance. By touching something…”


“…we are able to see things. Things that are otherwise hidden to us.”


They came to a staircase and Prince Arrok removed his arm from Jacob’s shoulders. All three of them, shoulder to shoulder, began climbing the stairs.


“When two or more beings gifted with these abilities work together, the things they are able to see are much clearer. In fact, there’s no difference between what they can see in here…” He pointed to the centre of his forehead. “…and what they can see with these.” He pointed to his eyes. “But some individuals are gifted with sight equal to that of two or more beings, and Xavier is one so blessed.”


Chapter 23