Desperately, she tried to cling on as her body broke into the forest. To the owl it was as if a human had appeared from nowhere. Its mind became confused, the urge to flee driving out all thought.
Easy, little one. She tried to comfort the creature but it was on its guard now and sensed that something was wrong: an alien presence lurked nearby but it couldn’t figure out where. Then it became frightened, giving out a series of angry hoots as it tried to regain control of its thoughts and drive her out.
Somehow Iwa managed to slip deeper into the owl’s mind. She could sense its fear, feel its frustration as it peered around for the enemy that must be near. Gently, she smothered the feeling. Calm yourself. Her thoughts stroked the creature as if it had been a kitten. Almost without a struggle the owl quieted, a soft warm feeling overcoming it as it closed its eyes and began to make a noise like a purr.
At least one of them was calm. All I need to do is relax, she thought, but then she caught sight of her own body pushing through the bracken. She felt the pull of it, stronger now, almost ready to rip her from the bird.
Another hoot: the bird was aware of her presence again. Deep feelings of unease settled over its mind, making it difficult to control. Deep within the creature’s consciousness a warning flashed and the bird’s brain lit up with fear. Iwa had to get away. Far below, her body was calling. Urgently she commanded the bird to fly. The wings moved stiffly at first as the claws loosened and, with a rush of air, the bird took to the sky. But it wasn’t easy: the owl’s mind was confused, drawn in all directions.
I’ve got to be careful, she realised. It wasn’t just about controlling the bird, either. She could almost sense the ripple of magic as she guided the bird’s wings. She knew nothing of the craft, but part of her realised that the spell might give her away. Would the sorceress come after her? They always did in the stories of the clan, and Miskyia might even want to kill her to stop her falling into the woyaks’ hands.
The owl was flying high as Iwa’s body followed dumbly across the forest. Best not to get too far ahead, she realised, or else I might lose my body altogether. Yet it was hard not to get carried away with the sensation of flight: the hot flap of wings and the whistle of the wind through her feathers as she spread her body and felt a current of air beat beneath her stomach. All the while the hunger grew like a canker in the creature’s brain, so that it took all of her concentration to keep the feeling at bay.
Once again those wonderful eyes picked up a rabbit nestled in the roots of a tree. A pang of hunger tugged at her and the wings shifted, ready to change course. A current of air ruffled across the feathers, ready to take the bird down in a single swoop. At the last moment, she managed to shift, the wings moving hesitantly as she pulled the bird away, the urge to hunt gathering as she forced it upwards.
For a moment she thought that her body might not have followed, but in the distance she felt its presence. Let’s hope that it doesn’t get caught up in the bracken!
Navigating through the forest wasn’t so easy: the owl’s eyes were far sharper than hers but Iwa lacked the ability to hone in on the salient details. Everything crowded in upon her all at once, a jumble of minutiae without form or reason. It wasn’t as if the bird’s eyes even refracted light in the same way. The field of vision was far wider and appeared to wrap round her head, making it difficult for her to comprehend what was going on. To make things worse, the owl’s hearing was different too. She was caught in a swirl of sounds. The night was alive with movement, the tiny scurry of rodents, the rustle of leaves and the distant currents of the air. Not even the hunters could have picked out such sounds.
Of course the owl was used to this, nothing, not even the tiny scatter of rodents escaped its notice, but Iwa had no way to filter out the unimportant details and ended up trying to take it all in at once. Sounds and visions flooded over her so quickly that she hadn’t a chance to grasp at them. Somewhere deep in its mind the owl sensed her confusion, her uncertainty adding to its own sense of alarm. It was all she could do to keep it calm. Luckily she was drawn thin, her consciousness scurrying through its mind, which helped her keep her presence hidden.
It took her more than half the night to become accustomed to the sights and sounds and she’d no idea how long it was before she managed to pick out a path. Yet there was no sign of the hidden place, her body just appeared to stumble onto the track. There was a faint shimmer, a tingle in her legs far below. She’d had the feeling that Miskyia was somehow searching for her, but now at least she was safe. Her magic can’t follow into the outside world, Iwa hoped and, as she stepped into the daylight, she had the sensation that the hidden place was already far behind, the scent of its magic dropping away as she began to make her way along the track, glorying in the familiar
