They were high above the forest clearing where they’d stood a moment earlier, and the treetops were falling away rapidly beneath them. He heard the rush of wind, though he was not sure how, s ince he was not aware of having ears. Nor was he sure how he could see, with no eyes to squint against the swirling wind.
It was still dark, and yet, below him, he could clearly make out the elves moving through the forest, appearing and disappearing once again as they ran through the open spaces between the trees and then were once again obscured from view by the forest canopy. At first, he thought there were more of them than the dozen or so he had first seen, but then he realized he was seeing the same ones, only they were moving with astonishing speed. He could not believe how quickly they were darting through the trees. It was, indeed, true what they said about elves’
being able to run like deer. If he were on the ground with them, even if he were fully rested, he knew he could never have hoped to keep pace.
No human could ever run that fast.
His perceptions had changed completely. They were high above the forest now, and yet he could see perfectly, despite the darkness. In fact, he realized, he wasn’t really seeing, because his human eyes did not possess the night vision of the elves. Moreover, he could see all around him without moving his head. Indeed, he had no head to move.
His physical body had melted away somehow, vaporized like the morning dew, and what he was perceiving was registering not upon his senses, but directly upon his awareness.
The only time he had ever felt anything like it was on those occasions when he was asleep and dreamed he had somehow left his body and was hovering above it, looking down and seeing himself lying there in bed.
He did not know why he had such dreams and was grateful they did not come more often, for they were profoundly unsettling. They always seemed so real, it was as if he could actually feel himself floating in midair, just below the ceiling, and there was always that strange, alarming, vertiginous sensation of his body falling away from him.
The feeling he had now was very similar, only this time, it persisted and there was no ceiling to stop him. They kept rising higher and higher, and now he had no sense of spinning, just an eerie sensation of floating, of feeling completely weightless and free, like a bird soaring high above the forest. At that moment, it suddenly occurred to him that maybe he had died, and the realization struck with absolute terror, the more so because he felt completely helpless, unable to do anything about it. Panic gripped him as he thought of himself rising forever, never to return to earth.
Have no fear, Gylvain’s voice came from somewhere very close. You are not dead. You have merely been transmogrified by magic. You have become one with the air currents upon which we soar. There is no reasonfor alarm. We are the wind, and here in the skies, we are in our element. t It’s wonderful! Michael’s excited voice came to him as if he were shouting gleefully right into his ear, except it didn’t feel as if he actually heard him, more as if Michael were a part of him, within him somehow. It’s fantastic! Oh, Aedan, look! We’re flying, just like birds! We’reflying!
Have no fear? thought Aedan. How was it possible that Michael could not be afraid? Was it just his youth, or was the emotion of fear something he completely lacked? Despite Gylvain’s reassurances, it seemed they’d died and their souls were rising up into the heavens! It was the most frightening experience Aedan had ever known, and yet to Michael, it was a joyous thing, a new adventure, and Aedan felt his wild exhilaration. Felt it! It was only then that Aedan realized he was not actually hearing their voices; he was somehow privy to their thoughts, as they were aware to his. Transformed into the wind, they were all one, together, mingled with each other in the swirling air currents that swept above the forest.
Yes, we are all one, Gylvain replied to his unvoiced thoughts, one with the wind. One with the power Of nature. This is the true kingdom, one that is not subject to
the rule of emperors or princes. It is the kingdom we are all a part of… the kingdom of the elementalforces that shape the world and shape us all.
They swept over the treetops with a speed unlike anything Aedan had ever imagined. But how? he thought. How is this possible?
Magic, Gylvain’s thoughts replied. Magic makes all things possible to those who apprehend the possibilities.
But did you not say that once a spell was used, it was forgotten?
Michael asked.
That is so, Gylvain replied. But there are no fewer than a score of different spells for windwalking, and I devote myself to constant study of my arts. I am forever learning spells and losing them and learning them again.
That is the way of magic, as indeed it is the way of all things in the world. To pursue the ways of knowledge is to forever be a student,
