Underestimated Affinities

by Matthew Scarcella

  I can’t create a bubble on the ground itself. I think for a second and then move the handle back up and quickly form a bubble around it. I attach it to mine and grab onto the handle with my right arm. Next, I increase the overall size of my bubble, as I need more room to be able to do what I have in mind.

  When the bubble’s increased to what I reckon is my maximum limit, I extend my wings and flap them a number of times. Good — the pressure in my environment hasn’t changed. I focus on the handle and pull up with all my strength, utilizing my wings to elevate me even further into the air.

  It works and the door flies open, creating a slight disturbance in the pressure nearby. Some water begins to seep into my bubble, but I take care of it. After a moment of stagnation, I presume it is safe enough for me to descend into the darkness.

  I lost my grip on the light control I had when I opened the door, so I have to take some time to play around with the properties again. The visibility is even worse down here, but I can still see just past the bubble. I have to float around a bit to cover the area down here, but the only thing of interest I can see is a metal box on the ground. The star wreath is stamped on top. I feel that same earlier tingling sensation in my wings again.

  There must be something important inside. I just know it. I try to open it using all of the tricks that worked and didn’t work earlier, but to no avail. There’s no water inside it either, at least, none I can sense, so I can’t toy with that. I create a bubble and try to move the lid with my hands, but it’s too heavy. I look at the lid and there’s nowhere to grasp, so I can’t use the same technique that got the door open. This must have been sealed shut by a metal wielder. I wish my other sister, Aislynn, was here to assist me with her metal affinity. I try to pick up the entire thing to carry it back with me, but it doesn’t budge at all. I suppose I’ll have to leave it, at least for now.

  I float back up to the ground floor and decide to leave the trap door open. I’m the only one that’s been down here in the past forty years, and if I come back, I don’t want to have to open it again. Well, not if. When I come back. I desperately want to open that box; I need to see what it contains.

  For now, however, I wander back outside and feel my wings pulling me toward the city center again. I try to ignore them, but it’s beginning to get painful. I’ll just take a quick peek. I float north into the city center, taking in the ruination, and that’s when I see it. My hand flies up to cover my mouth as I gasp, but no one is here to hear me.

  Inside one of the buildings is a pile of bones. I edge closer and my suspicions are confirmed. They are dead bodies — mounds of them. There’s nothing left of them but their skeletal bones and the joints connecting their wings to their backs. I mean, what’s remaining of their wings. This is so depressing… I don’t want to be here anymore. I need to leave. Right now.

  I turn around and float back out of the city, this time away from where I last spotted the doirenk. I slowly raise myself to the surface, and that’s when something catches my eye. The glimmer of a long, shiny metal object in the sky above me. I’d know that glimmer anywhere. It’s a javelin.

  Crap, I think.

  I force myself to float back down and out of sight. Directly above me, two guards fly across my path in opposite directions. I rapidly scan the sky above me and note there are at least six guards out now.

  This is not good.

  CHAPTER II

  REFLECTIONS

  They’re monitoring the perimeter, but thankfully they didn’t look down beneath the surface. But a thought occurs to me. Yes, I avoided being detected, but how do I escape from the Forbidden Lake? As soon as I surface, I’ll be spotted. I’m not safe.

  I don’t want to spend the rest of my life in prison! Think, Selvyn. I can figure this out. What would Safeyya do? Right, breathe.

  Okay, the guards are already out, so I don’t have to rush my escape. I can’t be sloppy or I’ll most certainly get caught. But what am I supposed to do? The only thing I’ve run into down here so far is the doirenk, and it already proved too heavy for me to move. There must be something else down here I can use to my advantage. Next, I must analyze my surroundings.

  I sink a bit more to avoid being spotted and do a quick circle around the lake. I see a few schools of fish, but those won’t help. I stop and calm myself a bit.

  My water wing tingles, so I focus on the portion of the lake surrounding me. A soft swishing feeling where my wing joint meets my back confirms that something swam behind me. I turn around to confirm my suspicions. A school of fish swims by me again. I’m glad that my grandmother taught me this skill as well. I never knew it would come in this useful.

  I touch the tip of my water wing to the edge of my atmosphere and slightly weaken the layer’s thickness there. I feel a new sensation at the lowermost portion of my wing as the cool lake water grazes my feathers. My body shakes as I am exposed to an entirely new array of vibrations; I can feel all the fish near me. But they’re not helping, so I need to tune them out and try to hone in on something else, anything else.

  I feel a heavy creature floating around, but it seems like it’s distant. I hear several loud whooshing sounds each time it moves. Maybe three or four kilometers away. That must be the doirenk, and I don’t want to go near that thing again.

  I sink a bit more and refocus my attention on anything lower in the lake. My wing tingles and I feel a swishing sensation; it seems like something with a big tail fin. It feels heavy as well, though not as large as the doirenk.

  The swishing gets louder and I feel like it is swimming directly toward me. I retract my wing and strengthen my bubble again, just as something bounds into me. I get knocked back a bit, but I’m still protected. The creature continues circling me. Of course, I’m looked upon as prey again. I can’t blame these creatures, as they don’t have Zicarna down here. They don’t know what we’re capable of.

  I float myself up a few meters at a time, and the creature follows, circling menacingly. The level of light is increasing and I can begin to make it out. Just a bit more and I’ll be able to discern what it is.

  Another twenty meters and I finally see the size of it. It is big and bright yellow with black spots, but the doirenk was much more threatening. We are fairly similar in size, with its body being as wide as my wings when they’re retracted, and it’s about as long as I am tall. It swims around and opens its mouth, displaying three rows of razor-sharp teeth. Its dorsal fin flaps back and forth, a show of superiority. It’s an oscilar for sure.

  I tap it a bit with my water affinity. It nudges over, then looks around, confused. There’s nothing else nearby, but it shakes the blow off and continues circling me, staring me down. This will most certainly work.

  Now to execute my plan. I float over to the perimeter of the lake and the oscilar follows me. Perfect. I wait until the guards overhead change positions, thus increasing my chances of escape.

  I create a small leak in my atmosphere and watch as a stream of water begins to trickle inside. I wave at the oscilar to keep its attention. While it circles me once more, I cover my entire body in a thin coat of water, leaving just enough space for me to breathe. I look up and now there’s only one guard above me, which is what I was waiting for. The oscilar circles in front of me and I tap into my affinity. I send out a quick push and it’s forced back about one hundred meters. That’s not enough! I muster all my strength and send out another push. It flies back another four hundred meters.

  The guard overhead looking in that direction calls to the others. “Hey, did you see that? There’s something moving over here! Is it a rogue?”

  Another guard yells, “Could be! We haven’t seen an attack by rogues in months!”

  A third calls out: “It’s just under the surface. Gather, now! Get ready!” He must be in charge.

  The guard above me flies over to the spot where I have kept the oscilar in place. Just as they all reach the spot, I send a huge current from a kilometer below the creature up, and it’s fo
rced out of the lake and into the sky. The guards poise for attack and I utilize the distraction to escape. I take a deep breath, let go of the concentration on my atmosphere, and stealthily rise above the surface.

  I’ve been underwater so long that the glare from the morning sky is too bright, and I can’t fly the normal direction home because of the guards. So, I alter the properties of the water coating me and create a reflection, hoping it won’t appear as if I am a Zicarnum. If I’ve done it correctly, anyway, it should just look very bright as the glare reflects off my body. I spread my wings and take off as sneakily as I can.

  I don’t dare look behind me, but I still hear the guards talking amongst themselves.

  “It’s just an oscilar.”

  “How did it get so close to the surface? I thought that they’re bottom dwellers,” another one says.

  “I don’t know, maybe something spooked it and it didn’t realize where it was going, disoriented from the light and all. Anyway, back to your stations.”

  I’m already a safe distance away, but I pull my legs up to my chest just as an added precaution. With all of my attentiveness to detail, and even if the reflection doesn’t work well, from the back I should hopefully look like a large but normal bird, flying away from the sunrise.

  My wings beat in tandem with the beat of my heart, and out of the corners of my eyes I can see their colors come in and out of focus. I am able to fly for fifteen minutes, putting ample distance between myself and the Forbidden Lake, before I get tired. I used up a lot of energy in the lake, but it is a nice surprise to realize I have this much power at my disposal. Still, I really should recuperate some of my strength for the remainder of my trip home; just in case I run into any trouble on the way.

  I spot a quaint little field overgrown with lavender and decide to take a nap.

  ***

  I wake up to the bountiful scent given off by wild lavender and roll around in the field, accumulating its fragrance on my wings. It will be a nice aroma to whiff on the trip home to my city of Belarin.

  While still relaxing on my back, I spot a few families of trenga approaching. These sweet little birds must be coming to feed on the lavender pollen, or perhaps on some of the insects crawling all over the plants. I observe some of the young ones flitting about from flower to flower, transferring as much sustenance as they can from each plant to power their tiny bodies until they can find their next meal.

  The adults take turns, some devouring insects, while others watch for predators. Then when the first batch have eaten enough, they switch. Smart little creatures. I watch as some of them puff out their tiny pink chests, probably either exerting authority or making a show for their friends. I’m not sure which, but it’s adorable.

  One of them catches my eye and they start chattering excitedly to each other. They approach warily, unsure as to whether I’m friend or foe. I smile at the nearest one, perched atop one of the lavender stalks a few meters away from me. I gently roll over, then spread my wings once I’m facedown in the field. There’s quicker chirping and the rest of them gather around my torso.

  One of them flies around and then hovers in front of my face. I raise my left wing and get a sense for the wind blowing around us. I tap into my affinity and playfully push a gust of wind into the trengan hovering above me. He’s knocked over and chirps angrily as he tries to right himself.

  He starts flying toward my face with determination, beak poised to peck me, but I send him soaring back a few meters. He chirps to his companions, and a few more of them circle around and linger in the air in front of me. I brace the ground with my hands and push myself into a kneeling position, then slowly stand to display my full height. The handful in front of me chirp briskly. They signal to the remainder of the trenga and they all fly off into the distance.

  Beautiful birds, truly. The pink on their chests is quite a lovely contrast to their striking black backs. I chuckle merrily; after what happened earlier, this is a nice change of pace. It’s also enlightening to see that not all of the species of creatures in this world are involved in wars, though these poor animals are usually not spared suffering in the aftermath of our battles.

  Thinking about the animals triggers some memories I have from when I was a child. I lounge back down in the field and let my memories carry me away.

  I’m running around in the garden playing with my brother Aethyr while Safeyya flies around our heads. She’s had much more practice flying than us, and we stop occasionally to gaze at her in awe. She calls on her affinity and toys with a few lightning bolts, sending some toward us to dodge. Laughing hysterically, Aethyr tosses a few fireballs at her. He takes her by surprise and it causes her to employ some evasive maneuvers she’s learned in training.

  She rockets up ten meters to escape the first one, and then she twirls around, drawing her wings toward her body to evade the second. Afterward, she does a few somersaults and then spirals into a dive bomb. Startled, Aethyr stops laughing and hops backward, then turns around to run away. “Safy, stop! I was just teasing!” he yells as she hones in on him. She begins cackling hysterically and that’s when I send a small gust of wind toward her. I’m not powerful enough to stop her, but she halts her advance and unfurls her wings, just as Aethyr pokes his head out from behind me.

  “Good. You’re getting better, Selv,” she says, “But next time you should try to slow me down with both elements. Learn to combine your affinities and you’ll be the strongest out of all of us.”

  I open my mouth to answer back, but just then Aislynn walks out into the garden, guided by our grandmother Remy’s hand on her shoulder. Aislynn has tears staining her pale cheeks, and she’s playing with the braid our mother fixed into her hair yesterday morning. Something is seriously wrong — Aislynn never cries. Safeyya lands gently and walks toward us, signaling us to move to the house.

  “Granny,” she starts, “What’s wrong? Why is Aislynn crying?” Grandma sits Aislynn down and motions us over toward them. Safeyya grabs our hands and tugs at first, a little too hard. “Is one of the boys at training picking on her again? Aislynn, just tell them that I’ll beat them up and they’ll stop.”

  Aislynn lifts her head and wipes the tears from her eyes. She shakes her head. “Safy,” she says sullenly, “It’s not one of the boys…” her voice trails off. Safeyya stops tugging us and we walk toward them. Aethyr and I lead her along slowly.

  Grandma Remy gestures toward the flowerbed where she had Aislynn wait. “Maybe the three of you should sit down with Aislynn,” she says.

  Aethyr and I plop ourselves down into the grass, looking up at Grandma expectantly. Aislynn takes our hands, and then Safeyya sits down. Aethyr and I grab Safeyya’s hands, and as soon as the four of us are connected, I feel a tingle in my left wing and a strong breeze blows through the garden and circulates around my wing. I suddenly don’t feel so well. “Granny?” I whine. “What happened? I think the wind is trying to tell me something bad. My left wing tingles and I feel funny.

  Grandma sits opposite us and smiles warily. Her first pair of wings expand and she uses the power in her light green wings to blow the wind away from my own. “Yes, my dear Selvyn, the wind is trying to tell you something. I’m afraid I have some bad news for you children.”

  Aethyr chimes in, “Is that why Aislynn is crying, Granny? What is the news? Why did you tell her first? That’s not fair.”

  She chides him quickly, “Aethyr, this is not the time to be grouchy.” Granny’s second set of wings expand and she taps into her secondary affinity, water, and then creates a small bubble in front of her. She breaks it into five smaller bubbles and keeps the largest of them suspended in front of her. She aims the remaining four at our hands, encircling each set of our grasped hands in one of the bubbles.

  She reaches into the bubble hovering before her and leisurely moves her hands back and forth. I can feel her hands caressing my right hand latched with Safeyya, and my left hand latched with Aislynn. I look up at my siblings and as we look a
t each other, we’re all aware we can feel her at the same time.

  “Well,” she croaks out, “I am not sure how to say this, but I received some dreadful news this morning. Regrettably, your mother and father did not survive the battle of Fjoring yesterday.”

  Tears spring into the corner of my eyes, and Aislynn starts wailing. I feel Grandma clasp her hands over mine and know that the others must feel her as well.

  “I’m so sorry,” she exclaims. “I know there’s no one that can replace your parents, but I’m going to be looking after you all from now on.”

  Aethyr shakes his head vehemently. “But Dad was supposed to teach me how to stop my wings from burning when I coat them in fire! He told me that they won’t teach me that until I’m much older.”

  One look from Aislynn shuts him up. “That’s really what you’re worried about, Aethyr? We’re never going to see them again, and that’s all you can think about?” As the eldest, she’s gotten used to scolding us, but even I can tell she’s merely using it as a defense mechanism.

  Safeyya notices this as well. “Aislynn, don’t take it out on him. He understands, it’s just… a lot to process,” she utters almost inaudibly as she uses her wing tip to wipe a tear from her eye. Grandma Remy moves her lips into the bubble and kisses us each on the hands, then stands and walks over to us. She takes Aislynn in a hug and gives her a kiss on each cheek, then repeats the process with Safeyya and Aethyr, leaving me for last.

  After she kisses me on both cheeks, she huddles the four of us into a circle and whispers, “You’re going to be alright. Your parents believed in you, and I know they still do.”

  I snap out of my reverie and look cautiously about me, but I perceive no danger in the immediate vicinity. I yawn briefly, taking in the position of the sun in the sky. I must have napped for a good forty-five minutes. I gaze into the clouds, willing them to tell me my future, or perhaps something more about my past, but they just continue to float on by aimlessly. They’re just clouds after all.