Learning To Fly Without Wings Read online

asked, her eyes never leaving the large bird.

  “No, young one, she is an eagle and always has been.” The elder bull replied, chuckling softly.

  “Then how will she teach me to fly, Elder Swiftclaw?” Taiyra asked, finally turning to look back at him. “I won't understand anything she says.”

  Hm, perhaps you do not understand the old ways as much as you have led me to believe.” The elder chided. “Do you really think that speaking is the only way to communicate? Did Adahapi and the mother manicora speak the same tongue? Did it stop them from communicating?”

  “Oh.” Taiyra whispered the single word, bowing her head shamefully. “I'm sorry, Elder Swiftclaw. My excitement got the better of me and I dd not think my question through before asking.”

  “Then you have learned another important lesson, young one. Never allow your emotions to rule your head. They will lead you to make bad decisions.” The bull lectured her with the patience of an old teacher. “Now I suggest you go over and make Blackwing's acquaintance. I'm sure you'll learn how to speak to each other soon enough.”

  Taiyra rose to her feet and approached the large bird with head submissively bowed. “Hello... again... Elder Blackwing.” She said shyly, her voice soft. “I've never been this close to such a large bird before.”

  “Birds are not native to our world.” Came the elder's voice behind her. “Did you know that? They were brought here with the humans. Some as pets, some as food, and others found their way in by accident as wild animals occasionally do. Because they are not from our world, you will find the bird's form to be the hardest to master. If you can overcome this challenge, however, you will be able to master any form you wish.”

  “I understand, Elder Swiftclaw.” Taiyra replied absently, all of her attention focused on the indifferent eagle. Her heart pounded thunderously in her chest and she could only seem to pull air into her lungs by short, shallow breaths. Her tufted tail whipped back and forth excitedly, batting her ankles, and her large ears folded back shyly. “She's so beautiful.”

  As if understanding the compliment and accepting it as her due, Blackwing gave a click of her beak and stretched out her vast wings, the feathers separating as they fluffed out, then collapsed back together again as the wings were closed and the eagle gave her head a small shake.

  Taiyra's eyes widened further as she watched, her mind racing as she imagined herself as an eagle, golden wings spread to the breeze and sharp eyes watching the ground race below her. The flapping of imagined wings carried her farther into the wilderness of her imagination until Blackwing let out a loud screech, shattering the tarin's daydream and making her raise her hands reflexively to cover her ears. The soft chuckle of the elder behind her added to Taiyra's embarrassment at being caught dreaming.

  “Sorry.” She said, ducking her head again before turning to face the elder again. “I feel like I should be offering her something first. Some kind of gift or treat. That's how you usually befriend an animal.” Elder Swiftclaw gave only a noncommittal grunt, his eyes half-lidded as he watched his pupil. “What does she like?”

  “What do you think an eagle likes?” He asked her in return.

  Taiyra turned back to the large bird, pondering the question. “Well, I imagine she eats meat and fish, but... I don't have any of either. Elder Swiftclaw, do you know where I could find her a treat?” The elder nodded, his lips twitching in a smile, and silently pointed to a small leather sack just behind the stand.

  Taiyra was careful not to bump the eagle while she reached for it, finding within several strips of dried kordox meat and a few small dried fish. The young doe picked up one of the strips of red meat and carefully held it up toward the great bird.

  Blackwing turned her head, her sharp eyes focusing on Taiyra for the first time, scrutinizing her before turning her gaze to the offering. The eagle's head tilted as she inspected the meat for several long seconds before reaching out with one large, grasping claw. The eagle's curved talons were almost as long as the doe's own fingers, although only half as thick. They clutched the strip of dried meat tightly as Blackwing returned her leg to her perch, standing firmly on the strip while her beak tore tore it into smaller, more easily swallowed chunks.

  “That was very good, lotha degahr. You have been taught well.” The elder said. “It usually takes a few snips of the beak before most younglings think to offer a treat to get into Blackwing's good graces. I think when your training is complete you will make a fine druid.”

  “Thank you, Elder Swiftclaw.” Taiyra replied softly. Only the rapid twitch of her tail betrayed the emotions that boiled frantically just below the surface at the compliment.

  After being fed three more strips of meat and one of the fish, Blackwing proved to be a patient mentor. The elder druid came to stand beside Taiyra, answering her various questions. With gentle, probing fingers, Taiyra felt for the muscle beneath the feathers, stretched out the eagle's wings to study their span and joints, even had the large bird open her mouth so Taiyra could see her tongue and throat. For three full days, Taiyra studied the eagle, stopping only when exhaustion drove her or the elder to a break. By the end of her third day, the young doe felt that she was ready to change.

  “Don't worry, Taiyra, there is no danger for you here.” The elder bull encouraged. Blackwing sat perched on his shoulder, watching the young doe curiously. “Just picture yourself in your mind as a bird and concentrate on that image. Believe in it. Feel your new form until it becomes you.”

  The young doe's ears flicked nervously, but she nodded and offered no protest to the elder's instructions. She took in a deep breath before closing her eyes, bringing up her day-dreamed image of herself as a golden eagle, soaring through a cloudless sky. In her mind, her feathers rippled as the winds blew through them. Great wings flexed and folded. Talons stretched and clenched. Her emitted cry was a proud announcement as it echoed through the empty air. She was soaring.

  When Taiyra again opened her eyes, night had fallen and the tent was mostly dark, gently lit by a single candle of rendered kordox fat. “That was wonderful for a first try.” The elder said once he noticed that she had come awake. “I could tell just by watching you move that your vision felt real to you. And that is very good.” He smiled at her and nodded toward his bed roll. “These old bones of mine need to rest now, but we will continue our lesson tomorrow.”

  “I understand, Elder Swiftclaw. Thank you.” Taiyra said softly as she rose and went to her small pile of folded clothing. The heavy cloak would protect her from the night's chill, but its added weight made her feel heavy, and she was tempted to discard them again. She longed to soar through the skies like she did in her imagination. “May you find only peace in your dreams, Elder!” She said over her shoulder before darting out of the tent and heading for her own dwelling, shared with her grandmother and two other elders.

  As the young doe ran, she spread out her arms, imagining them to be covered in feathers, ready to lift her into the air with a single flap. She pretended to soar low across the ground, occasionally giving her arms a flap to keep herself aloft. But as she opened her mouth to let out her cry, a mangled honk came out instead, nearly making her pitch herself to the ground as she was jerked back from her imaginary world.

  Several heads began to poke out of doorway flaps, looking around and questioning the source of the odd noise that had roused them from sleep. Taiyra felt like a milk calf as she bowed her head in embarrassment, scurrying quickly to her grandmother's tent and dashing under her blanket without even removing her winter coverings. As she drifted into sleep, she hoped no one had spotted her and connected her to the disturbance.

  The young doe's dreams were filled with more flying and she hurried to the elder's tent as soon as she had finished her breakfast, her eagerness brimming over. The elder was still laying in his bedroll when she arrived, so Taiyra settled down on one of the pillows to wait, closing her eyes to imagine herself as an eagle as she had before.

  “Impressive.” The voice
broke Taiyra's concentration, making her snap her eyes open. The world looked strange for a moment, but then a blink brought everything back into focus before she could identify what was wrong. Feeling a slight tingling in her arms, she looked down to see several feather-like protrusions melt away into her fur. “You've almost got it, young one. You just need to strengthen your will.”

  The young doe looked up at the elder, who was sitting up in his bedroll. Her eyes were wide with excitement and a bright smile was tugging at her lips. “I-I was doing it, Elder Swiftclaw! I was doing it! I was turning into a bird!”

  “Indeed you were.” He agreed, reaching for his walking stick before being able to rise slowly from his bed. “You are a very fast learner, and this is good. Lamora was also a fast learner.” The elder stretched himself before walking over to his pupil.

  “You mean my grandmother?” Taiyra asked in awe, trying to imagine the now-elder as a young apprentice like herself.

  “Indeed I do.” The old bull confirmed. “She was also student to Blackwing and myself. And just as eager to learn. You remind me a lot of her, little one. I feel shame only that I never had the chance to meet your mother.”

  Taiyra's smile began to fade and some of the light began to fade from