What If This Storm Ends?

What If This Storm Ends

The afternoon was stuffy, enclosed. Arthur felt deeply restless, laying on the grass in an odd mix of sleepiness and energised. Clouds rolled over the sun, making it bright and dim and bright again, as if Sol shared the restless mood.

But the strange ideas of the sun being alive and watching was for the locals, Arthur thought it was silly. Everyone knew the sun was just a ball of gas. Basic school stuff.

Arthur didn't go to school anymore.

Peeking eyes open, the boy braved to stare into the sky, clouds by chance blocking the sun, the heavens a deep swimming colour only describable as "sky green". He could never get used to it. It had been four years since he fled his homeworld like so many other Changed. His entire simple life overturned in a few short weeks. Normal, boring, human, going to primary school.

Then he awoke as a monster. A cool monster, he always thought, dark and small, sharp eyes that saw impossible distances, a beak that was surprisingly gentle and blunt, sweet talons for hands, capable legs of fur and claws. A long, thin, lithe tail with a puff of black smoke fur on the end.

And best of all, wings. Wings that gave him flight, after a lot of practice and broken bones.

He was sated with this. His family was not. The faith kept by them for thousands of years did not accept this change, and he was nearly killed by his very own parents.

And so he fled. When the portals started opening, he immediately knew that everything would make sense, and after a few years of being mostly alone, he found a pack.

They were all winged, like him, but not human-born. They were children of this world, his new home, solfolk. But they accepted him. He had a shard, presumably an ace of some kind. Terran or not, Arthur shared the same questions and follies and challenges as them, and so he was one of them.

Buckling, Arthur suddenly vomited, doubled over in a sprawl on the grass, coughing. His alien friends gathered around, curious and laughing and repulsed, but close and caring.

Arthurs head started to spin, the sky moved, slowly sailing and then jolting back into place and sailing again. The earth rolled under him, the water..

There was so much water. Hanging overhead, so heavy, so much. Oceans of water. And power, charged and roiling and snapping, writhing, yearning to explode and expand and drive. So many moving things, gathered and huddled and moving as one immense set of rivers set into each other.

Immense, impossibly large, dangerous, enclosing, drowning, drowning, burying.

Muffled, gentle rumbles came to him, faces, familiar, close, so far away, muted. Calling. Begging. Calling.

Screaming.

--

Adia fled to the scene as fast as the snip would carry her, the tiny one-person craft simple, safe, and wickedly quick. All of those years riding Dreff had paid off.

As she blew over a small forest, and around a low mountain, the light was very suddenly visible, the storm had been overhead for almost an hour, dark and rolling with violence.

One point on the ground was being struck with lightning, over and over, rapidly, a searing patch that stung her eyes.

Adia punched the accell on the craft, and dove right at the point, leaping from the vehicle, football-tackling the figure at the heart of the tiny maelstrom.

After countless flips and rolls, they both flopped.

The maelstrom was gone, but her fur started to stand on end with an immense buzz filling the very air, wind picking up into a torrent, rain dumping, chaos.

Adia clambered to the kits side, looking him over. He was a gryph, beautiful dark plumage, and golden eyes that stared into nothing, chest heaving unnaturally fast, panting in regular and rapid gasps.

"So much, there's so much water. So much air."

Lape sighed, and gathered her breath for the coming storm. Grasping his talon-hands firmly, tensing, the lightning crashed down like a bullet that cut through her form, scalp to toe.

Wriggling to concentrate through the healing process, she blinked, and gently slapped the gryphon-boy across the face.

The effect was near instant. Clouds dimmed, rolled, faded, bright green clearing directly overhead in a portal circle, like a pool of water set into the sky. The rain cut off like a shower stopped, wind halted like a fan stilled. Jarring and instantaneous silence, only the delicate drips of water off broken and bent trees.

And the panic pant-breathing of the little one. Adia stroked the poor kits cheeks, thumbing forehead, pushing her gift forward in a soft flow of hormones, easing down the breathing, staring into those eyes and guiding them to look at her, to see again.

Convulsing, he dry heaved, gurgling, and Adia helped him to his side, letting him cough and splutter and spasm.

Soon he was quiet, and Adia let the moment stretch as long as it had to, petting his head, and politely healing off the last of her injuries.

"What happened?" It was almost an hour of calm breathing and occasional twitches before kit managed to speak, and he had the same question every kit seemed to.

"You suffered your break, gryph," she replied.

He didn't try to move, relaxed and limp and very sore. "What's that?"

Adia perked, ears stock upward in surprise, her eyes swimming with the delicate blue her 'curse' bestowed in these occasions.

"You don't know?"

"N-no," he sobbed, shaking, and Adia hugged him, tightly, shushing, rocking, soothing the poor boy.

"It's okay.. you're okay. It's over now. All over." She didn't stop until he relaxed. "You did so well."

"But what did I do?"

"You earned your ace, gryph. Almost everyone must go through something like this, and when it's done, your ace begins to mature."

"I have my super power now?" asked the boy, fear melting into excitement. "What can I do?"

Despite herself Adia laughed. "Well we just don't know yet! But you seem to be an elemental of some sort, maybe of the Air."

He took a long time to think that over, and eventually smiled. "Cool." He suddenly froze. "My friends.. my pack.. "

"Are okay, they are fine! You did hurt them, little gryph, but it's alright."

Those golden eyes searched hers, and she smiled, grasping his triangle ears at the base, tugging softly. "An acetic break."

He could only nod, as she continued. "Your gift surges into you, from you. It's always messy, and often dangerous. Help is always near to a pack, gryph."

Hugging her, he shivered, and she pet his wings.

"Arthur. My name's Arthur."

Adia smooched him on the forehead. "Well met, Elem Arthur. Well met."

Arthur stared at his shard, Adia peering at it with him, no more the plain circle, now a jagged bolt. Lightning.

"Cool."