Page 36 of Court of Aether and Shadows

Frustration that I was enduring all these odd changes but couldn’t put a finger on why this was all suddenly happening.

All of it felt suffocating to take in, and it took me a moment to realize that I was running again, my feet pounding against the leaf-strewn trail.

But something was different.

The world around me was a blur of color and motion, trees whipping past at a speed that shouldn't have been possible. My legs moved with inhuman swiftness, eating up the ground with grace and power I had never known.

A wild exhilaration filled me, not unlike the joy I had felt in my vision.

The wind rushed past my face, carrying with it a symphony of scents – loam and leaf mold, the musk of animals, the sharp tang of distant snow. I could hear everything – the rustle of leaves, the scurrying of small creatures, the distant cry of a hawk riding the thermals high above.

I ran faster and faster, reveling in this newfound strength and speed. The forest fell away behind me as the trail climbed higher into the mountains. Soon I was above the treeline, racing across alpine meadows where late-blooming wildflowers nodded in the wind.

The air grew thinner, but my breathing remained steady.

My muscles burned, but it was a pleasant ache, a reminder of the power flowing through my body. I felt as if I could run forever, could race the wind itself to the very top of the world.

It wasn't until I crested a final rise that I realized the danger I was in.

What the?—

The trail ended abruptly at the edge of a cliff, a sheer drop of at least thirty feet to the jagged rocks below. I was moving toofast, and had too much momentum, there was no way I could stop myself from the inevitable.

My mind screamed at me to stop, but my body couldn't respond quickly enough.

A cry of terror tore from my throat as I felt myself starting to pitch forward over the edge. Time seemed to slow, each heartbeat an eternity as I teetered on the brink of disaster.

I caught a fleeting glimpse of the valley far below, painted in autumn splendor that now seemed a cruel mockery of the death that awaited me.

Just as I felt myself start to fall, a strong arm wrapped around my waist, stopping my abrupt descent and yanking me back from the precipice.

The sudden stop knocked the wind out of me, and I gasped for air as I was pulled against a solid chest.

For a moment, I hung there, my feet dangling over empty space. My heart pounded so hard I thought it might burst from my chest. Slowly, carefully, my rescuer pulled me back onto solid ground, despite my dead weight which must have made me weigh double.

They spun me around, and I looked up, expecting to see a stranger — perhaps another hiker who had been on the trail behind me.

Instead, I found myself staring into the familiar face of Liam, his blue eyes wide with a mixture of concern and relief.

"Jesus Christ, Sparrow!" he breathed, his arms still tight around me. "What the hell were you thinking? You nearly ran right off the fucking cliff!"

Liam? W-W-What is he doing here? How did he know I was here in this forest? Actually…he was sleeping when I left, wasn’t he? Or was he talking with Vincent about morning rounds and last night's madness on the streets?

I opened my mouth to respond, but no words came out.

My mind was reeling, trying to process everything that had just happened.

The childhood memory, the impossible speed at which I had been running, the near-fatal fall... it was all too much.

As the adrenaline began to fade, I became acutely aware of my body. My feet, which should have been protected by my running shoes, were bare and bleeding.

My clothes were torn in several places as if I had run through thorny underbrush at high speed. And the markings I had seen in my vision –delicate, swirling patterns– were faintly visible on my skin, already fading like the last remnants of a dream.

By the time Liam followed my gaze to acknowledge my dismantled appearance, the vivid markings on my flesh were long gone. All that’s left is scratches, bruising, and various patches of color distortion.

"I... I don't know," I finally managed to say, my voice shaky. "I was just running, and then... everything's a blur."

Okay. That sounded absurd. Even for me.

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