Page 68 of To Ashes and Dust
“Was it that bad?” he asked, pulling himself to my side.
“Just… too real. I don’t want to risk going back into it.”
I couldn’t tell him about Eris. She’d nearly destroyed Salwa’s mind. I didn’t want to think what might happen if I told Damien about her. Was she always there, lurking in the depths of my mind, watching? Even now, was she listening in on our conversation?
“You think you can stomach breakfast?” Damien’s question pulled me from my contemplation.
I shook my head, stomach churning already at the thought of food. “No food, please.”
“Why don’t you go take a good hot shower? It should help.”
“That sounds like a good idea.”
I pushed off the bed, grabbing onto the frame to steady myself. The headache worsened, and I winced.
“I’m going to call off training with Zephyr this afternoon,” he said as he stood from the bed, heading to grab his phone.
I turned my head to him. “No.”
He glanced back at me, hesitation and worry painting his face.
I needed to do more than sit in the house all day. Training would be a welcome distraction. It might get my mind off Eris and whatever plans she might be orchestrating. “I’ll be fine. I just need a shower. I’ll be ready by then.”
“Are you sure? It’s ok,mea luna. It’s just one day.”
I forced a smile. “I’ll be fine. I’m tough.”
I stood at the base of the mountain at The Outpost, the melting snow squelching under my feet. Zephyr’s iridescent black feathers shimmered in the morning sun as he stood on a nearby low branch, observing. I ignored my exhaustion. I didn’t know how late it had been before sleep finally claimed me, and I’d barely made it to our daily training on time.
I’d managed to successfully fly in my owl form and land without crashing a few times, which had given me a boost of confidence. My mind had been swirling with questions and possibilities about Eris all morning, and there were times when Zephyr had caught me in a distracted daze, had even teased me when he needed to repeat himself.
Zephyr leapt off the branch, his ebony wings sweeping out as he glided toward me, landing in the nearby grass. Black smoke enveloped him as he shifted back into his immortal form. “You gonna try the partial shift this time?”
I nodded. “Let me know if you see anything,” I said as I pulled my black top over my head. The icy winter air chilled my skin. I’d worn a tank top under my training attire in preparation for this. I didn’t want to risk tearing my clothes or injuring myself if I managed to form wings, regardless of how small they might be.
Zephyr moved to stand at my back. “All right, ready when you are.”
I took a deep breath and closed my eyes. I focused on my shoulder blades, imagining wings stretching out from there instead of my arms. We sat in silence for so long, I was about to give up when a strange tingling sensation crept up my spine. It built, spreading out across the muscles in my shoulders. Zephyr sucked in air.
“Whatever you’re doing, keep doing it,” he breathed.
I did, focusing and imagining bone, tendon, muscle, feathers... I winced as my muscles protested but pushed through it, feeling a weight settle at my back.
“You’re doing it, Cas,” Zephyr said, his voice a low whisper of disbelief.
I gasped, air rushing into my lungs in short pants when I realized I’d stopped breathing in my strain. I leaned forward to brace myself against my knees, unable to continue.
“Gods, it’s amazing,” Zephyr said, and I glanced over my shoulder.
They were huge, fully feathered in a mix of tawny and white like my owl form. I tried to focus on moving muscle and bone, discovering which signals to send to flex and extend them, shifting my shoulder blades in hopes of somehow controlling them. One wing extended while the other folded, and I would have fallen over if it weren’t for Zephyr catching me.
“How do you feel?” Zephyr asked as he stepped around to face me, arms extended in an offer of support.
“A bit tired,” I admitted.
“The fact you can even do it is amazing,” he said as his eyes rose to my wings again.
“No one’s done this before?”
