Freedom

I find myself falling down a mountain at incredible speed, growing faster and faster with each passing moment.

I recall that devilish grin that came from Mother before, not psychotic, but playful. Therefore it stands to reason she is not trying to kill me…probably. If so then she actually expects me to be able to fly.

I cycle through the various, strange knowledge that came to me after my transformation, sifting through countless words and meanings; finding which were present, and which I needed to recall.

Shock. Check.

Fear. Most certainly.

Speed. That is certainly increasing.

Death. An imminent possibility.

Wings. I have those.

Flying. Definitely requires my wings.

Sifting through all the fear that left my body stiff, I pulled out my wings. Relying on instinct more than thought, I broke out of my dive slowly, letting the air current flow under my wings and pull my body into a much safer horizontal state.

I tested out my wings, flapping heavy, strong strokes. I gained a fair amount of height, rising to around the same level I was previously, then dived.

Now pushing past my previous fear all I felt was the wind batter against my scale and hide. Being in complete control of myself, as if I had been flying for years, I felt an inexplicable mix of emotions.

I was content, excited, happy and more importantly free. I felt the freedom in the knowledge I could traverse anywhere I wished, whether dancing amongst the clouds, or lurking on the ground far below.

And was the ground ever so intriguing; now unobstructed by the mountain I got a firm view of exactly what lurked below. I was able to spot various prey sifting between the plains, hills and trees, scurrying about their own unique lives.

The forest caught my eye more than any other, as if calling me, beckoning me to grow closer.

A strange flash appeared alongside this feeling, replacing my sight with a strange white radiance. My sight bends and molds until a strange vision comes forth.

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The strange boy still sits upon the white tree, swaying his legs as they dangle off the side of a high branch.

Sunlight streaks out over the horizon as the boy gazes at the sunrise, bathing the small boy’s frame in radiance, warming his body and reflecting over his pure white hair.

He pats the white tree’s branch and states, “It must be pretty boring being stuck here with nothing to do…but nothing beats that sunrise.”

The tree visible sways, groaning as the old wood creaks in…amusement.

The boy smiles at the response; as if understanding the tree as such that it may as well be speaking the same language.

“One day I’m sure you will be able to be free; gliding amongst the clouds and ascending so high, that even the sun will be jealous of your radiance.” The boy lets out a lonely smile, as if wishing such freedom upon himself.

The boy slaps his palms against the tree and stands upon the thick trunk, cutting off his own thoughts and replacing the lonely smile with a wide grin.

“You’ll find a way, old friend. And when you do, I’ll be right there alongside you, grazing the clouds and taunting the sun.”

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As if no time at all had past I recover from my vision, still gazing at the large forest below.

What do these visions mean? I ponder.

After a few lazy moments gliding through the air I hear my Mother’s roar, calling me back to her. I turn around and gracefully land on the smooth stone. Mother kneels down once again, and unfurls her large leathery wing, voicelessly instructing me to once again take my place on her back.

I don’t argue and comply with her wishes and take my place on her broad back.

We once again venture back inside the cave, I notice that in comparison to the sun’s warmth and light, the cave looks much too bleak. There is no way I will confine myself to its depths forever; I wonder if Dragons are able to find their own roost when they grow older. Yet another thing I will have to ask Mother.

After once again taking various turns and receiving various nods and bows we arrive at our destination, standing before intricately carved stone doors, it holding various runes, symbols and most of all: dragons.

As Mother approaches the door it swings ajar; noticing there is no one behind it, I conclude it must be infused with some strange magic.

I don’t get long to ponder my wonder as I notice the sole occupants of the room. A large red dragon, the mystical creature I encountered before and something…different.

Upon encountering another strange creature a wave of white power once again welled up inside my core.

I studied this creature while trying to contain my power. It was slightly shorter than the mystical creature, yet lacking in its characteristic otherworldly beauty; instead displaying a menacing undertone of pure aggression.

This fearsome new creature had some slight differences between its mystical variant, holding strange soft fur ears, opposed to long, fleshy ones. Alongside a strange hairy tail, these ears held the same colour as the black, shaggy hair resting atop the creatures head.

After the examination, I was unable to contain my magic yet again, letting the white light shift over my form while still nestled upon my Mother’s back.

As the white light swam over me my scales glowed in response, fueling the change.

My bones shifted, bending and fusing to the new form's shape. However unlike my previous transformation they did not shift to become softer and weaker, only smaller. As my bones set in, I noticed soft ears formed atop my head; my tail also remained, yet grew thinner and lighter. My skin changed next, growing smooth, stretching throughout my whole body right down to the tip of my tail. I felt my hair grow out, the tingling of the sudden change slipping all the way up my new ears, and then along my strange new tail.

Once again, my entire transformation happened in an instant and the white light receded as it settled upon my stark white hair and fur.

I noticed everyone in the room but the mystical creature and Mother gawk at my transformation, almost as if neither were shocked at the occurrence.

Ignoring their stares I inspected my new body. I was once again the same size as my previous form, still reaching about knee height of the mystical creature. I had a long white head of hair reaching down to my shoulders with a strange new white, furry tail accompanying it.

I reach above my head and stroke my new ears, enjoying the soft touch of the fur surrounding it.

Mother was the first to speak in the dead quiet room, “So I guess I have some explaining to do.”

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Author Note:

Here's another chapter!

Make sure to share any criticism, comments or questions you might have in the comments. And I'll answer any questions I can...as long as they don't spoil anything of course. ;)