Draconia Offline vol. 1

21.2. Relocation - Part 2

"Good morning, crew. My name's Clara and I'm your pilot," a woman in her thirties greets us enthusiastically. She has short blue hair and is wearing a pilot overall.

"Please fasten your seatbelts and we'll be off," she smiles at us, not a hint of repulsion in her mind. "The flight will take forty-six minutes and I've taken this route many times before so no worries."

Her positive energy is contagious and we feel a bit better about the ordeal. A slight problem arises with fasting our seatbelts, though. It's obvious our new bodies just don't fit the chairs. Fefnir struggles to even sit properly with his bulky tail. And me and Liana whine that it's squeezing our wings.

The helicopter takes off. I remember the feeling when I was lucky to get a ride with Erik but this time I don't enjoy it. It's loud, shaky... not elegant at all. I get goosebumps under my feathers. I want to be able to fly so much! And now!

However, while Liana and I are only uncomfortable but we still generally love flying, Ingri is much worse. Her skin is already light green but I notice she turns even greener... and not because of her transformation. And then she pukes all of a sudden.

"Dammit," she swears. "The Earthborn and flying... what a horrible combination."

"Ugh!" Fefnir comments because she almost threw up on his shoes.

We should be safely in the air by now because the helicopter isn't shaking anymore so I unfasten my seatbelt and pass her my water bottle. She gratefully takes it and gulps, desperately trying to clean her throat.

Ingri, do you want me to sit next to you and hold your hand? I can try make you feel better, I touch her and ask telepathically because several bodyguards are riding with us.

P-please, I feel really nauseous, she answers.

Erik gets the gist of our unspoken communication right away and switches the seat with me. I grab her hand, hoping it doesn't look weird in front of the guards. But I think it doesn't, they must think Ingri is just nervous and needs someone to support her.

"Ryuu, the seatbelt," Erik fastens me again.

"Ouch, do I have to? It squeezes my wings," I protest.

"It's only forty-six minutes, deal with it, please," he says.

I focus my attention on Ingri instead. I connect to her as best as I can under these circumstances so that the bodyguards aren't suspicious. I've never connected to her before, not deeply at least, but her mind is open to me. Her vertigo hits me, she's feeling really sick. It's as if her very Earthborn nature is fighting against being so high above the ground.

I try to calm her mind and her stomach as well. It's no easy task because I can't exactly influence her body functions but everything comes from the brain anyway so I try to soothe that. In the end, I'm half successful. Ingri is still feeling sick but not like puking anymore.

If you want to talk to me telepathically, just focus on what you wish me to hear, I tell her because I feel she wants to communicate with me but her thoughts are too chaotic.

D-do you hear me? she asks hesitantly. I know that you do it with Erik all the time but it's just so strange.

Yes, I hear you. Do you feel better now? I can feel your Earthborn nature is struggling.

Struggling is a weak word, she laughs in her head. More like totally freaking out. The Earthborn are the exact opposite of Celestials when it comes to flying and magic.

I keep holding her hand the whole journey. She lets me explore her mind so I can compare it to Erik's. And I have to admit that Ingri really doesn't think like a human anymore—the contrast is obvious. It's not that she doesn't have common wishes and desires anymore; she just thinks about them differently and her perception of the world is influenced by new advanced senses.