Wings in the Wind

Surrounded by mountains so high they could scrap the sky, once flourished a rich valley. Leaves as emeralds decorated the branches of the extended forest carved by the clear water's snake-like path and life spread among soil and rocks in the steep slopes as well as in the plain ground. The only flaw in this earthly paradise was the sky itself, perpetually covered by gloomy clouds, which were mothers to all life through frequent rain.

Among other creatures, majestic eagles lived there, and their kingdom were the blowing wind and the rocky peaks. Nests woven with straw and dried grass stood on edgy stones to protect their most precious treasure: white, sand-spotted eggs.

Our story begins here, with one of those crackled shell and the high squeak coming from the creature inside it.

Gaoth revealed himself a curious little creature since the very moment of his birth, when he gazed at the grey veil above his tiny head and tried to open a wound in it with a weak strike of his sharp beak. He did not scream for food nor was afraid of the height once out of the egg: he just wanted to reach the untouchable limit of the sky.

Such was his inexplicable instinct as a new born, such was meant to be his deepest dream as a young bold eagle.

Day after day he grew up, itching for the moment when he would have stretched out his copper wings and conquered up to the tiniest heaven's spot.

<<There's really nothing worth discovering>> his brothers and sisters mocked him. <<Light grey is morning whilst dark is night: uniformity and disappointment will be the only things you'll find up there>>

<<Then I'll just need to fly further up!>> Gaoth answered back stubbornly. His desire could not be killed off by incomprehension.

<<Good luck then>> they laughed altogether. None of them believed he would have been brave and reckless enough to do what they considered a suicide action.

They were wrong.

He waited till his bones and muscles could allow him to ride the wild air hallways, he waited for the right moment to come.

His metallic claws scratched the cold stone and the chaotic heart bumped loudly against the brown chest while standing on the frail edge of a narrow gorge. The young eagle then let himself falling and stretched the powerful wings as soon as he encountered the favourable wind.

He flew. Beating after beating, he got closer to the grey vault, gasping and pushing himself further.

However, the time chosen by the heavens when he could have declared victory was yet to come.

First came the rain, light at first, fierce soon after, then a lightning tore the gloomy sky with its bright light. Gaoth could not win against the wild weather: he desperately challenged it but got defeated. A powerful windblast shot him down and the presumptuous eagle crashed on the underlying rock board where the lonely figure lay under the pouring water.

***

The sad head rested against the nest's border while mournful eyes followed the other bird's acrobatics in the sky. He could not join his family in flight, as his right wing was broken due to the disastrous fall and because of that he was suffering.

<<Gaoth, my child>> said the mother, gracefully landing near him. <<What bothers you so much? Is it the injury? In less than a month, you will have fully recovered, so there's no need to worry>>

<<I failed, mum>> he whispered, looking away from his cheerful siblings.

<<Life is both failure and victory>> she replied. <<You cannot have one without the other>>

<<Maybe they were right: it's just a dangerous waste of time>> the young eagle cried, showing the broken limb.

<<It's up to you to decide whether this is true or not. Think about what a hero would do, then be your own hero>> she smiled and kissed him on the forehead, before flying away.

***

Gaoth never forgot his mother's words nor his ambitions and the damaged he had suffered because of it. Once able to leave the nest again, he began a strenuous and strict training. He stubbornly kept trying, pushing his body to the limit and constantly achieving new scores. Nothing could impede his slow but dedicated climb to the sky and he would often face the most dreadful winds in order to be a flight master.

The day he thought he was ready, he crawled out his family's dwelling while everybody was asleep and he tried once again to cross the dark veil's limit. The eagle was surrounded by howling air, ally and enemy at once, and patiently rose above the snowy peaks.

He had almost arrived, only a single wing beating could have been sufficient to reach the softness of the clouds. He did not hesitate and with a powerful move of his limbs he dove into the unknown. Frozen water started covering his copper feathers as he passed through the icy mist and made the journey more and more difficult and exhausting. Just as he thought there was no end to that blindness, he emerged from the clouds and his excitement turned into misery.

There was only darkness there, spotted by billions of icy fireflies. He flew alone in that cold silence, desperately seeking something that could amaze him.

His long research led to nothing and he began to lose the last brink of hope he had left.

Suddenly a shy light appeared over the horizon, painting the sky with faint colours. Purple turned into red, red turned into bright orange and the yellowish shade announced the rise of a wonder that Gaoth could not describe.

His eyes widened in disbelief and astonishment as his wet feathers sparkled in the intense, golden rays of that star his kind had never seen and ancient tribes believed to be gods' chariot: the sun.