The War Begins

Chapter 11 - A Shoulder to Rely on

With her mind floating free, she relaxed her body. Her mind expanded as she absorbed the exorbitant free energy wafting on the breeze. The edges of her mind became indistinct and she brushed against every thought she came across, observing the world through their eye for a small moment. Dawn had already bloomed on the horizon and the sun had fully risen by the time she grew bored of her mental wanderings.

After hundreds of years she had discovered the minds of humans and elves weren't as terribly different as they seemed to believe, and therefore very boring after a few hours. Many things became boring as the years flew by, but more interesting things rose to fill their place. She had yet to be bored for an extended period of time and if she was it was simple enough to sleep away the boredom until someone called for her.

Last time her boredom had encased over a year, she had gone hunting for a war to interfere in. It had since become her favorite past time. She had merely meant to slip by for a safe place to sleep, but the war had become much too interesting, especially when a powerful white magician was involved. The unwanted visitor she'd chased off from the council chamber the other morning had proven that something was at stake in this war, something far greater than anyone knew.

With thoughts of her own getting far too interesting to ignore, she forced her mind to constrict from its open form. It took years of practice to be able to force one's mind into a shape when it was away from your body. She had been proud when it had only taken her ten years to master. Her first, and favorite form, was a hawk.

Many said it was unnatural for land dwelling creatures to take to the air, but it was one of her greatest pleasures. Building feathers and a beak took mere seconds and soon her mind was incased in a new vessel. Invisible barriers stopped her mind from pushing out in all directions and she no longer saw into those she passed. Flexing her wings, she tilted her head.

The air shimmed where her mind dwelled, currents of light bending slightly as they passed through her mental image. In her sleep, her body spread its lips in a smile; she loved seeing herself in this form. Gossamers of light trailed her as she flapped her wings.

No one else could see her unless they used their own mind to search for observers, something almost no one remembered to do in this day and age. The towns close to the palace began their daily routines and people and elves filled the streets and forests. From her spot on high, she could see children sneak away from the school area to slink into the trees.

A smile flirted with her lips. Elves loaded lumber into carts and baked goods into trays, life here went much as it did in any other city. The palace itself was very empty; most of the inhabitants were at the meetings. The realization that she should also be there broke into her carefree thoughts. Her beak couldn't scowl but her eyes narrowed at the thought of going back into the confining meetings.

Banking her wings, she swept in a graceful arc and turned towards the octagonal building set slightly back in the forest. In the very center of the roof a spot gleamed. Only an airborne mind could see this section of ornate tile and she landed on the softly glowing circle. A warm thrill slipped through her as the magic that made it visible to certain magicians brushed against her.

She couldn't land on the building itself due to the shield that surrounded it but she could settle on the spot without being attacked by the Guardian. A Guardian was a special type of shield that was alive, still attached to its maker. The Guardian represented the mood and disposition of the caster, and could also learn defensive skills. The one around the council chambers was the most complex being of its kind having been formed and coaxed to life by one of the oldest beings. If a mind landed on the Guardian in any other spot an invisible wire would restrain it, tightening with every struggle until a court magician took the offending party into custody. Any intruders who dared to attack it would find themselves burned severely and dropped into an underground pit. Only this tiny spot offered sanctuary.

Merging her mind with the Guardian, she slid into the consciousness and whispered secrets. Seeing her for what she was, she was quickly granted access. A warm feeling of welcome intruded into her thoughts. The Guardian had missed her since her last visit.

The glowing spot quickly allowed her to slide through the barrier and into the inner sanctum of the Council. The roof of the building was still between her and the meeting, so she carefully navigated her way through a small window. There was no easy place for her to perch, so she simply let the air currents hold her until she could spot the perfect place.

Keenan had just asked an unanswered question and she could feel the pressure in the air around her. In the mental plane, thoughts and questions hung and pressed in on any entity manifested there. The edges of her hawk began to blur and she dropped to stop the pressure trying to push in and disorder her own thoughts. It was generally very hard to stand the minds of so many, but she had had centuries, possibly millennia as time seemed to get blurred after the last few hundred years, to perfect the mind flight so she easily stayed in form.

The few frayed edges of her form stitched seamlessly together as she lowered. Seas of shoulders filled her vision when an idea formed in her mind. As the silence elongated, she settled on Caine's shoulder.

He was seated in the very front which offered her a very good vantage of everyone except the magicians whom she could easily monitor. Her perch twitched and she dug in talons to try and steady herself on the rolling seas of his shoulders as Caine shifted. Swiveling his head, Caine looked directly at her with a frown before turning back to face forward. His mind was obviously elsewhere, but it didn't bother her.

Men flung ideas back and forth, but many were still trying to understand the information about their foes and couldn't focus. Digging her claws in to keep her steady, she sat back and watched the proceedings.

For the remainder of the time she spent in the meetings, she listened to men throw ideas out and then cut them down. Listening to the frightened and unsure men try to sound like they understood what they spoke of quickly grew boring, so with only half an ear to the conversation, she turned to face the royals who were present.

It was a much more comfortable position now that Caine had turned to face the magicians seated behind him. The men of the royal family looked intent if slightly distant; they obviously put no credence into the ideas the uniformed idiots were contemplating. Luckily, both realized that the men needed time to come to terms with their unfortunate circumstances. Until that afternoon everyone had thought the opponent was an invading force of elves and men, though they had never been formally told who it was they were fighting.

The only woman seated on the tiered steps was very intriguing to her, however. She did not stand out from the crowd, yet she had captured the eye of the elf that, many said, was destined to inherit the throne from his father. As the arguing rose, Keenan snaked a hand over to grasp hers, and both visibly calmed.

Tension rose high in the council room that day. The sun moved through the high glass windows, casting rose colored rays onto the contrasting light and dark stones of the floor. Realizing her time in the council had come to an end; she released her claws and lifted off of Caine.

He shook his shoulder when he felt the ache ease, unsure of when he had begun to ignore the pain. Light fractured around her as she rose through the incoming sunlight and winged out of the window. The Guardian easily let her slide through and the heavy air current buffeted her when she first emerged.

Quickly regaining her balance in the harsh winds, she beat her wings against the current and flew back towards the training grounds and arenas. Within the inner sanctum, the passage to her body waited peacefully. Just because the men were involved in useless arguing did not mean she had to be useless as well.

The path back to a body was known only to the mind that inhabited it and could be hidden or placed anywhere. Many kept the return portal as their own body, but if anyone wished to stop the return of a mind to its' body they could easily be kept from it by enemy magicians. As a magician aged, it became more prudent to hide a second tie though the power it took to cleave the original tie to a body in two was enormous. She beat her wings steadily away from the palace, hurrying her way home.

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A/N

Okay guys, this used to be part of chapter 10 but it's now hanging out on it's own because I didn't really realize how long chapter 10 had grown!

-L