Page 67 of Realms of Swords and Storms
Tarshi fell to his knees as his legs began to transform, muscles swelling, bones restructuring themselves. His face contorted with effort, teeth gritting against the pain. For a moment, I feared he would resist, would try to halt the transformation midway—a dangerous point that could lead to being trapped between forms.
"Keep going," I urged. "Almost through worst part. Then joy comes."
He nodded jerkily, his neck already thickening, jaw extending as his face began to reshape itself. His arms spread wide aswing membranes started to form, stretching between elongated fingers that were rapidly becoming talons.
The transformation accelerated now, his body seeming to understand what was required. Blue scales covered him completely, darkening to near-black along his spine and lightening to a brilliant azure on his belly and the undersides of his forming wings. A tail extended from his spine, growing longer and stronger until it stretched several body-lengths behind him.
His size increased dramatically, his form swelling until he was nearly as large as I was in my Talfen shape. Not quite full-grown—that would come with time and practice—but impressive nonetheless. The deep blue of his scales caught the last rays of the setting sun, seeming to absorb the light and reflect it back more intensely.
Finally, the transformation complete, a full-grown Talfen dragon stood before us, magnificent in the fading light. His eyes—now enlarged and glowing with inner fire—blinked in confusion, then wonder as he raised a clawed foot, examining it in amazement.
Pride filled me at the sight. Despite generations of suppression, despite the Empire's lies, the Talfen blood remained strong. This young one had found his true form, had reclaimed his heritage. It was a victory not just for him, but for all our kind.
"How feel?" I asked, stepping closer to examine his form. His scales were healthy, his proportions good. The scars from his human life had indeed transferred, creating fascinating patterns of lighter blue across his hide.
He opened his mouth to speak, but only a rumbling growl emerged. Confusion flashed in his eyes.
"Voice different now," I explained. "Throat, tongue changed. Must learn speak again in this form."
Frustration replaced confusion, and he made another attempt, this one resulting in a series of chirps and growls that approximated speech but formed no words.
"Mind speak easier at first," I suggested.Like this,I added mentally, reaching out to touch his consciousness with my own.
His eyes widened further at the contact.Sirrax?His mental voice was stronger than I had expected for a first transformation, clear and distinct.This is... incredible. I can feel everything so intensely. The air currents, the smells, even the vibrations in the ground.
Talfen senses stronger than human,I confirmed.You are experiencing your birthright.
He turned his massive head toward Livia, who stood watching with awe and delight on her face.Can she hear us?
Not yet,I explained.Maybe with contact. Not bonded yet.
Tarshi lowered his head toward Livia, careful to move slowly, aware of his new size and strength. She approached without fear, reaching up to place her hand on his scaled muzzle. The tenderness in the gesture made my chest tighten with an emotion that had no simple name in human speech. In the Talfen tongue, it would bezrith'al—the joy of witnessing beloved ones connect.
"You're beautiful," Livia said softly, stroking the scales along his jaw. "Absolutely magnificent."
Pride and pleasure radiated from Tarshi at her words, his tail swishing slightly behind him in an unconscious display of emotion. I remembered my own first transformation in front of Livia, how her acceptance had healed something long broken within me. She had that gift—the ability to see beauty where others saw only strangeness or threat.
Now fly,I suggested, already beginning my own transformation. Unlike Tarshi, I had centuries of practice, andmy shift from human to Talfen form took mere moments, smooth and painless.
In my true form, I stretched my wings, feeling the familiar weight of them, the power in my muscles as I prepared for flight. Beside me, Tarshi watched with keen attention, instinctively mirroring my movements as I demonstrated how to extend his wings fully.
Follow,I instructed, gathering myself and launching upward with a powerful thrust of my legs and sweep of my wings.
The air caught beneath me, lifting me skyward in a rush of joy that never diminished, no matter how many times I experienced it. Flight was the purest expression of Talfen nature, the ultimate freedom. Even after centuries of living, the first moments of each flight still thrilled me like nothing else.
Below, Tarshi hesitated briefly, then gathered himself as I had done. His first attempt was awkward—too much force in his legs, insufficient coordination with his wings—resulting in a stumbling leap that barely cleared the treetops. But he recovered quickly, instinct guiding him as he found the rhythm of wingbeats that would carry him higher.
Good!I encouraged as he rose to join me.Natural comes. Blood remembers.
Together we climbed higher, spiralling above the olive grove as the last light faded from the sky and stars began to appear. Tarshi's movements grew more confident with each wingbeat, his body remembering what his mind had never known. The joy of flight was in his blood, as it was in mine, an inheritance older than the Empire, older than human civilization itself.
This is incredible,he projected, his mental voice vibrant with wonder.I've never felt so... free.
Freedom birthright of Talfen,I agreed.Why Empire fears us. Why they collar, control.
Below us, I could see Livia watching our flight, her face upturned, hair catching the starlight. Even from this height, my Talfen vision could discern the smile on her lips, the pride in her stance. She understood what this moment meant—not just for Tarshi, but for all of us. Another Talfen reclaiming their heritage was a blow against the Empire, a step toward liberation.
Follow,I directed, banking toward the west where the mountains rose, dark silhouettes against the night sky.Show hunting grounds.
