The Paths to Oraj
Chapter 4
Looking Ahead
Fyn couldn’t believe he was late. Of all the mornings to be late, this was undoubtedly the worst. He had been so excited the night before his eyes had barely closed for a second, and then when they had closed, they hadn’t opened again until well past the time he should have already been up. And now he was running. He was running as fast as his little legs would carry him. Unfortunately for Fyn, he was a Naalym. And Naalyms had never been known to be particularly fast runners.
In the world of Livinthia, where strange and wondrous creatures flourished, the Naalyms were a very particular being indeed. They were one of the Four Races, but long ago, their kind went into hiding, disappearing from the lands they once loved. Now, they could only be found in the Tall-Grass Hills of Rolath, a region to the Southwest near the sea. But even those who knew where to look had a hard time finding these free-spirited, little creatures, for Naalyms didn’t live on the surface. Their homes could only be found under the ground.
Fyn, in fact, had never been to the surface. The tunnels and burrows of the Naalyms were so extensive they ran for miles in every direction and provided a home for the whole community. It was an underground city, scaled to match the unique dimensions of the Naalyms.
Like most of his kind, Fyn would never break the height of four feet and would never be narrower than three feet. Not to say that Naalyms were fat; they were just wide. They also had rather large heads, but their feet, on the other hand, were, strangely enough, usually long and skinny. If Fyn was above ground and out in the open, he would use his uniquely shaped feet to launch himself into the air and bound through the Tall-Grass Hills of Rolath, like a child skipping across a playground.
But Fyn wasn’t outside. He was making his way down one of the main tunnels, which, though larger than most, did not provide enough room to bound. And so he had to run. But running for a Naalym, with their short, stubby legs and big, skinny feet, meant Fyn was actually just wobbling back-and-forth as fast as he could.
Over the years, Naalyms had become adept at maneuvering through their tunnels with a fair bit of efficiency, but they were meant to be out in the open. They were meant to bound through the air and enjoy the sun and wind. That’s why it saddened most who still knew the history of the Naalyms and how they came to live under the ground.
Fyn had learned some of his kind’s past, but he was still young. His hair, in fact, had just stopped growing two weeks before, which, for a Naalym, was a very special occasion. It meant Fyn was maturing and entering the second stage of his life. Usually, Naalyms didn’t reach their maximum size until well into their thirties, so their hair, instead, was how they judged the growth and maturity of their children.
Fyn, currently, was only about two feet tall, but his hair hung to his ankles, so he kept his chin high as he passed other Naalyms going about their day. The color of Fyn’s hair was still green, but it would become brown next, then red, and then black when he was finally fully grown. After that, only the color of gray awaited him. Some Humans, who had studied these fairytale creatures, thought Magick might even be involved with a Naalym’s hair, for though it had been at least three days since Fyn had last listened to his mother and taken a bath, every strand still remained perfectly in place.
Of course, Fyn knew Magick wasn’t involved in his hair; it was just hair. But that being said, Fyn hadn’t actually started learning Magick yet. He was excited to learn though, for Naalyms had their very own type of Magick, which varied greatly from the Spellcasting Magick of the Humans and the Storing Magick of the Sols. The Naalyms used the type of Magick known as Enhancing the Elements. This meant that they could control, to a certain extent, five of the six elements: Earth, Wind, Fire, Water, and Light. Since they had gone into hiding, though, Naalyms never used their powers to attack, only to defend. Fyn didn’t have a problem with that; he’d never want to hurt anything anyways.
He rounded a bend in the tunnel, hardly noticing the Magick that was in work all around him. These tunnels were at least thirty feet below the surface, but they weren’t dark. The Elders of Fyn’s community were using the element of Light to provide visibility throughout the whole burrow. And the tunnels themselves didn’t look like the tunnels that some prairie dog would’ve made. The element of Earth had been used to create these tunnels and had packed the dirt so tight along the sides that it was more like Fyn was walking down a hallway of stone walls than a passageway through the ground.
But of course, at the moment, Fyn was too busy being late to worry about any of this. He was so focused on hurrying that he turned the next corner at full speed and nearly ran headlong into one of his friends. Luckily, they just barely managed to miss each other, but that didn’t mean they could avoid getting their feet tangled.
“Watch where you’re going, Stybs,” Fyn jeered, hanging onto his friend for support.
“Me? You watch where you’re going,” Stybs shot back, hanging onto Fyn for support.
Fyn pulled his feet free and grinned. “Aren’t you late?”
“Not as late as you,” Stybs grinned back.
Then they were both off again, running down the next tunnel together. The two young Naalyms tried their best to maneuver through the adults filling the tunnel, but they did get a few angry looks along the way.
“Why are we even hurrying?” Stybs shouted to Fyn as they entered another tunnel. “They won’t start without a child of the 3rd Family.”
“Youngest child,” Fyn corrected him. “And it’s Teacher Hyln. Do you think he cares if I’m not there?”
“Good point,” Stybs agreed. “Why does he always have it in for you?”
Fyn tried to shrug as he maneuvered past a group of adults. “You should ask him for me.”
“Yeah, I’ll do that when we have Talons as pets.”
Fyn laughed as they climbed the last incline into the Upper Chamber and slid to a stop. The rest of their class was already there, and they all turned when Fyn and Stybs made their entrance. Teacher Hyln was there as well, and he did not look pleased. Fyn shared a worried glance with Stybs as they both tried to catch their breath.
“Good of the two of you to join us,” Teacher Hyln announced, walking over to them. “Your tardiness made me think you did not want to partake in today’s lesson. Of course, I can still arrange for you to stay behind.”
“No, please, we’re here,” Fyn argued before he could stop himself.
Teacher Hyln looked each of them over for a moment before saying, “I expect the both of you to be on your best behavior. I assume you realize this is your last warning.”
Fyn and Stybs nodded in unison.
“Then join your classmates. We are about to leave.”
Teacher Hyln turned away, and Fyn hurried over with Stybs to join the rest of their class. “That was close,” Stybs whispered.
“Too close,” Fyn returned.
Soon, Teacher Hyln was leading Fyn and the rest of the students out of the Upper Chamber and along a narrow tunnel that climbed further upwards. As they went, Fyn felt the excitement rising in his chest. It steadily built and built like a drumroll, beating on the inside of his ribcage. He couldn’t keep the grin off his face, and whenever he glanced at Stybs, he could tell his friend couldn’t either.
Then up ahead, Fyn saw the brightness. A blinding hole that made the light of the tunnels seem dark. Teacher Hyln disappeared into the opening first, then several students in front did as well. But finally, it was Fyn’s turn. He shared one more look with Stybs before passing into the white light.
And finally, for the first time in his life, Fyn stepped outside. He stepped into the sunlight. He stepped out of the ground and into the air. Of course, he couldn’t see anything at first. The blinding light continued as his eyes slowly adjusted. He had to shade his eyes, and he saw his classmates doing the same.
Two or three minutes passed before Fyn could really take in his surroundings. But he didn’t need to see to feel what i
t was like to be outside. The wind was the first thing he noticed. It caressed his face and brought such a sweet, lovely smell to his nose that he just wanted to breathe in forever and never exhale. He felt the wind stir his hair and whisper through the tall grass around him. The grass swayed back and forth, rising over his head, green against the blue sky far above. It actually made Fyn dizzy to look up at the sky for the first time. He had to drop his eyes back to the ground just to regain his balance.
After another moment, Fyn looked back at the small opening they had come out of. It was tiny really, slightly hidden in the grass on the side of a hill. If he hadn’t known there was a whole city through that opening, he would never have guessed. He knew there were several openings like this one spread throughout Rolath, but they were probably just as hidden and secret.
Then Fyn noticed several other adults in the area besides Teacher Hyln. They bounded through the grass, using one foot at a time to propel themselves just high enough for their heads to clear the top of the grass so they could look around and view the area.
Fyn didn’t need an invitation. He took one step and pushed off with his foot. He felt the wind hit his face as he soared through the sky for the distance of three feet before landing again. It was a somewhat awkward landing, but he didn’t care if he had fallen flat on his face; he was already pushing off again. He was laughing the whole time until he hit the ground again and felt a strong hand grip his arm.
“What do you think you’re doing?” Teacher Hyln asked harshly. “You stay with the rest of the class or I’ll have words with you when we get back inside. Do you understand me?”
Fyn nodded quickly, not even realizing that he had been doing something wrong. But then he looked back over his shoulder and saw that he could barely see the rest of his classmates through the grass. He had moved very far, very fast, and it was the best thing in the world.
Unfortunately, Teacher Hyln didn’t let him bound again and kept a hand on Fyn as they walked back to the class. When they returned, Fyn went over to stand next to Stybs, who gave him a big grin. Fyn couldn’t help but grin back. Then Teacher Hyln began talking.
“You all know the tunnels of our dear burrow underneath the Hills, but today, I wanted to show you the world outside of those tunnels. I wanted to show you the surface of Rolath. There are many dangers on the surface; many dangers that look upon young children like you as food. Therefore, you must always be wary of your surroundings and on the look out for the animals we share this land with. And until you have passed the courses of Magick, you are not allowed outside the tunnels without an adult. Of course, even then it can be dangerous. Fortunately, today, I have been told that it is clear for many miles, so we will chance going a little higher and letting you have a better look.”
As soon as Teacher Hyln had finished, he began steering the class up the slope of the nearest hill, towards the summit. Fyn tried to control his excitement as best he could, but it took a considerable amount of effort. He wanted to bound ahead and reach the top first, but he knew he should wait. He knew it would be better to be patient. He knew it would be worth it. And it was.
At the top of the hill, the grass was shorter, and there were a few rocks and boulders laying here and there. Following Teacher Hyln’s lead, Fyn and his classmates climbed onto the rocks, so they could see above the grass. And then Fyn saw the world.
He saw the land stretching out before him and behind him and to either side. He saw it stretching into the distance on every side. The hills rolled away forever; the grass even farther. The wind swept across the land, swaying everything to its silent song. The sky above met the land below, forming a line at the edge of infinity. Fyn took it all in; the sounds and the colors, the warmth and the chill, the beauty and the possibilities. He took it all in. He took it all in with a smile on his face. This world is going to be one great adventure.