Angel of Storms (Millennium's Rule, #2)(140)

Sitting cross-legged next to it, she slowly and carefully began to work. Remembering how the girl with the deformed leg had gasped in pain when Valhan had begun healing her, Rielle first numbed the animal’s limbs. He woke and examined his legs with puzzlement, then lay on his side and went back to sleep.

She realised soon after that altering the existing pattern meant inventing a new one. In this case, at least, she could take the information already there and enhance it. The work had a creative aspect that appealed to her, though the task itself did not.

Time stretched. She immersed her awareness in the animal’s body until she felt as if she had almost become one. Was that possible, too? Could she change into an animal? If she did, would her mind remain human, or would it change too, trapping her in a state where she did not have the ability to change back?

So long as she retained the ability to use magic she could return to her human form. It was too easy to imagine that happening in unpleasant ways, however, with different parts reverting to human at different rates. Yet if that were possible then it might be possible to change select parts of herself. Could she turn her arms into wings and learn to fly?

So many questions crowded her mind that she could not concentrate well enough for the task for some time. She stopped trying, letting her mind roam over the possibilities until she grew bored with the subject. The pause did, at least, allow magic to flow in to fill some of the void she had created with all her attempts to change herself and the animal. When she was ready, she returned to the task.

A long while later, the animal woke, stood up and walked around the room on legs slightly longer than they had been before. To Rielle’s relief, he did not seem bothered by his sudden new height. She marvelled at how little time it had taken to learn this compared to how long it had taken her to grasp how her leg muscle worked. Thinking about that simple task, it was suddenly clear she had come a long way since the lessons had begun. So what would it take to finish them?

She expected Dahli to return soon after, but he did not. The animal was hungry, making her aware of her own grumbling stomach. To keep them both distracted, Rielle played with her small companion, laughing at the grunting noise he made when excited, and the rumbling sound of contentment when his belly was scratched.

Sleepiness was compelling her to lie down when the door finally opened. Dahli gave the animal a measuring look, then set down his usual delivery of food and necessities. He caught the animal in mid-dash for the meal.

“Eat,” he said, struggling to hold a wriggling, hungry beast. “I will return.”

When he did, he sat down on the floor, which he’d not done before. She looked at him closely, wondering what this signified. A line had appeared between his eyebrows. His mouth was thin, lips pressed together tightly. He had the air of someone about to deliver bad news.

“Has something happened?” she asked.

He blinked, then shook his head. “Nothing. Or rather, nothing you need worry about. There is always something happening out in the worlds.” His tone was dry. He straightened and met her gaze. “Now begins the final lesson. There are three parts to this. First, you undo the damage of ageing within your body. Ironically, this would be easier if you were older, when the signs of ageing are obvious. But you are old enough that some parts of you will not be functioning as well as they could be.

“Second, you find and memorise the pattern you wish to return to. Ageing, as I have explained, is a natural process. It is your body not healing perfectly in countless ways over time. It is also not always accurate when it reverts to your original pattern after you change it, too. Changing and reverting over and over will speed up the process of ageing, so it is better to change once and maintain it.

“Third, you learn the secret to maintaining it. Changing your whole body requires awareness and understanding that is not normally achievable by the human mind. It is not a state that allows you to do anything else that requires focus, whether that be using magic or simply conversing with someone.”

Dahli leaned forward, his gaze unwavering. “The secret of agelessness is this: you change your mind into one that is capable of unconsciously maintaining a youthful state.”

Rielle let out a soft “ah”. It was so obvious, now that she knew. She almost felt foolish for not having guessed how it was done. But the more she’d progressed the less time she’d had to consider the possibilities of what she’d learned before concentrating on the next lesson.

Dahli straightened and smiled. “So: let’s begin with the first part. We will move on to the second and third without pause or rest. In my limited experience, it has to be done that way, but I may be wrong, so do not panic if we do stop. Now, focus your attention on your body.”

She closed her eyes and, as he guided her, looked at the places he said she’d find the earliest signs of ageing. It was impossible, once aware of them, to resist fixing the damage. Though she still considered herself a young woman, the evidence suggested otherwise and that appalled her. Perhaps she would not have been so dismayed if she’d had a much older woman to compare herself to.

Perhaps I will always feel younger than I am. Maybe that’s not a bad thing. It would be sad to be the opposite.

As she moved here and there, tweaking this and correcting that, a sense of her overall state grew until she began to fix damaged areas before Dahli alerted her to them. As she did, a sense of well-being spread through her body.