easy, just enjoying the feeling of being on her feet again. After
the first mile or so, she decided to see just exactly what her new body was
capable of. Her excitement mounted as she ran faster and faster. She felt
like her feet were barely touching the ground; she was almost gliding along.
Maneuvering around trees and obstacles required very little thought; it was
instinctual. After sprinting further than she probably realized, Ella slowed
down a little so she could enjoy her surroundings. It was gorgeous country out
here. Seemingly untouched by man, there were huge hardwood trees and flowering
shrubs mixed in with the towering pines. She came to a deep ravine some fifty
plus feet across. She hesitated, took a few steps back, then ran toward the
ravine and jumped. Ella landed in a crouch on the other side. She turned,
looked over her shoulder and smiled.
Ella walked
and looked around; her eyesight picked up on the slightest movements. She
found if she concentrated she could focus in on details with incredible
clarity. She heard a woodpecker off to her right. Looking in the direction of
his pecking, she caught sight of the movement of his head. Even though the
bird was quite high up in the tree, when she focused she could make out the
most intricate details of its feathers. This was almost unbelievable.
Ella ran
on. She reveled in the way it felt to push herself. She came to a stream and
ran along it opposite the way the water was moving. Soon, the water widened
and she found herself standing at a pool that a picturesque waterfall poured
into. Ella walked to the edge of a large rock that jetted out over the pool
and sat down. The water was incredibly clear, and she could see small, fat
fish jetting in and out from under the rock. She lay on her stomach, letting
her hands hover over the surface of the water. Lightning fast, she grabbed a fish
about as long as her palm. She laughed out loud, then put her hand back in the
water and let it go. Ella felt like a child. Everything seemed like a new
experience. She sat up, took her shoes off, and dangled her feet in the
water. She couldn’t recall ever feeling this good - this alive.
She had
always loved to run. She’d even lettered in track in high school but this,
what she’d just experienced, was incredible. It was like nothing she had ever
imagined. She wondered exactly how much her mother had known about her
father. It would be some kind of hard not to share this with someone you
loved. She searched her childhood memories, but couldn’t recall anything out
of the ordinary. She’d had absolutely no idea that her dad had been
different. There wasn’t even the slightest incident that a child’s imagination
could have run with.
Ella’s
thoughts turned to Burke and the things she had seen him do. She knew they
were different. He’d told her there were warriors, healers, and common folk.
She recalled him telling her that even the common folk from his world would
have a considerable advantage over a human when it came to speed and strength.
She knew he was strong and fast, but he had said not as strong or fast as she
was now. Sometimes she thought he was selling himself a little short though,
with all this talk of her being faster and stronger. She had started out half
human; did that change anything?
Anatomy and
medicine came naturally to him, especially herbal medicine. He’d probably make
one heck of a doctor or even surgeon. Although he had to be careful with
displaying his abilities, just as she would now too, she supposed. He could
tell how someone died by touching them. She wasn’t really sure how that
worked. Did he actually see what happened or just know somehow? He said he
had touched Jill and known how she had died. Didn’t he mention at some point
that he could actually relive someone’s last moments from a touch? What
in the world was that all
the first mile or so, she decided to see just exactly what her new body was
capable of. Her excitement mounted as she ran faster and faster. She felt
like her feet were barely touching the ground; she was almost gliding along.
Maneuvering around trees and obstacles required very little thought; it was
instinctual. After sprinting further than she probably realized, Ella slowed
down a little so she could enjoy her surroundings. It was gorgeous country out
here. Seemingly untouched by man, there were huge hardwood trees and flowering
shrubs mixed in with the towering pines. She came to a deep ravine some fifty
plus feet across. She hesitated, took a few steps back, then ran toward the
ravine and jumped. Ella landed in a crouch on the other side. She turned,
looked over her shoulder and smiled.
Ella walked
and looked around; her eyesight picked up on the slightest movements. She
found if she concentrated she could focus in on details with incredible
clarity. She heard a woodpecker off to her right. Looking in the direction of
his pecking, she caught sight of the movement of his head. Even though the
bird was quite high up in the tree, when she focused she could make out the
most intricate details of its feathers. This was almost unbelievable.
Ella ran
on. She reveled in the way it felt to push herself. She came to a stream and
ran along it opposite the way the water was moving. Soon, the water widened
and she found herself standing at a pool that a picturesque waterfall poured
into. Ella walked to the edge of a large rock that jetted out over the pool
and sat down. The water was incredibly clear, and she could see small, fat
fish jetting in and out from under the rock. She lay on her stomach, letting
her hands hover over the surface of the water. Lightning fast, she grabbed a fish
about as long as her palm. She laughed out loud, then put her hand back in the
water and let it go. Ella felt like a child. Everything seemed like a new
experience. She sat up, took her shoes off, and dangled her feet in the
water. She couldn’t recall ever feeling this good - this alive.
She had
always loved to run. She’d even lettered in track in high school but this,
what she’d just experienced, was incredible. It was like nothing she had ever
imagined. She wondered exactly how much her mother had known about her
father. It would be some kind of hard not to share this with someone you
loved. She searched her childhood memories, but couldn’t recall anything out
of the ordinary. She’d had absolutely no idea that her dad had been
different. There wasn’t even the slightest incident that a child’s imagination
could have run with.
Ella’s
thoughts turned to Burke and the things she had seen him do. She knew they
were different. He’d told her there were warriors, healers, and common folk.
She recalled him telling her that even the common folk from his world would
have a considerable advantage over a human when it came to speed and strength.
She knew he was strong and fast, but he had said not as strong or fast as she
was now. Sometimes she thought he was selling himself a little short though,
with all this talk of her being faster and stronger. She had started out half
human; did that change anything?
Anatomy and
medicine came naturally to him, especially herbal medicine. He’d probably make
one heck of a doctor or even surgeon. Although he had to be careful with
displaying his abilities, just as she would now too, she supposed. He could
tell how someone died by touching them. She wasn’t really sure how that
worked. Did he actually see what happened or just know somehow? He said he
had touched Jill and known how she had died. Didn’t he mention at some point
that he could actually relive someone’s last moments from a touch? What
in the world was that all
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