“Mom, am I doing the right thing?” Elysia asked her. Her mother sat next to her on the edge of the bed. She had the news on in the corner of the room, but turned the sound off to focus on the conversation. 

“Oh, honey, how would I know?” Vespera asked, grabbing her daughter's hand. 

“Ugh, I should've talked to Ma,” Elysia said, flopping backward onto the mattress.

“Hey, no! Give me a chance!” She said, flopping backward as well, bouncing lightly. Vespera turned to look at her and slowly raised her wing to tickle the underside of Elysia’s nose. 

“Pfft, Mom! Quit it!” She said, smacking her with a wing. Her mom gasped a fake gasp of exaggeration. She hit her back, and soon they were in a scramble on the bed, and Elysia was laughing. She was seventeen, going through a major crisis. They settled down and flopped back again. 

“I’m serious, Mom, what if it’s a huge mistake? I leave him for someone else? That's so mean.” She said. Vespera smiled.

“Babe, if you want to leave him for someone else, it’s already over. You might as well be honest about it.” 

“Yeah, but… I don't want to!” She said helplessly.

“Oh, I know. Baby’s first break-up. It will be difficult and awkward. But I promise, at the end, you will feel better.” Vespera said, tickling her nose again. Elysia giggled.

“Thanks, Mom… Mom? Look,” She said, pointing to the TV. Vespera sat up, looking at the screen with curiosity. She went to turn up the volume. 

“It’s been revealed that Councilwoman Morgan Jude, a founder of Axion, was a reptilian chimera. According to new evidence, she had scales along her torso and back that she hid beneath clothing. The reason for her secrecy was because of blackmail by none other than Councilman Linden Eldrich, who threatened to reveal her secret to the public if she said anything about his underground expansion project heading to, you guessed it, the Azalea Cavern. More at six,” The new reporter concluded.

“Huh, interesting,” Vespera said, clicking off the TV.

“I’m sorry, Geoff. I need to go,” She said. This was years later, she was twenty-three. She had been training at Bellforge, getting ready to take over the family company. Her mother had really turned that place around. Laborers were getting more respect, along with better food and shelter. She was involved in every major decision made. However, the more she worked there, the more she hated it. There was nothing wrong with the job, it was just… Boring. She looked at the same paperwork, saw the same people. She felt stir crazy.

“Wh-what? You're… Leaving me?” He asked. They had been together for four years. He was a few years older than Elysia.

“I- I don’t want to. But you have the university. Your lectures and the new library. You’re supposed to be at the grand opening!” She responded. It wasn’t completely honest. 

“So are you!” He retorted. She shrank her wings to her side. 

“I know.” She sighed. “If I asked you to come with me, would you?” She asked. Geoff looked at her with a curious look. He mulled it over. He mulled it over longer.

“No.” He finally ended up saying. She nodded slowly. 

“I know that, too.” She said gently. She reached up and grabbed his face with both hands, encasing their heads in a feather cocoon of red and blue. She kissed him on the lips. He began to cry. So she began to cry.

“I’ll miss you,” he said.

“I’ll miss you, too. I still have to go.” He nodded his head and chuckled.

“I know.” He responded, sniffling. She chuckled and kissed him again.

Her journey started rough. She had to spend a few days in Heliowood, the town closest to the forest barrier to the south during a longwind. The town was adorable and beautiful. The buildings went vertically into the sky and were connected with bridges. Bird-people filled the streets, but not just with wings. She’d never seen so many different mutations. Beaks, bird legs, no hair, all feathers. Some people looked closer to bird than person.

Apparently, many migrants came here once Axion was founded. Feeling outcast from the rest of the country, they all came here. People who might not be considered “useful” by Blackrock standards. She stayed a few days after the winds stopped; she enjoyed the people. But she also knew she was delaying her flight. She was nervous! Could anyone blame her? To fly all the way across the canopy forest? It would take half a day. She would have to take breaks. 

Despite the delay, the locals helped her pack for her flight. And soon she was off through the trees.

She could hear her heartbeat in her ears. Helion had almost set, and she could see a break in the trees. She was almost there! She was grunting, flapping her wings as hard as she could, when she realized she shouldn't have to try this hard. She felt heavier, like she couldn't fully extend her wings. 

Oh no.

The Spider Aspen! She had flown right through them; the setting sun made the silk strings nearly invisible, and she was only able to see the strands reflecting the light. The strands were getting thicker. She should've flown above the treeline! If only she were a bit braver! 

The shadepines didn’t help the situation. The wind was picking up, and she had to fight against it. The wind caused the trees to chime in a deep metallic echo. It was disorienting. She could only hope she hadn’t made any turns. Her only chance was to fly straight. If she turned, she wouldn’t find her way again. Not with all this noise. Below her, she saw a Firebird flying slowly through the trees. A small bird with vibrant colors of red and orange, but were named for their wings. They were transparent until the light hit them, when they cast rays of sunshine beneath where they flew, in warm colors. It was the only native species of bird on Terra, and it flew easily around the strands of silk. They went to the forest to die, that’s why this one was flying so slowly. Which meant she was flying too slow.

It distracted her. She felt a string land over her lips. A strand that must be no thicker than a hair, which now held the left side of her mouth closed. Her heart sank to her stomach. She had never touched a Spider Aspen. She thought she had charted the forest enough to know where they grew, but obviously, she didn't account for how tall they could grow. They were always hidden under the great canopy of shadepines, but that didn't mean they were far below the surface, as she was learning. The strands were so strong. But she was strong; all she had to do was keep flying.

She was getting lower, hovering closer and closer to the ground. Please, she thought, please, I can see it! What she could see wasn't much; the silk had gotten on her face and was partially covering her eyes. She kept her head down to keep it away from her nose. Thinking about her hair made her want to cry; if she made it out, she would have to cut it all off. When she made it out. 

She didn't dare try to clear the strands away for fear that her hand would stick to her face. She couldn't stop; if she stopped, she would fall, if she fell–

Crash! Crunch! The air left her lungs as she hit a branch, falling through the branches to the forest floor. 

“Help,” she squeaked, gasping for air. But she was panicking, and the pain hadn't set in yet. She couldn't move yet or get a full breath, the silk sticking her to the forest floor like a net, pine needles covering her like an iridescent porcupine. “Help,” she tried again.

Her breath came back to her as she scrambled on the floor, squawking and trying to flap her wings frantically. To no avail, Elysia stayed on the floor, destined to become food for the trees.

Multiple footsteps were heading towards her. It sounded like they were running. She stopped moving, her breathing heavy, trying to listen. People? Hybrids? Where was she?

“Oh, Tay, a child of the forest. Kri, did you bring her here? Of course, it was Kri; she’s full tonight. That must be why you came. Over here! Here! Get a stretcher! And oil! She's covered in silk!” She heard a voice say. She couldn't see, and the tears she was crying created salty goggles under the silk. She felt something touch her, and she panicked again, scrambling under the touch. It made her panic a little more knowing that the woman knew she flew with the light of the full moon.

“It’s okay, okay, calm, calm. I know you can hear me, I know you can't move,” the voice said. She calmed down, listening and trying not to sob harder than she already was. “Don't worry now, we'll take care of you. Crazy thing, flying through the aspens,”

“Here, Clara, oil. Stretcher is on the way,” a different voice said, a deeper voice, more sultry. She heard something uncap and shortly after felt herself being raised off the floor. How were they not getting stuck? The oil? Who were they? 

“I'm Clara, you must be from Axion. We get people from the trees, sometimes. Not so many that fall through the trees, but don't worry, we take care of all the children of Terra. Welcome to Lumenfall!” 

“Terrava,” the other voice said.

“Yes, yes, it's the same thing,” she responded. Did they expect her to converse back? She was a little caught up at the moment.

“It's not. But she's right, our silkweavers are excellent, they'll get you cleaned right up. I'm Eva,” 

“Don't freak either when we start cleaning you off, we have to get it off your wings first before it hardens. Then we can worry about the rest of you,” Clara said. 

“You think Rich will be awake yet?” Eva asked

“Yeah, right. Let's get her in, then you can go grab him,” Clara said. 

Eva. And Clara. Thank you.

She woke up groggy and sore. Her shoulders were aching to the point that they didn't want to lift off the bed. She felt the material. It was… Soft. And smooth. She could see the fibers sticking out of the blanket, but couldn't feel them. She was so, so cozy. She’d never been in a bed like this. She turned her head to the side and saw her hair fall in front of her eyes.

Her hair!

She still had it! She shot straight up out of bed. Her back disagreed. She flopped back down. She didn’t know where she was or how she got there. But she did know this bed felt nice. She fell back to sleep.

Grand Junction was a city beyond her dreams—a city filled with bioluminescent crystal formations. There was a particular formation called ‘ice blooms’ that were solid ice shaped like jewels that clung to the outside of any building. They reflected the city's neon lights into strokes of vivid blues, violets, greens, and pinks. It made the entire street appear as if it were glowing beneath glass. There were silkweavers and fire dancers in the streets, performing for the masses. She noticed two men locked arm in arm. Not two men, per se, but men that looked completely like bears, aside from the fact that they were wearing clothes, standing upright, and clapping. She also learned what a bear was. 

She'd learned a lot since leaving Axion. It was filled to the brim with hybrids she'd never seen, and in return, had never seen wings like hers. They were nocturnal. It made sense; this part of Terra was in complete darkness for five years at a time. For the two years Helion returned, the land dwellers migrated north to Little Earth. 

Not only that, but the city also goes beneath the surface! So any nocturnal chimeras that want to stay in the dark simply live in the lower level of the city! And the lower levels felt like a new world. There were endless tunnels leading to music halls, studios, cafes, and anything you would need. Her favorite was the geothermal hot springs. Oh, she'd never felt relief like sitting in a steaming hot pool. 

Glowfeeders tried to nibble at her toes. Small bioluminescent fish that eat moss. They resemble drifting stars underwater. She thought about Geoff. She wondered where he was, what he was teaching. She wondered if he missed her. 

“May I join you?” A voice said. She turned.

“Yes, please!” Elysia said, moving to the opposing side of the pool to face her. Eva dropped her towel, revealing nothing underneath. This was common in all of Lumenfall, but it still made her blush. 

She allowed her eyes to follow the curves of her body as she slowly got into the spring. She was an owl hybrid; she wasn't sure what kind. But her head had no hair, only speckled brown feathers that matched her fluffy wings. She didn't seem preoccupied with finding out what they were exactly. Her feathers ran down most of her chest, ending in a V at the base of her sternum. Her eyes were completely black, mirroring anything she looked at. Gods, she was attractive. The fish moved around her, like stars orbiting a sun.

Eva swam over to her, resting her arms around Elysia's shoulders. She kissed her deeply. Elysia wrapped her wings around Eva, and Eva fluttered out. 

“Ah! Trying to trap me, I see,” she chuckled. 

“No, just trying to get the most I can out of you,” Elysia said, grabbing her by the waist and pulling her closer again. Eva smiled and stroked her hair. Eva tsk-ed.

“I know you're leaving,” she said. Elysia sighed and loosened her grip. 

“How did you know?” She asked. Eva floated back to her side of the pool, letting her legs dangle in front of her. 

“Traveler to traveler, there's a look we get. It's like… We get tired of seeing the same things. Even if those things are wonderful.” She kicked a bit of water towards Elysia with her toes. Elysia chuckles. 

“I've enjoyed our time together,” Elysia stated. Eva nodded.

“I would like to continue to enjoy it until you leave.” She said, floating over to Elysia once again. They both giggled as they wrapped each other in their wings.

She stuck close to the coast. She was heading towards ThoDue, and was told she'd ‘know it when she saw it’. Boy, was Clara right. It was a bright green swamp that was full of geothermal pools between massive clumps of trees and vines. She hadn't seen trees like them before; they were wide, both base and top, like an hourglass. 

She flew until she saw what could only be Lowreed, the capital. There seemed to be a permanent fog that covered the city. Constructed across floating platforms, raised stone walkways, anchored barges, and interconnected stilt districts, the city is designed to move alongside the constantly shifting waters of the marsh. 

Over generations, the isolation allowed ThoDue to develop largely independent of the political struggles shaping Little Earth, North Axis, and later Axion Communities, which became highly interconnected through family networks, river trade, and shared stewardship of the marshlands rather than through centralized government. Amphibian and water-adapted hybrids make up much of the population, with fishing, diving, farming, and watercraft forming the backbone of daily life.

She sat on a dock listening to a frog man play a reed flute. He was very good; she'd never heard a flute before. It sounded like wind but sharper and in different tones. 

“Whadya thinka that then, fish boy?” He asked, finishing his song. The fish boy in question was in the water, looking up at them, watching him play. He had gills and webbed hands and was staying halfway above the water with ease. He clapped.

“Thank ya, thank ya.” He said. The man in the water then began to do something with his hands. He was waving them around and making symbols. He's trying to communicate, Elysia thought. 

“You can't speak?” She asked him. He shook his head. 

“Naw, none of 'em fish folk can,” The flutist said. 

“Do you know what he's saying?” she asked. He looked over to the man again, who seemed to be about to repeat his message. 

“Fiddlestick, rice cakes, gold’n record, I dunno!” He said. Vespera looked at him disapprovingly. Apparently, so did the man in the water, who made a rude gesture and paddled away back underwater. The frog man laughed. Or rather, ribbited. It sounded like a mix. 

“I like messin' with ‘em. It's easy. He said he liked yer wings; they're pretty,” he said. 

“Oh!” Vespera said, blushing. “That was nice.” 

The ‘golden record’ comment stuck with Elysia. It was an off-handed comment by the flutist, but she wanted to know more. There she was. She had been traveling for almost two years at this point, and here she was in the Echo Agora—the Heart of Little Earth. In the middle of Lake Halon sat Landing—the first ever colonized portion of Terra.

When humans first landed, they faced extraordinary odds. However, this was no ordinary group of individuals. Some people were engineers, scientists, and doctors. Unfortunately, the landing wasn't supposed to happen; it was a search-and-recovery mission only. However, their ship, The Sinatra, was totaled. The captain was going to land in the lake but was able to course-correct to the island just in time. It became clear that returning to Earth was not possible, so they began expanding on Terra. No, it's Terrava. 

Terra was the name Axis gave the planet. Apparently, Captain Hollis thought it was easier to say than Terrava, and it just stuck. She learned that from Eva. No chimera started in Little Earth, but due to interrelations, the population of hybrids is growing.

The architecture blends into the landscape by using woven vegetation, green-yellow clay, salvaged spacecraft metal, and shaded walkways. They also have the largest scale model of not only Terrava's solar system, but Earth's as well. The models are connected over many miles with a red and yellow wire. The red, representing the flight path the Sinatra took, and the yellow, representing the flight path of the Golden Record. The best part about this sculpture is the small models on both wires, made to look like the Sinatra and Voyager, respectively. They travel to and from the solar systems via a wire to show the speed at which they travel. The Voyager even slows down once it “runs out of fuel”.

Lake Halon itself is worth mentioning—a huge lake filled with a dense cyan-blue gas rather than any water. The gas behaves similarly to a slow-moving fluid, allowing specialized native organisms to move through it in enormous migratory currents beneath the surface fog. Huge whales looked as if they floated in clouds just beneath the surface. 

The Echo Agora is a massive historical and social center located in Little Earth, built around the preserved remains of Voyager 1 and the Golden Record. Constructed shortly after the probe's discovery, the Agora serves as both a museum and a public gathering space dedicated to preserving humanity’s memory, knowledge, and connection to old Earth. 

She was in the records chambers, sobbing. Witnessing humankind at its beginning. The record held images from Earth. Animals she'd never seen, animals she'd never heard. The forests of Earth sounded alive with the sounds of life, not the sounds of ringing. All the information Little Earth leaked to the public, all of it was true. Axion told them it was a lie, that we had no record before the Elric. She felt like she should've known. North Axis and Axion split for a reason. North Axis believed Little Earth and allowed that information to be passed around. Axion did not.

She sat facing the wall, staring at a portion of the disc that highlighted Earth's position in the solar system, the third planet from the Sun. Terra was the fourth planet from Helion. She wondered about her parents. How were her Mom and Ma? She missed them all the time. They bawled the day she left, telling her how proud they were. Her Ma was especially thrilled, telling her how she couldn't wait to hear her stories. She began to cry again, listening to the sounds of crickets. She learned what crickets were. What about Geoff? Was he still in the same school? Had he moved on?

“Elysia?” a voice whispered. Her feathers pricked up. She knew that voice.