'What do I have to do?' Firuz asked.
'First get back in your body.' Azad raised his purple striped hand, pulsing with life, and guided Firuz's soul back into his body. Firuz heaved back to life as he regained control of his body. He stared at his fingers, flexed them, relishing in the control that it brought him. Azad stood before him in ragged clothes and his carefree smile.
Firuz scrambled to his feet, the wind howled around him, carrying clouds of dust with it, yet all he felt was a gentle breeze. "Why doesn't the wind affect us?"
'Because, I am the wind.' Azad's words spilled into Firuz's mind; soft and gentle like the wind around him.
"You are the wind?" Arash's eyes widened in surprise. "But wind doesn't has shape it howls over the houses, carrying dust and children with it… but you. You are."
'You don't know anything about the world you live in. But soon you will; a promise has been made and a promised will be fulfilled.' Azad's body disintegrated, purple ribbons dancing in the air, merging with it. A soft gentle wind pushed Firuz off his feet and carried him towards his house. He could feel the dust storm ragin around him but nothing came near him. He flew over the cobblestone pathway, sailing over the short, squat houses that looked like tiny squares from above. Everything was so small and new. He saw the distant mana deposits. Glowing with a deep blue hue. The wind cradled him like a child, rustled his hairs. He felt a lightness in him; all the worries faded under the new world beneath.
The wind brought him back to his house, gently placing him on his feet. Azad once again weaved into existence. 'Galvi tend to stick together. There should be a swarm in your house. We have to destroy it' He turned to towards Firuz, his voice filled caution. 'They are connected by a single consciousness, and what one feels, every single Galvi in the swarm will feel the pain… They are connected to you. You will feel their pain, feel their death, and experience the deaths of every single galve in the swarm. It is a terrible thing; you might lose your mind. I ask you again, do you want to be free?'
Firuz's heart chilled as he imagined dying a million times. Suddenly, being a cripple didn't feel such a bad thing. Tears gleamed in his eyes as he imagined two different lives one a life of adventure and another a life of a cripple. He closed his eyes and felt the lingering vestiges of his adventure through the sky. Determination flashed in his eyes, he had the answer. It was always there, lurking beneath his frustrations.
"I want to be free." Firuz solemnly nodded. He stared at the boy who called himself the wind. Azad stood in front of him, his lips pursed into a thin line. Firuz saw something hidden deep beneath his impassive eyes. Guilt. It was only there for a second. Firuz shook his head and discarded the thought.
They searched through his house for the possible location where the Galvi might have formed their nest. They searched in the dark corners, beneath the beds, and in the old pantry.
'Firuz have you seen anything strange lately...' Azad only had to look at Firuz before he knew the answer. 'Things when you are awake., like shifting patterns? They like to hide inside the patterns. It makes it hard for them to be found out.'
Firuz sat on his bed, thinking. "Something strange… When I am awake" He reclined on his bed, racking his brain for an answer. Suddenly he saw something shift on the ceiling. He stilled, eyes trained on the roof. "Did you see that!" He pointed at the ceiling.
'See what?' Azad asked
"There! At the ceiling above! The cement rippled for a moment. I..." the cement shifted in the slightest. "There. It moved again"
Azad grimly stared at the ceiling. 'Firuz leave the house. I don't know how many are there in this swarm. It will be dangerous.'
Firuz hesitantly nodded and slipped out of the room and dashed outside the house. He could feel the winds getting stronger and stronger. Suddenly he heard a loud explosion and felt terrible pain across his chest. He lost his balance and collapsed face first at the cold cobblestone pathway. He pushed himself off the ground and saw his house ripple with life. The short squat house scattered into rolling clouds of grey ash. Firuz could see a frail figure standing amidst the grey cloud. Azad grimly stared at the grey ash circling around him...