TravelingDreamer

  Acc to my calcutions, our voyage from Arno Atoll to Hawaii should have taken three or three and a half days at the most, but no oold the o that, so it was unaware of the fad did as it pleased.

  In the initial two days, the wi ging dire. At first, I tried tag, but it was impossible. As I turned right to get some of the wind, it ged dire to the right. As I turned left to catch it, it ged dire to the left. I felt like the wind ying games with me, ging dire no matter how I adjusted the sails or the boat.

  “You’re kidding me, aren’t you?” I muttered aloud, voig my exasperation. “I read that this area has excellent trade winds for sailing, so what’s this nonsense?” I directed my pint to the wind.

  “Who are you talking to?” Alfonsen asked, amused.

  “The wind.”

  “And is it talking back?”

  “Not yet, but I’m not giving up hope,” I replied with a grin.

  He shook his head, smiling.

  Eventually, I ceded defeat with the sails, seg them and relying solely on the engine. Here, too, the o behaved erratically—the currents kept pulling the boat in different dires. I had to stantly monitor the pass to adjust our course and keep sailing in the right dire. The various currents also created whirlpools, which I had to avoid as much as possible, and sudden waves that bouhe boat upwards.

  My poor boy started feeling sick again, so I kept steering with one hand and casting Healing Touch repeatedly with the other. Towards the first day’s evening, the erratids calmed down a bit. They were still blowing unfavorably, and we didn’t feel like tag. None of us had the energy to wrestle with the sails, so we tinued under engine power. Mahya took charge of navigation for most of the night, giving me a ce to rest and care for Rue. Though he had not fully recovered, he was better, as the tumultuous waves subsided.

  Although the sed day was a little more id-back than the first, it was still quite simir. The wind still ged dire occasionally, so we didn’t open the sails. ine was good enough, and we had enough power to make it to Hawaii three times. The currents also calmed down. They still tried to py tug-of-war with us, but at least there were no whirlpools. The sailing was retively less problematic but still not smooth. At least Rue was feelier.

  Alfoook the helm most of the day and did a det job. So, I let my mi and tio train my mana sense.

  When I saw Mahya still flipping through the Bible, I got an idea. I focused on my Ste and found all of Lis’ books on part. I took them out iy-piece sets and examined eae. Although I had yet to learn all the nguages, I had enough knowledge to identify the books’ tent. I had a colle of seventeen books that covered eleven distinct runiguages. In addition, I had forty-five books of magic script that were not runes.

  First, there were the rune nguages. These looked like traditional alphabets, but each rune wasn’t just a letter, but a symbol with deep meaning. Think of them as eng cepts rather than sounds. For example, a rune might represent a specific elemental force, like fire or water, or it could embody an aspect of nature, such as the cycle of life or the power of the seasons. These runes aren’t just about unication; they’re like densed capsules of ic wisdom, each with its own story.

  Oher hand, magic scripts are a differe altogether. Imagine scripts resembling a hieroglyphs or intricate eiform tablets with many squiggles and circles thrown in. Instead of prising simple symbols, these scripts incorporate multiple yers of meaning. Each symbol doesn’t limit itself to one cept—it funs as a nexus of ideas that shift depending on the surrounding symbols. Picture a symbol for “prote” that, when bined with others, also mean “ward against darkness” uard the ritual agaiernal interferehese scripts are like puzzles, where the arra of symbols holds the key to unlog their full potential.

  In essence, while rune nguages are like a direct versation with the universe—clear and precise in their symbolism—magical scripts are more like cryptic puzzles.

  Examining the books, I saw that while some magic script books shared symbols, each tained unique glyphs absent in others. Furthermore, I discovered twe volumes on rituals illustrated with circles, stars, squares, and cubes, as well as over two hundred books on diverse subjects featuring runes ic script symbols.

  I took the whole pile to Mahya and told her, “These are all books of runiguages, magic scripts, or other topics that include some runes or symbols. Don’t you think that’s enough? I see no reason to search for archaeological finds to learn one or two new runes. We’ll also visit other worlds; I’m sure we’ll find cool stuff there. I don’t want to lioo long oh to pursue lost knowledge that may or may .”

  She looked at the whole pile and sighed, her shoulders drooping. “You’re right. I knew about ye library, but it slipped my mind. I also think my father’s influence made me start researg this. The subject doesn’t i me, but it made me feel close to my parents,” she expined, her voice softening as she gnced away.

  “When was the st time you saw them?”

  Her eyes narrowed as she did the mental calcution. “About seventy years in my liimeline, or a hundred ating for time skips.”

  I whistled, shaking my head. “Quite a while. Would you like to see them?”

  “I ’t,” she said, her to. “I know a of Gates from the teological world from which I set out on a space jouro the new p destined for ization. From here, I have no idea. Besides, when I left, my parents also inteo tiraveling. They settled in the world where I was born to raise a family; I was the you of three children. My brother and sister left years ago,” she added, her gaze distant.

  “Do you miss them?” I asked quietly, watg her expression.

  “Yes, but we keep in touch through the Archive. There’s not much correspondence, but we exge information about what’s happening with us once every six months or a year,” she expined, her lips curving into a small, bittersweet smile.

  “Do you know where they are?”

  “The st time we correspohey decided to face a tech world. They liked my stories about the space travel I did and became intrigued. They were searg for a teologically advanced world where they could experience space travel.”

  “I hope they enjoy it.”

  “Yeah, me too,” she agreed, though there was a hint of sadness in her voice.

  “Do you wao leave you the books?” I asked, gesturing to the pile.

  “We’re good for now,” she said, standing up. “It’d be great if you could arrange your books on the mezzahat way, anyone get a book.”

  “I’m going to do it. I just o figure out how to bind them,” I scratched my head. “I’d rather not use rubber bands to keep stacks of paper or part together. I’ll find some bindings, make actual books out of them, put a cover on to keep the pages safe, and then put them on the shelves.”

  “Good idea,” she said with a nod. She was smiling, but still looked sad.

  She went to the back deck, took out the motorcycle she had already disassembled half of, and tio tinker with it. I went back to training my mana sense.

  Ohird day, we finally had good sailing ditions. The sea was calm with a gentle breeze, and there was no hint of fog, whirlpools, or turbulent waves. Acc to our Travelers’ Map, we were nearly halfway to Hawaii, maintaining our schedule.

  Over breakfast, I said to Mahya and Alfonsen, “I want to take the house out so Rue watch TV. With all he’s been through, he deserves it. We also have to practice with the hot-air balloon. This pce looks great, and the weather is perfect.”

  “Will you be acquiring the skill from the Guidance?” Alfonsen asked, raising an eyebrow.

  His question surprised me. It never occurred to me to buy the skill, but why not, actually? I had no iion of taking a six-month course on how to fly a hot-air balloon, and I had a lot of points.

  “I think so. Mahya, what do you think?” I asked, turning toward her.

  “Yes, we have enough points,” she replied, nodding thoughtfully. “I’m embarrassed I didn’t think of it before, but I’m still stu the mihat points are too valuable to waste on nonsense. But I have over two hundred and fifty points. I afford it without worries.”

  “Two hundred and fifty!” Alfonsen excimed, his eyes widening. “Once we arrive on nd, I will o enroll in a signifit number of workshops,” he added, shaking his head in disbelief.

  I reassured him with a shoulder squeeze. “We’ll take care of you; don’t worry,” I said with a smile.

  That m, Alfonsen seemed unusually cheerful, something I wasn’t used to. Usually, he looked displeased, lost in thought, or ral. He did smile and ugh, but only for specific reasons. But this m, he was all smiles.

  “You seem happy this m. Did something happen?” I asked, studying his face.

  “Indeed, I have reached a resolution.”

  “Oh, and what did you decide?”

  “I have decided not to return. My father will o ceive a new successor. I aspire to tinue my travels, and perhaps, in the distant future, when I grow weary of the journey, I might sider returning to Leylos or seek out a new location to establish roots. But this time, without the burden of establishing a kingdom, it’s too arduous.”

  He said the st senteh su expression of disgust that Mahya and I started ughing.

  “What happeo your points?” I asked.

  “The Guiding Spirits have been kind to me,” he replied. “I have lost four points from my total, but I did not lose my mana shield.”

  “Excellent.”

  “What are we talking about?” Mahya asked.

  “Alfonsen decided to give up his title of heir and tiraveling. He feared losing the mana shield because he exged stat points to buy it. But he only lost the points without losing the spell.” I said.

  Mahya sighed and said, “gratutions. I wish it would have worked like this, but I verted it by choice to an engineering skill.”

  “Don’t worry,” I said. “Either we’ll find you a scroll with a different version of this spell, or I’ll try to build you a different one. We’ll find a solution.”

  She nodded, and we tinued eating.

  When we were on the back deck, I asked Mahya, “How should we ect the house?”

  She ied the railing, retrieved an engraving pen, and inscribed some runes. “This will keep the railing from ing or breaking. Take out two s that you’ve already carved runes on.”

  I gave her the s; she attached the ends to the railing and said, “Take the house out, immediately jump over the railing onto the pontoons, and secure the s to the house’s posts, attag them on both sides of the stairs.”

  Following her dires, I pleted the e with a three-meter gap to prevent actal tact between the house and the boat for safety.

  Mahya told me, “and your house to attach the steps to the boat.”

  “What do you mean?”

  “Just do it; you’ll see.”

  I ahe house as she said, and the stairs straighteurning into a ship’s ramp and reag the boat. Mahya secured the ends of the stairs to the railing with sturdy zip ties.

  “Shorten the s to match the distance of the stairs,” she said.

  I adjusted the s, double-ing them around each post before clipping them together.

  I called Rue to e to the house, activated the dead zone in the spell room, ected the puter, and gave him snacks for the movie. He kept lig my fad mentally shouting, “John, friend! John, friend!”

  I patted him and said, “Have fun, buddy.”

  Mahya brought me a pile of crystals and said, “Pce them in the charging station. I sed with the full crystals.”

  We took the balloon out to i but ran into a problem. Every time we watched someone ihe balloon, they would y the basket on its side, spread the balloon out fully on the ground, have two people hold the balloon’s mouth open, and then a third person would turn on a giant fan that ran on a geor to fill the balloon with air. Only after fully infting the balloon did they turn on the gas. At first, with the basket lying on its side and the balloon on the ground, then slowly lifted and straightehe basket as the balloon rose.

  We tried to spread the balloon on the sea with the e-foils, but the water kept getting in, and we realized it wouldn’t work. We were also afraid to turn on the big fan on the boat, lest the mana burn it. The three of us sat on the back deck, deep in thought and trying to find a solution.

  Mahya said, “I have the Wind Funnel spell. If you and Alfonsen hold the balloon open, I fill it with air.”

  It worked; we filled the balloon, which gave me an idea. Instead of using gas, I poured the Heat spell into the balloon, which slowly rose. We left the gas system in the basket to operate as needed when the balloon was in the air, but for now, I was the “gas.”

  After the balloon rose almost pletely, Mahya climbed into the basket and said, “Hands off,” as we heard the operators say.

  She turned on the gas, and the balloon rose more. She shouted to me from above, “When the balloon rises to a height of about four or five hundred meters, tie it to the railing.”

  I gave her a thumbs up, and she kept rising.

  “Do you need me for anything else?” asked Alfonsen.

  “No. Thank you very much. You go to sleep.”

  Alfonseo sleep, Mahya reached the desired height, and I tied her to the railing. Rue watched a movie at home, and I went to the helm and started the e low speed. I thought it would be more iing for Mahya if we moved forward. That’s how we sailed for half a day. I was at the helm, sailing at low speed, while Mahya in the balloon.

  At one point, we saw a yacht sailing in the distance. After some time, it was clear they saw us and turowards us. At first, I thought ently calling Rue and st the house. But if I saw them, they must have already seen the house—especially with binocurs.

  When they reached us, we saw a group of young people, maybe fifteen, iwehey took out their phones and took pictures of the boat, the house, and the hot-air balloon.

  One of them shouted to me, “You know how to live, bro.”

  I gave him a thumb-up, and the entire group waved goodbye to me and Mahya before sailing away.

  In the evening, Mahya took down the balloon, Rue returo the boat to eat dinner, and Alfonsen woke up to join us. We all sat together in the saloon and ughed about the people we met that day. We cluded they would talk about us for years.

  It was a fun day in the sun.

  The o was muicer and cooperative during the wo days of the voyage. I finally met the trade winds the articles oer promised me, but they were gentle enough that they didn’t make big waves. I had no problem with the waves, but I’m sure Rue thahe Guiding Spirits daily for our sailing ditions.

  After the first day, Mahya decided not to open the balloon again—it was too much of a headache to open and fold it. I assured her that in Nevada, in the desert, there lenty of room, and we could fly long distances. Our basket was big enough.

  This reminded me I o create some kind of wind spell to help Mahya navigate the balloon. I already khe “fvor” of wind or air, but I still couldn’t replicate it. I sat with my eyes closed on the back deck, spread my mana sense as wide as it would go, ahe mana of the surrounding wind.

  This time, eg to the wind’s mana was much easier. I didn’t know if it happened because my mind power rew or maybe because there were no disturbances here and the wind ure,” but I quickly lost myself in her.

  I got to know her like a close friend. Pyful and light, she dislikes staying in the same pd occasionally has tantrums, but she is never malicious. She loves to py, sing, and make music with the leaves, the waves, the sand, and anything that makes a sound. She enjoys traveling and wandering and hates being limited or strained. I got to know her a a strong e with her. I, too, was like a leaf in the universe’s wind. Flying from one world to another, wherever the winds will take me.

  This part of me felt a closeness, affinity, empathy, harmony with the wind, and a e fed between us. We were one, both of us blowing across the os without roots or a pce that was truly ours. But everything was ours, from the open spaces to the closed caves. We were everywhere, and every pce was our domain and home, but it also wasn’t, as we had no roots to tie us down. I sank deeper and deeper into the wind, and for a fleeting moment, I felt Unity. The wind and I merged into one, and nothing could separate us.

  I opened my eyes and found myself floating above the sea, and our boat about two hundred meters away from me. From the shock, I lost the e and fell into the water. It was such a big surprise that I started filing and swallowed some water.

  Snap out of it!

  I stopped filing a myself float for a mio get myself under trol. After feeling calm, I took out the E-foil, pumped a lot of mana into it for speed, and surfed to the boat. Meanwhile, the boat moved almost a kilometer away from me.

  When I got to the boat, Mahya came out of the saloon and asked me, “Why did you suddenly decide to jump into the water?”

  “It wasn’t pnned,” I replied, feeling sheepish.

  “How exactly do you jump into the water without pnning it?” she asked, crossing her arms.

  “When the boat runs away from you.”

  She looked at me with wide eyes. “Huh?!” she excimed.

  “Don’t ask. I was trying to build a wind spell and ran into a minor snag. Don’t worry, I’m w on it,” I expined, rubbing the bay neck.

  She shook her head and muttered, “Wizards are so weird.”

  “Did you get to meet many wizards?”

  “One before you, and he was straoo. He would argue with fire and talk with water,” she said, rolling her eyes.

  “Did he tell you anything or teach you anything that could help me advance as a wizard?” I asked, half-joking.

  “No. He didn’t talk to people at all, just the elements. Like I said, weird.”

  “When I start talking to grass, hit me on the head to wake me up, okay?” I said, ughing.

  She ughed, too, and nodded, her eyes twinkling with amusement.

  After the st “act,” I decided not to py with the wind over the o. If I got too ected to it, the boat might disappear over the horizon, and I wouldn’t be able to find it. Instead, I started practig the sed exercise Lis gave me. Spreading my mana sense as far as possible, I plucked a basil leaf from a sprig of herbs and practiced moving it all over my mana field. It was easier. Before, my mana would move away from my body about forty or fifty timeters and dissipate. With an active mana field, I could trol it at a distance of close to two meters. It still wasn’t even close to the size of my mana field, but it rogress in the right dire.

  On the following day of sailing, I didn’t feel like practig, reading, or doing anythied to my studies. I just wao enjoy the sea. Rue wanted a movie, but I expio him we were already very close to Hawaii and occasionally saw boats or yachts, so taking out the house wasn’t a good idea. He wasn’t pleased and gave me sideways gnces most of the day with mentally shouted grumblings.

  Iernoon, I took out my guitar and started strumming the strings. I didn’t py a specifig or melody. I simply relished the sound of the musid a song posed itself in my mind. Instead of being written, it inated within me and spontaneously exploded ience. I took a pen and paper and wrote down the lyrics to avoid fetting them. It was a description born of my feelings and my e with the wind. I felt she art of the creation and realized our e was not pletely severed.

  Sea & SkySurrounded by sea and sky, Sun above, trade winds high, In this vastness, here am I, Amidst the waves, alone, I lie.

  Ohis pce was home to me, Now, a visitor, roaming free, Expl nds, yet roots won’t see, Wandering wide, my destiny.

  A past behind of sorrow’s song, Pain so deep, it felt s, Loss and loneliness, days were long, Until a guiding hand came strong.

  Now, a nomad, a world to roam, A traveler with skies, my dome, Charting paths where dreams are sown, Seeking joy, a pce called home.

  I sat and pyed with the guitar until I created a melody and began to sing.