Maija glanced at her through the corner of her eye and asked through short gasping breaths, “How are, you? Not tired?”
Natalia replied calmly, “Don’t worry about me, you’re doing great. Just focus on breathing steadily, in and out. Bring the oxygen deep into your lungs, not your stomach, and extend your legs out, expanding your stride.”
Maija faced forward with determination. She did exactly as Natalia suggested. She slowed her breathing with each breath and let her chest expand as the air filled her lungs. She exhaled calmly and slowly, in succinct repetition. Once Maija felt she’d developed a good breathing cadence, she began to focus on her stride. She let her legs extend farther between each stride, stretching them out one step at a time until she felt as though she was bounding like a deer through tall grass. She looked to her side, smiling at her sister, but Natalia was no longer beside her. She was now far behind. Surprised, Maija realized she was running much faster than she had been before.
The cool evening breeze flowing across her warm skin helped her relax into the run. Her heart pounded steadily, and she could feel her body temperature rise as elven blood coursed through her veins. She slowed slightly, letting her older sister catch up.
“That was excellent,” Natalia said as she came alongside again.
“I can’t believe it!” Maija shouted. “That was amazing! What a rush!”
Nadir caught up to them. He’d been watching them both from a distance to monitor their progress. “That was good, Maija,” he said simply. “If you pick your knees up a bit higher, you’ll lengthen your stride even more. Also, don’t forget to push your arms back, raising your elbows behind your core as your run. This will drive your legs to move even faster.”
Maija nodded at his advice.
“Natalia, you’re looking very comfortable. I think you could increase your speed if it feels good. If you have any pain, however, any pain at all, you should slow back down to a more comfortable pace. Pushing yourself too hard could result in permanent injury,” Nadir warned.
“Okay,” Natalia said. “Hey Maija, let’s see if you can keep up.” Natalia took off in front of them at an alarming rate.
Maija attempted to match her sister’s pace. She kept her breathing in control and used what Nadir had told her to drive her knees up. She turned her legs over faster using the pull of her arms. Soon she was right behind Natalia as they sprinted across the valley floor toward the Eastland Mountains.
Coming up on her right side, Maija asked, “How are your legs feeling?”
Natalia replied, “Just fine. I don’t want to push it too hard though, so I’m going to slow down a bit.” She shortened her stride and returned to a fast run. Maija did the same.
Nadir caught up once again, “Natalia that looked great. Smart choice to hold back though. And Maija, nicely done, you seem to be a natural at this. As you run more, you’ll find that there are countless fine details you can work on to improve your speed and stamina, but as a whole, for now, I wouldn’t change a thing.”
Maija smiled. She had been so worried about not being capable, but now she wondered why she’d been so nervous; it was just running after all.
They continued to follow the elf army. Due to the army’s slower pace, Maija knew they wouldn’t arrive at Cedarbridge at the same time as Anders. At least they wouldn’t be days behind them, as they would’ve been if they’d had to walk like humans or dwarfs.
Anders had watched as Maija and Natalia started out across the valley. At first, they appeared to run relatively slowly, but suddenly Maija gained speed and was running much faster than Natalia and Nadir. Then Natalia who took off like a bolt of lightning, running as fast as any other elf. To his surprise, Maija responded to the challenge, catching up with Natalia in no time. He laughed seeing the long-lost sisters competing as they neared the mountains.
“It looks like Maija’s figured it out,” he said over his shoulder to Ivan.
Ivan glanced down, “I knew she would. She’s an elf after all. It’s in her blood.”
“Hey, Ivan,” Anders asked, no longer worried about Maija. “There’s something I’d like to see while we’re over here.”
“What’s that?” Ivan asked.
“Nadir told me about the kingdom of the dwarfs and their home within the mountain. He said it’s not far from here. I was wondering if we could see it?”
Ivan didn’t respond right away, pondering the question for a moment. Then he answered, “Yes, Mount Orena is not far. I don’t see why we couldn’t make a few passes over it. That is, as long as Zahara doesn’t mind the extra flight time?”
I don’t mind. I would like to see the dwarf kingdom. That way I’ll know what they look like and won’t take them for enemies or food in the future, she said.
“We might find ourselves making a journey there anyway,” Ivan said.
“What do you mean?” Anders asked.
“With Merglan openly launching attacks again, we’re going to need all the help we can get, and the dwarfs are terribly fierce fighters. We’d be lucky to have them as allies in this war.”
Anders fantasized about meeting dwarfs. He pictured their stone carving, unique masonry, and abundant riches mined from the depths of the earth.
How do I get there? Zahara asked.
Ivan pointed Zahara in the right direction using his mind. They flew farther east over the Eastland Mountains. Nestled among the craggy peaks was a large mountain, its apron spread wide at the base. Lush green fields wrapped around its base like a blanket.
“Is that it?” Anders said, pointing to the towering mountain.
Ivan nodded.
“It’s beautiful,” he said in awe of the majesties of the mountain. As they flew closer, Anders noticed livestock grazing along the mountain’s base and felt something inside him, much like the stomach pain of an irresistible hunger. He took a closer look, squinting to see tiny white critters scattered along the hillside.
Zahara, Anders said.
Yes, Anders, Zahara replied, trying to make her thoughts feel innocent.
Are those the little white creatures you so blissfully enjoyed eating earlier? he asked. He didn’t need to hear her response. He could feel it within her and knew these were the sheep she’d eaten earlier that day.
I don’t think the dwarfs will appreciate you eating their sheep, Anders scolded her.
I didn’t know they belonged to anyone, she said trying to come up with a good excuse.
We’ll just have to hope they don’t know it was a dragon that ate them, he said.
Zahara circled over the mountain several times. Anders noticed more than one walled entrance into the mountain. Even from the air, he could tell that they were designed and built with great skill and detail. He marveled at the masonry the dwarfs used to craft their city and kingdom under a mountain.
