Chapter 2

Spring evening, and it was almost dark. The damp, cold air pleasantly cooled the lungs burning after running, and thick twilight along with oxygen was absorbed into the blood. Peaceful jogging at the stadium. The bright run of thoughts accumulated during the day was sorting out, was replaced by the darkness of the earth, the pale light of a high sky, the first stars and rapidly passing clouds, until calm contemplation and ecstatic excitement came.

The world was changing.

Right now, this moment, and the next, and before it. The world has changed its appearance, character, its essence. The wind rose, fresh, heady and stranger, bearing the aromas of alien places, other worlds and times. Carrying foreign places. What will be brought under cover of night while everyone is sleeping? Who, having risen in the morning, will be able to understand that he woke up in another world different from the previous one? And what will change?

'And what do you want?' The wind asked, touching the soul with light touches. 'What would you wish for?' He smiled, stroking the head and looking into the eyes, making his way into the heart.

'To fly,' the griffin answered, spreading its wings invisible to strangers.

The wind filled them, straightened them, and gave them strength. Flap - and you will fly out of the body, leave this world and fly after the sky blowing away. Just flap it...

As if becoming weightless in an increasing gusty wind, holding one foot on the ground, the griffin enjoyed the sensations. You making step - and you are not existing until you touch the ground. But having taken a step, you gain a heavy body that cannot be lifted on ghostly wings.

Closing his eyes, the griffin stood on tiptoe and flung its wings.

The wind laughed, hugging and tossing him, caressing, ruffling feathers and fur, giving strength. A small somersault in the air and back into the body, frozen and alive.

The griffin shuddered and laughed with happiness, intoxicated by the air element. He hid his semi-imaginary wings and put open hands to the wind, ran his fingers into its fur, feeding the dashing stream with his warmth.

'Thank you.'

The wind hugged back and pushed into the back.

'Where are you from?' the griffin asked, and the answer was the aromas of wanderings, wildlands, worlds, abandoned words, forgotten ideas, and melodies.

The story, impressions, images - everything that the griffin managed to catch and feel was vaguely familiar. As if in a dream you recall in detail another dream that you never saw, and when you wake up, you remember only the mood, not the details, and you want to return...

Having read the light melancholy settled in the griffin, the wind whispered in his ear 'Do you want to go there?'

The heart stumbled, the soul jerked after, and the wind, in response to the gift and the moisture that had appeared on griffin's eyes, rushed off, according to his business, leaving the guy alone in the night field.

The air rustled in his ears and blew, carrying the smell of earth and old herbs. The sky was covered with clouds.

The world has become different.

Frozen and empty, the griffin reluctantly went home.

***

Evor was sleeping and at the same time not sleeping. As a wizard, he could have common dreams with other people, regardless of the distance. When it was necessary to talk with wizard friends, they gathered in a place specially created for this - a dream server. It was like a separate world outside the known worlds, and at the same time similar to pieces of others. Everyone could see something native there, something common, and at the same time, something unusual could be created. At the very beginning, wizards were fond of flying islands, space, the underwater world, surrealism, Escher's spaces and imitations of ancient and fairy worlds. However, the last few years after the closure of the Bergenburg's gate, meetings took place either in a forest glade, or in a mountain meadow, or, as now, in a spacious hall or grotto with a crystal roof.

'Congratulations, Evor,' the dragon's beautiful, deep voice sounded in the gloom, 'it worked out. Although not the same way as before', the winged gracefully bowed its head on a long neck.

'Thank you, Glen,' the griffin nodded in response and looked around at the others -- the feline and the second dragon, who had remained silent for now. 'But there is still a lot of work ahead. Be careful there. I want to see you in person without long trips and multi-day flights'.

The dragon smiled, and emerald eyes peered into amber griffins' eyes.

'Do not worry, galvanic invasions will not be repeated. Your Homeland is still the greatest potential danger, and we are careful and keeping eye on it. What is now disturbing is several worlds of researchers and adventurers. Mirk usually copes well with them. I do not worry. The main thing is that if our experiment with an artificial assistant succeeds, then it will be possible to try and return Saktaushysy Shekarasy ... or at least find her whole.

Evor jerked his tail.

'An artificial assistant ... like Dr. Bound, I would have preferred the old tools more, you know.'

The second dragon broke the silence, and her voice with a note of a smile reached the ears of the griffin.

'Like the fact that you agreed a long time ago and are following the plan. There is nothing to grumble, you have not lived up to the age of the grandfather. If something will go wrong - we will work as usual, manually. With you.'

'Well what can you do, this body has its expiration date, and it makes itself felt. Rayavartiyat, I am glad that you turned out to be stronger than I was, but even you had a hard time. Understand me please, I spent six years to recover somehow - this is a lot for a feathered carcass. I am afraid that I will not recover again if something goes wrong. Why do you need such an assistant?'

'We are still waiting for your return, you know.'

'Not just you. Please watch the gates until they stabilize.'

'Only with your help. You are closer to them now and on the right side, even if they are no longer in the backyard.'

'Well, we'll come tomorrow at the time of lunch. In the meantime, I beg your pardon; I need to visit another dreamer.'

'Of course. Say hello to her.'