Sonder wished for some sunlight, but the way the clouds hung in the sky, unmoving and thick, there'd be little chance for it.
She sat on collapsed stone and looked up, swinging her legs.
And then she thought she saw something.
At first she thought it was nothing, some dust stirring by, or a trick of the dark clouds in the sky.
But faintly, there was something.
She narrowed her eyes and tried to look directly at it.
It drifted slowly, about the size of an apple. It was round, and floated along in the air.
It looked like a big speck of dust.
The thing bobbed once, then floated sideways, passing through a gap in the ruins close to her.
It continued on, unbothered by Sonder's presence, drifting closer and then pausing once it drifted close enough to notice her, as though it only came to be aware of her now.
It made a cooing sound, but she saw no mouth, or glow, or pulse of anything.
Slowly and carefully, Sonder lifted a hand.
The creature hesitated for a moment, and then drifted toward her open palm. It settled there with no weight, warmth, or resistance, like it was barely there.
It really was like a big ball of dust.
Sonder held perfectly still.
Whatever it was, it seemed curious. Not hostile or afraid. It just wanted to see what Sonder was.
The little thing quivered.
Sonder held her already-slow breath, afraid that exhaling would send it drifting away again.
The ball shifted in her palm, sliding and rolling around.
It felt soft, like a ball of yarn, just much lighter.
It didn't seem to be very magical. It seemed to be just a creature of this land.
A few grains lifted from its surface and floated upwards and away.
Sonder tilted her palm just slightly. The dust-creature rolled with the movement, losing a few more parts of it that lifted themselves off into the air.
"Are you alive?" she asked softly.
The creature made the cooing sound again, slightly louder this time. It didn't seem like an answer, but it felt like acknowledgment of the sounds that Sonder made at it.
"Is this your home?"
It didn't respond this time.
Even though it didn't answer, it felt nice to talk to it.
The dust-creature drifted up from her palm and hovered at eye level, rotating in the air and then dropped back into her palm.
It felt like a sign of trust.
"I won't hurt you," she said, though she wasn't sure why she felt the need to promise.
The creature lingered.
Then, faintly, for the first time in this land, wind stirred.
It gained power each moment, and in seconds, it was almost a storm.
She cupped her hands, giving the creature shelter from the heavy wind.
A sound cut through the air.
A ghastly screech.
At the sound, the dust-being stiffened and pulled itself into a little ball, losing much of its size.
Sonder stood at once, her staff sliding into her grasp.
The screech came again, echoing across the ruins.
Something moved in the sky.