15

Her wings flapped against the wind, loud in their resistance. If anyone had told her just days ago that she would be able to fly - to unfurl these beautiful wings and take off into the sky - she would have laughed them off. And now, here she was. 

It was exhilarating. Naturally, it took some getting used to at first. Turning, twirling, figuring out when to flap the wings and when to leave them outstretched, riding the winds - it was all a huge learning curve. What came to birds naturally came to her with great difficulty, and only through maximum focus and concentration could she control the wings the scientist had attached to her. 

The leather straps dug into her chest and sides, and her arms ached something furious, but this was undoubtedly the best experience she had ever had. Her own set of wings! She could take flight whenever she wished!

Enchanted, too, she reminded herself. They'll never let me fall. No matter what happens, I won't go plummeting down into the ground. Which, of course, was a huge relief - and one of the main reasons she had agreed to test the wings out in the first place.

But the enchantment was a double-edged sword, and she was soon to find that out herself. 

Her arms ached and tired, and soon the muscles began to cramp, screaming their protest. They needed rest. She bit her lip and relaxed them, trying not to move them. It took only a moment before she began to nose-dive. 

It was difficult to breathe, going at such speed. She knew, of course, that the wings wouldn't let her fall, but that enchantment was really taking its time kicking in.

And then - suddenly, and with a great deal of pain - it did.

The wings began to flap on their own, remedying her fatal trajectory, and all the while her the agonizing ache in her arms continued. Despite her exhaustion, the enchantment was forcing her arms to continue their work, even as her muscles radiated their suffering, even as it felt they were being shredded by the movements. 

The wings would take her back to the scientist's laboratory, just as the enchantment had been set up, but by the time she had returned and landed, she could no longer lift her arms or use them. They refused to respond to her, except to send waves of intolerable pain through her body. 

It was all she would experience for many days, while the scientist kept her at his laboratory, away from prying eyes - it would do no good for word of a failure of this magnitude to make itself known to his patrons - while he tried to heal her injuries and undo the damage.

But it could not be undone. It could not be taken back.

For a few minutes of flight, her arms had been irreversibly damaged.

😬

Ramadan 1445: If you are a Muslim writer of fiction or an Islamic fiction author, take the quick Google form interview and be featured in Scrittorio this Ramadan 2024.