5. Cascading Vista

As they began to walk, Pandrea started to look around. The world she had been dropped into was nothing like the place she had been. Plants had many different shapes and sizes; even the bugs were a variety of colors.

The sounds of water rushing seemed to come from everywhere. As Pandrea looked around, it was breathtaking to witness the surrounding cliffs. As far as the eye could see, unbelievable monoliths jutted out of cliff faces with magnificent waterfalls cascading over the edges. All the falling water caused a multitude of rainbows to appear, giving the vista a magical appearance.

Even with all of this, what Sigardus had said was still bothering her. It was a disturbing feeling knowing that Calimus was with her all the time, but the Shyft didn't speak up often. She wasn't sure if that made her more or less concerned.

Pandrea wasn't sure how she felt about having her personality changed. Calimus seemed nice, but his overall old man's attitude wasn't something she wanted to acquire. So many things all at the same time. The fact that her parents weren't her parents had taken a spot in the back of her mind.

Sigardus talked as they walked, explaining the plants and different animals of the region, but her thoughts were drifting. She still had a hard time believing this all, even though she was experiencing everything. Kira was now a small golden cloud that zipped between and around them as Sigardus talked.

"Kira seems very found of you. The little bugger usually hides when others are around. As I was saying about the Groves, they sit dormant until an unsuspecting traveler..." He tried to continue, but Pandrea interrupted him with a question.

"Where do the Shyfts come from?" Pandrea asked him as they walked into a clearing.

It was filled with a large pool of water and a waterfall crashing down. This filled the area with a rushing sound, and the golden Shyft began to zip around Sigardus incessantly. He motioned towards the waterfall and nodded. This made the golden light zip away towards the waterfall.

Sigardus gestured towards some rocks at the edge of the pool, and they both sat down. Kira became a golden mist and began spinning around with the other moisture. Calimus grumble something about children in the back of her mind. A tall cliff loomed in front of them with a gorgeous waterfall flowing down into a small pool of crystal blue water.

"Shyfts are special souls that have left this plane to become part of the Aethereal plane. After a time of being in the ethereal plane, these souls collect energy and can gain insubstantial forms we call Shyfts. The longer a Shyft has been in the Aethereal plane, the more substantial it becomes. Some of the oldest Shyfts are said to be able to take full form in our material plane. Though, I don't know anyone who has ever met one of these "god" Shyfts. It is said they can be bonded, but the person would instantly lose control of themselves," he said with a slight shiver.

"Lose themselves?" Pandrea asked.

"It is said that the God Shyfts are old beyond belief. The power that they are said to wield could level mountains. So, it is only natural for their souls to be far stronger. The stronger the soul, the greater the fight for control," Sigardus said, walking closer to the water.

"How do you meet a Shyft? Kira seems like such a carefree shift. I would love to meet one like her," she said to Sigardus as we watched Kira float to the top of the waterfall and turn into golden water and pour down along with the cascading water.

Sigardus smiled as he watched her. His face wasn't overly handsome, but his bright blue eyes made something flutter inside me. He turned back to me, running his hands threw his mess of hair only to make it go in several different directions.

"You don't meet them, you more stumble on to them, or they find you. Even stumble on to a Shyft would be the wrong way to put it. I don't think any Shyft will show itself unless they wanted to be seen. They are drawn to emotions; Kira came to me when I was in a terrible place. She came and brightened my world, and she gave me the power to move on. In all honesty, though, I don't think there is a real exact way to attracting them. They will find you if they want to," He said diffidently.

That made Pandrea think about Calimus and why he had found her. He had told her that her father had sent him. All this, along with falling out of the sky, had her feeling exhausted and grimy.

"Can we swim in that water?" Pandrea asked Sigardus as she stood up.

"The water should be fine to swim in," he said, also getting up.

Pandrea began to take her pants off, and she heard Sigardus began to sputter. She turned to see what was causing him to falter, and Sigardus had turned a bright red. At that moment, she realized the reason for his red face and put a chameleon to shame with the speed she turned red.

Pandrea let out a yip and hopped back, trying to pull her pants up. What was she thinking of?! Getting undressed in front of some man she had just met? Though, while she hopped back, she had forgotten where she stood. That was Pandrea's last thought as her foot slipped at the edge of the pool and fell into the water.