The wind, howling about Annabel with an intensity unlike any she had ever before experienced, deafened her. This is a living nightmare, she thought.

Disciplining herself to stay calm, Annabel focused inward and used skills learned during the course of her eighteen year life to erect mental barriers to the maelstrom about her. Then, one last effort and the horrendous roar was finally muted.

Thank goodness, she thought, momentarily ignoring the fact that she was still in physical peril. Crouched behind a gigantic oak, Annabel was sheltered against most of the wind that was trying to uproot every tree in the forest. Even so, enough of the wind was attacking her that she had to grip her cloak tightly with both hands to keep it from whipping away.

Made of material spun from Elfinmyst plants, Annabel's cloak did much more than simply protect her against the elements. It also kept safe, within its many pockets, items that Annabel would use to survive this unknown land for the next seven days. The most important of those items was the irreplaceable Mindspin key, her one and only way to return home once this quest was finished. So, knowing the disastrous consequences if she lost this tug of war with the wind, Annabel resolutely held on to her cloak even as she focused her thoughts on the situation.

Where did this wind come from? Only a short time before, the day had been beautiful with clear skies and bright sunlight all around. Then, without warning, the wind had come. It hadn't built up gradually, as most winds do, but had arisen suddenly. Annabel had barely enough time to espy this giant oak before all the sunlight had fled and inky blackness filled its place.

Now, the skies were so dark she couldn't see anything around her. But even as the light failed, she had seen the effects of this horrible wind. Trees were bent over so that even the tallest of them had limbs brushing the ground. They looked as serfs might, bowing and scraping before a king or queen. Only, Annabel thought, trees aren't meant to bend that way, and they won't for very long.

Soon, she knew, they would begin to break and fall all around her. That thought brought on another, frightening one. What if this tree protecting her was unable to stand against this wind? Annabel had the answer already. The tree would fall. When it did, its life would end. And so would hers.

Annabel, though in a situation where it would be all to easy to panic, didn't. She had been taught well, and knew that when things were at their worst was when people had to be at their best. Which meant she had to work through this situation and do whatever she could to improve it. Obviously, the problem was the wind. It was blowing with such force that even the hairs on her head wanted to let go!

That's it! The inspiration came and she grabbed it. Annabel closed her eyes and concentrated on the trees with all the skills she had developed. Shed your leaves... release your leaves... give your leaves to the wind... bare your limbs... you must let go. Over and over she projected these words.

Then, simultaneously in every direction, she sensed millions of objects flying through the air and knew the trees had understood and responded. They had loosed their leaves. Relaxing marginally, she smiled, knowing they all might now survive.

Annabel still held this thought when a small piece of debris, traveling at the speed of the wind, smashed against the side of her head and sent her into unconsciousness. Collapsing onto the ground, Annabel’s grip on her precious cloak was lost. No longer anchored by its owner, the cloak was snatched away by that ill wind and carried rapidly aloft, soaring like a bird taken wing.