She smirked at the ground as it drew closer, completely confident of her ability to snap out her wings at the last second and catch herself. She prepared for it, the opportune moment when she was but an inch from the ground. As she got closer, she tried to find her wings, to ready them so that she could catch herself in less than a second. But her wings weren’t there.

The ground got nearer and she knew she had but seconds to save herself. The wind no longer felt like a caress but a slap and her perfect balance in the air disappeared as she flailed her arms wildly, surrendering to her survival instincts. The feeling of utter happiness disappeared with the wonderful smells and instead all she could taste was the salty tang of blood from biting her tongue.

Suddenly, she understood what was going on. She was going to die.