Dust and Wind (Song of Kaelii the Defiant, Snippet 0)

A story fragment from the Dustsong Cycle

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Kaelii sat cross-legged atop the dune, overlooking the slipface. She squeezed her eyes shut, clasped her bony kneecaps, and tried to relax the muscles in her face. The less at ease your body and mind, the harder it is to hear the wind speak. So they say, Mama and the elders. It didn’t make sense to Kaelii, but she had never heard the wind—not really.