After some deliberation, he chose to travel to the Wind Goddess next. The music box directed him east, but found that the winds traveled out from her island rather than towards it. As he tried to steer towards the island, he found himself constantly blown away by the fierce gales which surrounded the place. Despairing, he decided to beach his boat on a nearby isle, and instead use his newfound water capabilities to make the journey to her island.

He waded out a little ways, and proceeded to walk steadfastly into the water until it had gone over his head. Rather than waste time walking along the bottom, he intended to speed through the water as he had done before, but found his efforts hindered by the reef which lay just slightly beneath the surface of the water. Beautifully colored corals surrounded him, and tiny fish as well as eels peered quizzically at the large intruder before going on their way.

The entire way to the island was not obstructed by the reef, but once he got into the deeper waters another hindrance appeared to stymie his progress. This was evidently the hunting ground of a varied menagerie of giant sea creatures. Enormous whales passed by slowly, as giant squid glanced at him with their enormous eyes before jetting on their way. Suddenly, one of the cephalopods attempted to attack a docile whale, and the gargantuan creature grew enraged and attempted to fight back against its questing tentacles. Intrigued, Cyrus stopped to observe the creatures before continuing onward towards the island. The squid appeared to be taking the upper hand, but just as all seemed lost for the whale, it managed to score a critical bite on the attacking creature, causing it to scuttled off in order to nurse its wounds as the whale made a less hurried exit.

At last, he had reached the territory of the Wind Maiden. Her island was rather larger than the previous ones, and was dominated by a towering temple which extended far into the sky. Wading up onto the shore, Cyrus walked through a high wooden gate covered in a beautiful red lacquer into Cherry Blossom's domain. The trees for who she was named spread a refreshing fragrance and a profusion of gentle pink petals scattering in the wind. Sparkling streams intersected with the path, and were covered over with low bridges of the same attractive wood as the entrance. The trees began to crowd more densely as he neared the Maiden's home.

The temple of the Wind Maiden was not easily traversed. It rose up high above the ground, constructed of elegant curving tiers, one of top of the other. As far as he could tell, the sweep of the vast temple ought to be impossible, as it was unsupported at the far end, where a wide, flat square platform rested in a marvelous feat of balance upon the lower levels. He began the slow climb up the extensive structure, mounting each level gradually and feeling particularly small due to the lengthy nature of the ascent.

Higher and higher on the temple, the boy began to feel more and more of the wind blowing past with greater force than before. He shivered slightly in the cold, but continued rising. After a time, the terminal platform was visibly approaching, and he at last found himself on top of the entire structure, looking out over the giant platform which appeared to be empty.

A slight gust of wind blew over the surface, and a few petals fluttered by as he peered about looking for some sign of the goddess. As he looked about, it began to impress upon him that it was unlikely that the petals would have reached all the way up here on their own, and there were no trees from which they could have fallen. Suddenly, he heard a tinkling laughter on the breeze. He looked about in surprise, and the slight swirl began to pick up and turned into a whirlwind of flowers. They flew outward in all directions to reveal the Wind Maiden, smiling obliquely.

"Well come." Her translucent, smoky form was nearly insubstantial; as with all the others, though, her eyes were of crystal, luminous and chilling in their brilliance. She walked with fleet, graceful steps over to him. "Our sisters told us you would arrive. Are you prepared for the challenge?"

"Yes, my lady."

"Very well. Come out! The time has come for you to earn your keep."

In answer, a raucous squawk was heard seemingly from nowhere. Rising into view, a bird made of the same cloudy material as the Maiden came flapping up the side of the temple and perched on top of the platform. It squawked again at Cherry Blossom, who gave it a nod of approval, and then turned to Cyrus, saying an airy "Good luck, dear child!" before slipping backwards to watch.

The nearly insubstantial bird focused its attention to the boy, and made a bounding leap to become airborne before gliding straight towards the hapless youth. He ran to the side of its path, reasoning that it could not turn fast enough to catch him, and considered his options. He now possessed the abilities of earth, fire, and water. Which would be most effective? Since there was no earth readily available to use, he decided to try fire first.

As the bird wheeled around in the sky for another charge, Cyrus readied a store of flame, and just before it was upon him, released a fiery blast directly towards it. The flames lashed out towards it, but as soon as they reached its cloud-like body they were harmlessly blown to the sides or extinguished altogether. It seemed that fire was not the answer to this challenge.

He started to run to the left, but realized that the bird had caught on and was already turning in that direction. In an unexpected move, he scrambled directly towards it, causing its angle of flight to pass straight over him. Realizing it had been tricked, it screeched in annoyance and circled around slowly for a third attempt. How was he to combat this menace if there were no other elements to be taken advantage of? But just as he was about to despair, a droplet of water landed on his head, and he looked up to realize that it was starting to rain. Therein lay his solution.

Closing the distance fast, the bird was preparing for a final strike. This time, it was entering at a low angle, and would change direction on Cyrus' slightest move. It was now or never. Praying that his idea would indeed work, he forced a torrent of rain directly towards it. It slowed down, unable to make headway against the powerful water, and was held still for a few critical moments. He now directed the fire underneath the creature while the remainder of the water held back its approach, and just as he had hoped, it was heated from below and began to expand outward, becoming more and more diffuse until it scattered on the winds.

Cherry Blossom's laughter returned once again. "Congratulations! You have succeeded yet again, just as we had hoped. Here." She summoned up a complete flower between her hands, and blew its petals gently towards him. He felt infused with a lightness in his step, and when he made a move to walk he was swept upward by an unexpected gust of wind, and flailed frantically for a moment before he realized that he was flying.

Filled with delight, he let out a cry and looped through the air, reveling in his newfound abilities. He was so excited that he almost forgot to land again.

"Thank you! Oh, thank you!"

She smiled. "Think nothing of it. I wish you luck in your travels."

"Goodbye!" Laughing, he swept down off the temple, traveling swiftly through the air. Soon, however, he began to tire. Clearly, though he possessed the goddess' power, he did not have her limitless stamina. There was, he supposed, a limit to how much of one's abilities one could use during the day. More sedately, he walked back towards where the small vessel awaited his arrival. It was time now to seek out the fourth and final Maiden, goddess of Earth.