Flight

Flight is the art of airborne locomotion. In Weaving, it is considered the most important Thread art.

Flight and Thread
Fliers achieve levitation by attaching their flight mounts to Threads. Thread's primary behaviour of exerting lift is widely taken as evidence that flight is Thread's most important function. Ihirin doctrines, too, imply that flight is Thread's chief intended purpose, and is widely-viewed by the Ihirin as a sacred art in itself. This understanding is reflected in the legislature of both Ihirin nations, which disallow flight by any means that does not involve the direct attachment of objects to Threads.

The flier's sole role in flight is horizontal propulsion, which is either drawn from wind, exerted with the limbs or otherwise derived from propulsive elements of the flight mount. Because Thread-mediated levitation minimises the effects of friction and gravity, a small impetus is needed to propel the flier long distances.

Animal mounts typically add the animal's own propulsion to the advantages conferred by Weaving, making for significantly faster and less tedious flight. It is possible to fly on a flightless animal as one would on a non-living mount, but the practice is considered too inefficient to be of any practical use outside of its novelty.

The main disadvantage of Thread flight is that it is only possible within the boundaries of a Thread network. Because only two of these exist, in Astra and Helfi, flight is only possible within a very limited area.