Flight

Yesterday's dream, today's reality.

Brought upon by the Wright brothers of India, the idea of flight has been under constant evolution. Increasing its speed, lengthening its duration, and broadening its capacity.

The idea of flight boggled so many minds, that geniuses all over the world participate in this matter for the sole purpose of enhancing its capabilities.

Since I was a child, I've always dreamt of being able to fly, and now...

That dream came to reality.

"Eagle-1, come in, this is Raven requesting assistance. I'm under heavy fire from 2 Eagle type hostiles on my tail. I can't seem to be able to shake 'em off."

Dogfighting.

Inspired from a battle to the death by two pilots on their respective planes, it is a sport that is so dangerous that only the most daring of individuals would play, and is also so popular that it only took a year of existence for it to become a national competition.

Made to life by a company that mainly makes drones called "Exceed", players of this sport engage on an aerial battle through carbon fiber wings and custom made guns that track shots and "tag" people's wings, it is both an expensive, and skill-oriented game.

Not to mention dangerous. They play on designated spots on the ocean to ensure a soft landing. Their jet powered wingsuits also has an emergency parachute system in case something goes wrong, but that doesn't really remove people's fears. So only a few people really play this game.

"This is Eagle-1, the request is granted. I'm on my way. Drag 'em to quadrant 6 and let's destroy them with a flank."

There are many different kinds of wings. Eagle and Falcon type wings are often extremely fast. Reaching over 100 km/h mid-air, while Swallows and Ravens are agile. There's some that balance both and some that specialize. Some are generalized, while others are custom made. The only real limit in these wings is the budget. And luckily for them, this sport is usually sponsored by the government

"Sounds good. ETA 3 minutes. Meet you there. Raven out."

Grey Kyrielight, often addressed in the sport as the "Raven" for having black colored wings and an almost flawless somersault, he's considered as America's ace. Evading gunfire-or in this case, digital gunfire, from his 12, Grey swiftly changes course and heads for the direction to quadrant 6.

He knows that he wouldn't be able to beat 2 Eagle types with his Type-R Wings so he knows he made the right decision.

Drifting mid-air constantly to avoid being hit, he only had to stay a little bit higher than his enemies to avoid their gunfire. He's confident in his agility, and according to what's currently being shown, his agility is not failing him.

Midway through quadrant 5, he closed his eyes to empty his mind and inhaled slowly.

The fight that is about to happen probably wouldn't even last 2 minutes, but for him.

It would mean a lifetime.

He was 7 when he first had a ride. It's not any normal ride though, no-no. He was given a ride on an F-16. It was thrilling. It's meant to be his birthday gift after all. Seeing it up close made the hair all over his body stand, and riding on it made it worse.

Taking off from Military Grounds, he felt his insides tremble as he experiences traveling at Mach speed. It was frightening. It's as if his organs suddenly got subjected to a blender-like treatment. It was horrible, awful, and any other words he probably couldn't mention. He couldn't help it. After all, he's only 7. And someone that young wouldn't know that G-force could be so devastating.

And it didn't end there, soaring through the planet's Troposphere, he felt as if he's being pushed after traveling for over 2 THOUSAND km/h.

It was scary. Passing through clouds, he felt even more fear enveloping his body. He fears that something would suddenly appear on the clouds and they'd end up hitting it, making him subconsciously grip his seat hard, But no.

Escaping the sea of clouds that they went through, his Father decided to go down at low altitude. That which made his heart skip a beat.

And endless blue carpet like figure that stretched all the way to the horizon met him.

Dolphins splashing after jumping out of the water, Seagulls forming a triangle like formations, other birds that either fly to find the comfort of new homes or those that fly to find their fill of the day. It was beautiful.

He never expected a scene like this. One that would make him remove his oxygen mask and his seatbelts. One that would easily tempt him to jump down to the ocean even after considering their altitude.

Such a breathtaking view that was laid out for him. It's beautiful! It's like the word itself was made for the purpose of describing this one scene.

But it didn't end there.

Only a few minutes after, he was greeted by a nice unobstructed view of the sun setting. It made him feel warm. Like a mother's love warm.

He could've sworn they left the ground around 2:00 with the sun up high.

"Wow."

He whispered. Flashing a bright smile right after.

Realizing that he was smiling, he suddenly felt a drop of liquid cruising on his cheeks. It's only until then that he realized...

He was crying.

Happiness, Delight, Fulfillment, and more. All such emotions stirred inside him and made him cry. Cry tears of joy that is.

On that moment was also the time when he decided...

"I want to fly"

"Eagle-1! Here we go! All or nothing!"

With his last remaining partner finally flanking his enemies' backs, he did his famous somersault that turned the tables around. On a dogfight, the only way you would be able to hit your enemy is when you're behind them. That's both a fortunate and an unfortunate mechanic of this sport.

And now...

"OH! With Raven's perfect somersault, the assault the Russian team once brought to him has ended! In turn, he started to assault him with Thomas Clarks at his side!"

The commentator shouted on shock after seeing such development. Not forgetting to analyze the current happenings, he enthusiastically explained what happened that normally happens on less than 5 seconds tops.

And since the Russian teams only composed of Eagle types, they were easy to shoot since they can't switch directions that fast unlike those with short wings like a Raven.
Ultimately ending in their victory.

With the Russian team's defeat announced by the commentators and is showed to the big screen where everyone was watching, fans worldwide at the site, or at home cheered, or mourned for their respective countries.

And with it. the main event of the morning has concluded. Dropping down to his team's side of the beach, he was greeted by the excitement and enthusiasm of his teammates, some even throwing their bodies at him.

"Grey! You did great!"

Says their caretaker, Claire.

"What a stroke of luck that was."

He told all his teammates. That in which they just instantly denied. Over and over he proved his worth on their team the "Wings of Death" by somehow winning the nationals for his team. And now he won internationals for them too. On his teammates' perspectives, he's probably already a king.

"Let's go for the award ceremonies. Everyone.'

Their head engineer, Wilson Smith, said loudly. And as they all do normally, they obeyed. They went back to their cars with their equipment held and their frowns upside-down.

"And the Finals' MVP is...Grey Kyrielight from "Wings of Death"!"

It's hard to breathe on such a crowd. He also thought so. Being in an arena for the rewarding, Grey tensed up after walking up the stage. Finally realizing how many people are there watching him with their eyes.

"Like, Dude! How are we supposed to use this! 2 million dollars! The pay the government gave us is different too!"

One of his teammates said after some of them already passed out drunk the night after they won.

"This is like a dream! Grey!"

Their female caretaker shouted while lying on the table, unable to move. Since she's the only female in the group, they tend to have a really hard time on who's gonna escort her home every time they drink like this for celebration, adding the fact on how terrifyingly gorgeous their caretaker is. They tend to really tease her escort the next day after, that's why the selection is usually done by drawing sticks.

"Who's going to take her home again?"

Right now, there's only 4 of them who's not drunk. Grey who didn't drink at all. Their head engineer who has a strong alcohol resistance due to experience, and 2 others who are just plain tough. Their head engineer took a stick and broke it into 3 uneven parts. Seeing this made the other 3 frowns.

"I'll leave it to you, young ones."

Hearing their old companion's choice of words, the 3 formed some pretty sinister grins, then looked at each other. Grey then laughed afterward. Even though she's drunk, that doesn't change the fact that she's a black belt at Judo and Taekwondo so not even he would mess with her, right?

"Old Man! Let's leave it to Mr. MVP right here! He deserved it!"

One of them suggested, that which almost made the man puke the liquor his drinking, and that which also left a nasty expression on Grey's face.

"Wha-" "Good suggestion! Let's leave it at that! I'll pay the tab." The old man interrupted him, not leaving any gaps for him to speak.

"I'll call Taxis for everyone." "I'll split the money into each of our accounts."

With an expression as if he's betrayed, Grey almost wanted to pull his hair after being left off. Come on, after he won them internationals, that is what they'd repay him with? He gritted his teeth on such misfortune and almost cursed everyone,

'I'll threaten those fools that I'd leave the team in revenge for this!'

He schemed. Looking at the blonde beauty sleeping in front of him.

Everyone has already left, with the exception of him and Claire. He scratched his head then sighed.

A taxi? Or his car? He tried to decide. It'd be more efficient if he were to just call a taxi. Sure, his teammates would kill him if they realized he left her to the care of some random old man, but it's not like they would actually kill him, so it's a valid choice. But speaking about leaving her to the trust of some random taxi driver, even he wouldn't actually dare do so. His conscience would kill him. So he ended up with a decision.

'I'll take her home then.'

What a pain.

He's driving, she's uttering nonsense. It's been like that since he carried her to his car and started driving. Alcohol really affects her hard, so he had to make sure she gets into any sort of trouble. Her place is a 1-hour drive from where they celebrated so he could only sigh after thinking on how short his sleep would be. It's already 2 am and his house is even farther away from the opposite direction.

It's not just that. She's also wiggly around. Unable to maintain her balance due to alcohol affecting her brain, she rocks on every little turn that he does, it's annoying. This situation could easily be solved by tightening her seatbelts. If only the concept of private space didn't exist.

"Grey..."

She whispered, tucking her own body to fill the seat she's on. It seems she completely fell asleep now, but her subconscious is still awake.

"I...like you."

'What the-'

That caught him off guard, that's for sure. If only he wasn't driving, Grey would've taken a long hard look at her and assessed the situation. He knows how many of his teammates like her, and if this news reaches them, he could only hope that his engineers would still work for him.

It could be false, after all, she's under the influence of alcohol. There's no telling what that crazy substance could make you do. But at the same time, it is her subconscious that's speaking. And it doesn't lie.

Taking all of it into consideration made him overthink. And overthinking isn't something he actually does. Matter of fact, in all of his time living, he never did overthink. Data filled his brain and it went overdrive.

Losing his focus on driving, he unconsciously looked down and forgot the fact that he's on the road. That in which he regretted later on. He was sent back to reality by the sound of a truck's horn approaching him from in front. (Ah shit. Here we go again.)

Seeing so made him embrace the girl beside her to protect her, closing his eyes and hoping for the best, he only heard a loud crashing sound on impact, nothing more.

Suddenly it was dark. He had no idea what happened. He tried to feel himself, and it was weird. He had limbs, he knows he had limbs. He can move them, but strangely, his body is nowhere to be seen. Where is he? He wondered.

It's like an eternal dark abyss, he looked all around the place and found nothing, nothing, nothing...

Right...He died. He started to remember.

"Is this the place where people go before they get judged? What do they call it again? Purgatory? It's rather lonely here."

He thought, oblivious of the fact that his thoughts are literally echoing all over the place. There really should be nothing in there, so how did his thoughts echo?

Only a few seconds later, he was greeted by a ball of fire-or rather light. It was bright, emitting white light. But somehow it didn't even illuminate one bit of the place.

This said ball then started changing colors, one notable fact is that turned into a spectrum that is rather messy. The color's revolving all over the ball and it seems indecisive on where it would go. It was puzzling.

Moments later, it also started to produce sounds. From the sounds of a Dinosaur's roar to the howl of a monkey. The chugging of a steam train, to the rings of a cellphone. Seeing this made him gulp.

The ball then proceeded to finally retain a definite picture. And it didn't take long until he realized what it was. It was Earth. Earth and its evolution.

After completing the cycle, the ball then illuminated a person's figure from the other side that he was in. The person walked to it and was gradually shown.

"Fascinating isn't it. Grey?"

He said in a deep baritone voice.

This said person then proceeded on touching the ball, it spun then somehow disappeared.

"But it's boring. Especially for you."

He added. Reaching out a hand and conjuring a fire. The guy he was with then raised the fire and it started to float. It floated all the way to the highest part of the place then exploded. Illuminating the whole place like a bulb, but much brighter.

"Who...are you?"

He finally asked. Staring at him with a confused expression.

"I'm god. But not your god. And starting today, you're also gonna be a god."

He stated. Hearing this raised a few hundred questions in Grey's mind, but he decided to remain silent.

The person then walked all the way to him and touched his forehead with a finger. That made his entire life flash before his eyes. Since the moment he was born, the moment when his father went to war. The moment he came back. The moment when he decided that he wanted to fly, to the climax of his life when he won the Dogfighting Internationals. It was shown to him in a fraction of seconds, that which made him smile.

'I'm so lucky I died without any regrets. Mom, Dad, I'm sorry.'

He thought.

After the flashback that was briefly given to him, he faced the man once more. He was big, handsome, and had a very intimidating aura. Like the aura of someone that could swallow a grown man whole.

"So, what do you want with me?"

He asked. The man then raised his pointing finger. Symbolizing the number 1.

"I want you to take care of my daughter. Haaah, she's a complete airhead. She can be easily fooled and mislead. She's extremely violent and tends to destroy things when it doesn't go her way. Plus her fashion style is worrying me, she has the body of a child, but she loves to be revealing."

Hearing this made him tilt his head.'"Take care of his daughter"? Like...Marry her or something?' He desperately tried to understand what's happening, but his brain's capacity just can't.

"Let me explain. Grey Kyrielight, you have been summoned. A rare opportunity for those of people like you to experience something different. You wanted to fly right? Well, in this place, you can."

The person then opened his palms. A few moments later, images of dragons, fairies, and many different supernatural creatures that can fly were reflected out of thin air. This made Grey's face tense on suspicion

"How exactly? I mean, I have no such abilities like these."

He then spews out a fire, conjured lasers, and grew wings. It's as if he's telling him that he's powerful. He flaunted one ability after another, showing an endless arsenal of them.

"I'll give you powers of course. Power strong enough to beat anyone. So will you do this for me?"

He reached out his right hand. Seemingly expecting a handshake.

"What'll I get in exchange? I won't do anything for free, you know."

He looked down and sighed. And as he was raising his head back up to face him, another ball appeared in front of him. Showing his, and his caretaker's bodies relaxed in a bed without any injuries.

"I'll keep you, and your companion safe. You were subjected in an incident, aren't you? After this, you'll simply wake up in a hospital scot free. I'll include her as well. Keep in mind that that accident was supposed to take your life instantly. I saw it happening, so I rewound back to stop it."

Hearing all of the conditions given to him, he realized that he was backed into a corner, not having any more cards to play. He gulped what invisible saliva his invisible body has and decided.

"Fine."

"Oh good!"

The person he was with suddenly brightened up after hearing it. His body twitched upwards playfully and his movements suddenly went erratic, it was as if he's hurrying.

"Truth is, I foresaw a calamity approaching the place my daughter was in, and this said calamity was beyond even my daughter can't handle. I'm entrusting it all to you now. Gray Kyrielight."

He raised his right hand and opened his palm his Grey's direction. Gray then slowly felt changes in his body, feeling the surging power now flowing within him.

"I'm just gonna ask, Why me?"

Hearing the question gave him a flabbergasted expression. He smiled and closed his eyes, opening his eyes once again, he answered.

"It's because I know I can."

Disappointed by his answer, Grey asked once more.

"One last question. Who are you?"

Turning away from the guy, Grey formed a fist on his hand, feeling the strange abilities just given to him.

"Call me Velda. Velda Nava."

Velda, after answering his questions, raised his right hand and snapped. (Then half the universe' population disappeared lol)A portal opened beneath Grey's feet and he started to fall.

"Velda, huh..."

Grey never once feared heights. Nor did he fear the thought of falling. Free falling past the portal, he looked around only to realize he's thousands of meters above the ground. His face revealed a blank expression as a grin crept from within it.

He twisted his body to face the ground and calculated his initial falling time. If he calculated right, it would be around 2 minutes before he plummets to his death. Under normal circumstances that is.

Engaging wings, please stand by.

Surprised after hearing a voice from his head, he thought.

'Wings?'

Wings, engaged.

Looking at the ground, he suddenly felt 2-no, 4 more limb-like parts grow from his back. Turns out, those are his wings. He tested them out and flapped all four at the same time. All his momentum disappeared and he was tossed upwards.

Surprised by the sudden development, he thought to himself.
c
'It's a bit too powerful. 2 would be nicer.'

Understood. Reducing wings, please stand by.

'WOAH!'

2 of his wings suddenly retracted, a few moments later, it disappeared. The 2 remaining wings of his then got longer and covered his upper back. Looking at it, he realized it's black. Almost the same as his previous ones.

Still free-falling, he stretched it all out and flapped it hard. A burst of wind and unleashed a sonic wave. Realizing his speed, he readied it one more time and whispered.

"Let's do this."

Flapping his wings as he increases in speed, he immediately crossed the horizon flying to the direction of sunlight.

And out. I don't even know where this inspiration came from haha, so don't expect constant updates. Anyways here it is for now. Eagle-1, out!