Training
Chapter 4 - Day 1

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Notes/Disclaimer: This fic is based solely on the Dinotopia movie, NOT the series. I apologize for any inconsistencies with the books. I don't apologize for any inconsistencies with the series because it bit. I don't own the movie, or the series, or the books. Thank you.
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David dreamt that night of hands. Scorching, sensuous hands that roamed up and down his body, seeking out sensitive areas and setting fire to his skin.

He reached out, unable to see his tormentor and wanting to feel similar skin under his own hands, but he encountered nothing but air. But he could feel the hands. Now one trailed languidly down his bare chest, now the other felt cautiously up the length of his thigh. He gasped at the incredible heat in the touch. Everywhere the hands went, they seared and healed, leaving him in a constant state of near-pain that was deliciously intoxication and he wanted more.

David awoke in an uncomfortable state of arousal and fervently thanked God that Sebastian was not awake yet. It was early, before dawn, but David found that after napping on the way in yesterday, he couldn't manage to fall asleep again. Instead he paced the small ledge that they were camped on, breathing in the invigoratingly cold night air.

When the sun finally rose, David looked out across the landscape and gasped in wonder. The scenery was gorgeous.

They had chosen to camp on a relatively small outcropping near the top of a canyon wall. The rising sun at the very end of the canyon to their right cast the entire deep gorge into a pale, fiery light that seemed to make the rock itself glow. And down the entire center of the canyon, far below their outcrop, the sun sparkled off of unbelievably blue water, as an apparently very deep river wended its way between the rocky cliffs.

"Beautiful, isn't it?"

David started and looked behind him to find Sebastian standing at his shoulder, smiling softly and gazing at the scenery. "Sunrise here is always a real treat," the man said. Then he grinned at David. "Get used to it. You're going to be seeing a lot of them."

Choosing to ignore the playful threat for the moment, David looked back at the gorgeous view. "It's, it's... Amazing," he said, unable to express the sheer wonder he felt in words.

Sebastian nodded. "What say you we saddle up and go for a warm-up flight while it's still this pretty, huh? Not that it gets uglier in the daylight, but this is a rare time."

A rare time. David savored the phrase as he motioned to call Freefall to him. That was the perfect phrase for it, really. A view like this only came once. It would never be the same, even if he saw a hundred sunrises from this very cliff.

Sebastian led him on a leisurely flight around their area of the canyon. It was as beautiful from the other angles as their view from the cliff, and David drank in every second of it. It was almost spiritual, the way the entire world seemed to slowly come awake, the way the only sound was the wind streaming past his face, cool in the rapidly warming air.

On their re-approach to the cliff ledge, David saw something that made him smile. To the right of their chosen campsite, far below it where the river met the cliffs, the water had hollowed out a small cove that appeared to have a sandy beach. It would be the perfect place to lie for sunbathing, and the rocky overhang just a few feet behind it would provide a welcome shade in the heat of the afternoon. This site was obviously well chosen.

"How many people know about this place?" David asked once they landed.

"Not many," replied Sebastian. "I don't bring the trainees to the same place every year, and this place in particular I only bring those who I think have a very special talent." He smiled at David. "I asked to train you specifically, you know. I wanted to meet the hero who saved Dinotopia. Well, one of the heroes."

David's mood was tainted slightly at the thought of his brother, until he realized suddenly that he had not dreamt of Karl and Marion the previous night. That other dream had occupied all his sleeping moments. Was it possible he was already getting over the hurt of seeing them together? Could it really happen that quickly?

"-which will seem a bit strange at first, but you'll get used to it."

David realized with a start that Sebastian had been speaking and he had completely spaced out. He flushed guiltily.

"I'm sorry. I wasn't listening. Could you say that again?"

Sebastian grinned. "I thought you looked a little spaced. I was saying, I'm going to have you fly blindfolded."

David paused, trying to assimilate this.

"You want me to do what?"

"I want you to fly blindfolded," Sebastian repeated. He grinned at David's skeptical look. "Let me explain. One of the most important things that you have to do is trust your Bird. Freefall knows how to fly. You don't. You're going to learn, of course. At the end of this little training session I'm going to blindfold him so we make sure that he trusts you. Because you can't rely on him to do all the work. But for now, we're just making sure that you give Freefall your absolute trust. It could save your life one day."

David still looked a little uncertain, but he took the blindfold that Sebastian held out to him.

"Now," said White Rider, rubbing his hands together with excitement. "Mount up and put it on."

David strode over to Freefall, stalling by checking the harness straps to make sure they were properly secured, even though there was very little chance that they could possibly have slipped since his previous flight. When he finally couldn't put it off any more, he mounted and tied the blindfold over his eyes. He laid himself down in the saddle and clutched tightly at the edge, more scared than he wanted to admit to himself.

"Now Freefall," he heard Sebastian say from somewhere in front of him. "I want you to just follow me. We're going to start really simple. Basic easy flight patterns, easy turns. Try not to jostle him too much. From the look of the way he's holding on to that saddle, he's petrified right now, so don't drop him."

David turned his head into the saddle, hoping that Sebastian was too far away to see him blushing. Was his nervousness that obvious?

His thoughts were cut off by the disconcerting feeling of Freefall moving underneath him. He'd experienced the sensation hundreds of times, but this was the first time he had been so acutely aware of and focused on it. The tremendous muscles shifted, and then suddenly he felt himself dropping.

Nearly biting his tongue in his effort to keep from crying out, he clutched tighter at the saddle and prayed silently to himself. Eventually he felt Freefall's flight level out and unclenched his death grip on the saddle long enough to reach back and confirm the comforting weight of the harness safety straps that were locking him in.

It took a while, but as Sebastian had predicted, he slowly became accustomed to the strange feeling of riding blind. In fact, he began to relish the strange insight into his Skybax's movements that he had never before experienced. He could feel each muscle strain, each minute adjustment in the pitch of his wings that changed their direction.

It was true, he thought. Freefall knew more about how to fly than he himself could ever hope to.

After what seemed a short eternity, they set back down on the cliff. David sat up and removed his blindfold, startled to find that he was shaking with tension. No matter how insightful or mesmerizing the movement of Freefall beneath him was, it was nerve-wracking to not be in control. He took a deep breath and sighed in relief as he finally saw the world around him again.

"Not bad," said Sebastian from the cliff behind him. "Not bad at all."

David turned to look at him to find that the other man was rummaging through a leather pack. He began to dismount to go over and help him, but Sebastian held up a hand. "Stay mounted," he said. "I'll just be a sec."

He proved to be as good as his word and within a few seconds came up with a small package of several dozen brightly colored lengths of cheap fabric. David smiled. He recognized these objects.

Sebastian grinned at the look on his face. "I assume you know what these are for?"

David nodded enthusiastically. They were used for a game the cadets had played called ribbon tag. It was a fairly simple exercise. The trainer would tie several long ribbons to the feet of his Skybax and take off, dodging and weaving in complex patterns. The trainee would attempt to follow and get close enough for his own Skybax to nip off the ribbons with its beak. Sometimes trainers set a time limit and judged by how many ribbons were missing from the original amount, others clocked how long it took the trainee to get all of them off. Either way, it was fast-paced and exciting, and one of David's favorite drills.

"So," Sebastian drawled, "think you can still play it with the blindfold on?"

David was momentarily stunned. Ribbon tag required great reflexes from both the rider and the Skybax. It was impossible to do it blindfolded, right?

"I don't think I can do it," David answered truthfully. "I mean, Freefall needs my reflexes for this sort of thing, doesn't he?"

"You might think so," said Sebastian, walking over to affix the ribbons to Cliffdiver's feet, "but remember that he'd been flying for years before you came along. What he needs to practice is his agility while carrying you around. With you lending him your own reflexes it's easier. But if you're blindfolded, then it's not. This training session is as much for Freefall as it is for you, and this exercise it designed to help increase his reflexes as well as your trust." Sebastian suddenly flashed his characteristic grin. "Those safety straps will hold you. Trust Freefall. He won't let you fall off."

"Are all today's exercises going to involve me being blindfolded?" asked David dubiously.

Sebastian winked as he finished fastening the final ribbon to his Skybax's leg. "You catch on quick, don't you?"


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