Chapter Four: Put to the Test
Each day, after his lessons, Blyrric would try to fly for an hour longer after his lesson. After a week, he was going to be put to the ultimate test: to fly to the buoy and back. The buoy was a short distance away from Titans Tower, but enough to put him to the limits. Blyrric woke up bright and happy, yet a litlle nervous from the thought of The Test.
"You'll do fine," said Erin.
"You can make it," said Robin.
"As long as your heart is in the right place," encouraged Starfire, "you will fly!"
"Have fun, Blyrric," said Beast Boy.
"Good luck, little man," said Cyborg.
Raven just nodded, but sent him a telepathic message; Do you want me to help you?
No, Raven, he replied, this is my flight. I can do it on my own.
He turned to Erin. "I'm ready," he said.
"Just remember," said Erin, "this isn't a race against the clock. If you flap too fast, you'll plummet." She gave Blyrric a warm look. "Get on the platform," she instructed. Blyrric did so. "Ready? Begin!"
Blyrric flapped his sleek black wings. Two strokes, and he was in the air. Then, Blyrric channeled the air under his wings so he would fly forward.He was starting to get tired at the halfway point. He almost thought about giving up. No, he scolded himself, a real Titan wouldn't give up halfway, and neither will I! He gave himself an in-flight power stroke, which pushed him forward. Back on the roof, he could hear the Titans cheering him on. This filled him with joy, which caused him to fly higher.
Before he knew it, he saw the buoy. Now was when he needed to carve a sharp windward turn, meaning have all the wind be on his oppisite side than now. This sunded like a difficult manuver, but was the first he ever learned. He carved it with ease, and made it back to the halfway point with no problem. Then the winds shifted on him. Oh, great! he thought. Headwinds! He flapped more powerfully and fiercely beyond the Titans wildest dreams. He wanted to prove himself. He wanted them to be proud. And that was what kept him going.
The Titans started to worry when it seemed like their black friend was having trouble. Erin, Starfire, and Best Boy wanted to help him, but Raven stopped them, saying, "If we stop him now, he'll lose his dignity. He'll think that we think of him as some little puppy dog that needs to be rescued. No, let him finish it. He can do it."
Hearing Raven's praise, Blyrric flew harder than he ever imagined. He landed on the roof with a thud. He screamed, "I did it! I really did it!" He would have flown, but then he realized that every inch of him was aching. He flew with his whole self. And then he collapsed into sleep.