Childhood.
Chapter 1.8
Sink or Soar.
Over the next few weeks, Celerave worked really hard with her father's teachings, believing she'd be coming off the ground any day.
When in actuality, she was only learning how to run faster, jump higher, and be surer footed.
By focusing on agility as opposed to combat, Celerave could feel herself getting there.
She found herself back at the karsts, skipping over them with far more confidence than before.
Because of her training?
No.
It's because her brand-new battle suit gave her superpowers.
"You're doing so much better!" Rhuba called forward as she caught up.
The head start gave Celerave a much-needed early lead.
"It's because ob the suit!" Celerave cheered with so much glee. Her breath was hot and heavy, and as the waves splashed over the rocks, she got a salty mist in the face.
Even as her parents overtook her, she felt glad just to be there.
"Right now, you're learning how to calculate trajectory, speed, and momentum." Garagus appeared at her side, arms crossed and watching close. "Come to a stop on the next one!" He said, deliberately for after she left the ground.
Celerave waved her hands frantically. It's just as her father said.
Her trajectory, speed, and momentum. There was no way she could land on a tiny platform without falling off the other side.
As soon as she landed, Celerave threw her arms forward, as if to push herself backwards.
To her shock, it actually worked. From jumping hundreds of feet, she managed to stop herself on a rock surface no wider than a stride of her legs.
"Good job." Garagus could see the look on Rhuba's face.
They had a deal.
Teach Celerave to fly but stretch it out so Celerave could learn to be more responsible with it.
Realise it or not, Celerave just demonstrated the core principle of flight. She just needs to add more power and sustain it. Then she'll be soaring over the clouds.
At least an hour remained before they were expecting another delivery.
Celerave won't decline a chance to rest and recover, and the offset of training will delay her for at least one more day.
"Celerave. Come here."
Garagus watched Rhuba descend next to the excited girl.
With a smile, Rhuba sat Celerave down and took her place across from her.
Floating by but not interfering, Garagus watched the two pass a ball of light back and forth like a simple game.
Celerave picked up the basics real fast as she was already more familiar than her mother at her age when it came to energy manipulation.
"And now, Celerave. Extend your arms and push!" Garagus stood at the edge of the karst. What impressed him more was that she knew right away that walking up and physically pushing was not allowed.
Instead, she planted her feet, held out her palms and focused her energy on a single target.
There was a shift in the wind as the current suddenly blew against him.
"That's a girl. Focus, but don't let it become an attack." Rhuba stepped beside her former teacher and whispered into his ear, asking him why they don't just go into space like he did with her own training.
"She doesn't need it-…" A mighty gust nearly blew both Garagus and Rhuba off the edge.
Garagus just managed to keep his balance but had to grab Rhuba's wrist to keep her from falling.
"See? She's there already."
Celerave was still unsure. The news that she was ready was exciting, but every time she jumped, she'd land soon after, no matter how hard she tried.
"Sit on your bum." Rhuba told her, then demonstrated a cross-legged position. "Now try to get off the ground with one punch."
Celerave thumped her fists on the ground. It did nothing. After a few more tries, she learned the easiest and in fact only way to get her butt off the ground was to keep her hands down and lift herself.
"Pushing is better than punching. When you punch, the energy transfers at the end of your reach. But if you push, you keep up the energy." Aiming her palms down, Rhuba started flying off the ground without breaking position. "That is how we fly."
"woah…" Stiffening her jaw, Celerave aimed her hands down. Her body trembled. Her aura flared up as though she was on fire.
Then suddenly, her palms flashed yellow before the karst erupted in an explosion.
Rhuba coughed as she covered her eyes.
"Celerave!" She called out, the debris and dust was blinding and hard to breathe through.
It all got blown away however, when Garagus descended with the girl in his arms.
"Good news. She flew."
"Really?"
"Yes, like a bullet."
The launch was more like a popped balloon. Trying to calculate where the rubber would land after bursting itself open.
To fly properly, Celerave will need to be able to focus on balance and stability.
"Follow me." Leaping from the karst to the cliffs, Garagus didn't need to wait too long before Celerave and Rhuba were landing beside him. Then, the three of them sprinted the short mile towards the southern sea.
The Icey wind was battering against Celerave's face with no obstruction.
Her new battle suit did trap her body heat and acted as a decent wind breaker, but it really worked best while staying active.
"In a minute, we're all going to jump off the cliff." Garagus announced.
"Reason?" Rhuba's demand was more of an inquiry than questioning his sanity. But she could see Celerave having doubts.
"I'll move to the left, you move to the right." He said, aiming his hand to guide her direction. "Celerave, I want you to jump straight ahead. Then as you start to fall, bullet jump again."
He knew there was little chance of her being able to control it any more than her first attempt. But with her parents on standby, she'll never be in danger.
However…
"We're not going to catch you." Garagus knelt, holding her shoulders. "It's time to be a big girl. Sink or soar."
With one last clap on the head from her father, Celerave watched as her parents dashed off over the ocean. Becoming two distant specks in her vision.
As she stood on the edge, she felt her every instinct telling her to back away.
But at the same time, this nagging feeling.
Go on, go on…
Her fists clenched as she tensed her jaw.
All she needs to do is jump.
Giving herself twenty paces, she ran forwards. Reaching the edge in just three strides before launching herself off over the water.
She was fighting the wind the whole time. And as she started to fall, the dreadful reality of the water waiting to swallow her whole started to approach.
There was only one way to avoid it.
Aiming her hands down.
There was a moment where the wind seemed to stop blowing, then there was a bang in her ears.
Her vision blurred as the wind cut like frozen glass into her face before she started to slow down.
Tumbling through the air, Celerave could see neither her parents nor the land she launched herself from.
Her world was just sky and sea, both circling her as she fell.
But with the practice she had with her parents, she was able to make her body as wide as possible.
She was still spinning and every other second she would roll or tumble over herself.
Her gloves did little to keep her fingers from nipping with the sheer cold. But clenching her fists again, Celerave felt the wind stop as she prepared to bullet jump.
Another bang. Another spinout.
Only this time, she was able to correct herself faster than the first.
But she was still falling.
Holding her breath, clenching her fists, she felt the wind stop once more.
But this time, she relaxed before the bang.
It didn't stop the spinning, but it did slow her falling.
When she threw her arms out to try and stop spinning, the wind would pick up as she fell faster.
Suddenly, literally out of the blue.
Her parents flew up alongside her.
Reaching out to her, Garagus grabbed her left hand while Rhuba took her right.
They didn't help her fly, they only stopped her spinning before prying their hands free from her desperate grip.
With what time she had to orientate herself, she was actually able to see Colizar.
Garagus hung upside down next to Celerave as the three of them fell. He gave her a thumbs up on getting just under a kilometre above the sea on her own.
Celerave heard nothing but the wind roaring in her ears and her parents seemed more than happy to free fall until she makes the next move.
Sink or Soar.
Tensing her body up, Celerave saw her parents drop below just for a moment.
"Mum! Dad!" She screamed to no avail until the pair came back up to meet her again.
Still unable to speak, they both mimed their approval.
Garagus was waving his hands for her to move up while Rhuba was pointing towards the distant shore.
Not knowing what either of them were saying, but fully aware that the sea wasn't going to wait for her to reach a decision, Celerave once again prepared for another bullet jump.
Her parents lowered again, but this time they were able to keep up with her right up until the wind started to die down.
Just before the bang, she could hear them.
"You're doing it!" Rhuba yelled.
"Wha-?" Celerave fell again. Flailing her arms and legs before righting herself once more, she did as she had just a moment ago until her parents came down for her.
"You're fl-"
A thunderous bang rang in Celerave's ears as she was shot towards the land.
Having experienced it a few times already, she was more prepared to balance her body.
Whatever her father was about to say, it no longer needed said.
She had jumped away from the shore, and now she was returning towards it.
As far as first flights go, she was terrified.
But just like with the heroes on her shows, Celerave pointed her fists forward.
The only gripe was the wind in her eyes.
With only one eye just barely open, she could see that she was dropping closer and closer to the sea.
Pulling her arms and legs in. Celerave felt the wind start to halt. Then with another bang, she was launched over the cliffs and over the trees, and towards the distant mountains.
Her parents caught up to her.
With skill and precision, they were able to fly at her sides.
Not overshooting, nor lagging behind.
When her father did fly ahead, Celerave observed how he kept his hands out and brought his legs forward. This would slow him down, but he intentionally maintained speed so Celerave would get the full benefit of watching his technique.
As soon as Celerave attempted to do the same, she started flipping uncontrollably.
Over the sea, she'd have enough time to right herself. But with a mountain range quickly approaching, she was coming in like a ballistic missile.
Rhuba grabbed Celerave out of the air. The quick momentum made her spin and roll too, but unlike the six-year-old, she knew how to break free from it just in time to avoid collision.
"And just like that, our baby girl became a flyer."
Those words spoken from her father and the tight hug from her mother, Celerave let out her first proper breath in what felt like forever.
That had been the most physically taxing experience of her life.
Despite her immaturity, she wasn't naive enough to believe she could have survived any wrong landing, be it over the sea or on land.
"We have around half an hour before the delivery is due. Want to fly back?"
Garagus pulled out his scouter to plan their route home while Rhuba spent the extra minute making sure Celerave was alright.
"that was really scary."
"But you did so good." Hugging her close, Rhuba walked Celerave through everything that happened over the sea.
Celerave didn't understand at first, but the reason the wind kept stopping right before the bang, was because her body was emanating enough energy to form something like a barrier between herself and the elements.
And on the topic of barriers, she learned that the ensuing bang was her breaking the sound barrier.
"If you can stop yourself from shooting off, you'll be able to fly no problem." Rhuba knew it was easier said than done.
Like poking paper-thin glass with a long pole, while the objective is to simply crack the glass without shattering it.
"On our way home. Instead of flying, how about we work on landings?"
"How would we land without flying?"
"Like this…" Garagus leapt off the hill and disappeared among the trees. "Follow-ow Me-e!" His voice echoed towards them.
"Actually not a bad idea." Turning to Celerave, Rhuba lifted the girl onto her hips before jumping over to where Garagus landed.
As she came down, she used her ability to fly to slow down and calmly land next to her husband.
"Think you can do that?"
"I'll try." Celerave nodded before suddenly needing to sprint after her parents.
Every gap in the treetops, Garagus followed by Rhuba would leap over the trees, expecting Celerave to follow.
That, she could manage without issue.
But her first landing was a crash on her hands and knees.
"Keep up!" Rhuba called back as her and Garagus ran off again.
Gritting her teeth, Celerave chased after.
Before the next gap in the trees, their path led them over a river.
Garagus leapt with no issue, Rhuba acted like she was surfing on air as she floated over the gap.
When Celerave did it, she tried to copy her mother.
Clenching her body like before, she sailed over the water.
But she didn't land.
"Mum!" She called out as her body surfed over the ground.
Every lean, every correction, every move her body made, however slight or sudden would change her velocity as she whizzed through the trees until finally crashing into one.
No one saw her fly.
Her parents only came back to tell her to hurry up before sprinting off again.
As Celerave picked herself off the ground and started running again, she spotted the pack.
At some point, they must have entered the wolves' territory and now she was being chased.
As one went to snatch her arm in its jaw, Celerave leapt out of the way.
Spreading her arms and feet, Celerave held her breath as she surfed over the ground.
She was off the ground, but the pack could still reach her if they jumped.
The wolves howled in despair as Celerave shot above the trees.
Despite feeling as though she needed to hold her breath just to maintain height as she flew over the trees, Celerave let out a howl herself.
One of overwhelming joy.
On the ground, Rhuba and Garagus had started running back towards the wolves before hearing the laughing girl soar overhead.
Celerave had no idea where she was going. She didn't care.
She was flying. Finally. At last.
And that's all that mattered.
The tops of trees were like a sea of green waves rolling below her, stretching on for miles.
Today she got to traverse these woods from above without being carried. It felt so freeing.
"On your tail!" Garagus yelled from behind.
Celerave was about to glance, but even that subtle move veered her away from her path, so she snapped her face forward again.
"Lead us home!" Rhuba called with an unyielding sense of pride in her little girl.
Celerave maintained direction as she aimed towards the mountain ahead.
She didn't quite know how to steer yet.
Realising this, Garagus drifted ahead. Rolling his body slightly to the right, he arched his back until he began listing in that direction.
Celerave was nervous, her balance wasn't as refined, but she was able to follow his lead as he guided the trio home.
Landing was hard.
Garagus touched down outside their door with ease.
Seconds later, Celerave landed on her feet, tripped, fell, bounced, tumbled, skidded then rolled onto her back. Feeling burns and pain everywhere.
She kept herself from crying. But the tears were already down her cheeks by the time Rhuba got her inside for a bath. To her surprise, the warm water stung worse than the landing did.
"Big girls don't cry from a little soap!" Rhuba scolded.
"I'm not a big girl! I'm a little one! A little one! Mummy!" Celerave screamed as she was held under the bubbled until all her scrapes were clean from dirt.
