Misfits of Aquila (Aquila's Originals 1)

Chapter 26: Routine, Part 3

"WE'RE GOING TO try something a little different today," Tutor Lyrai announced as soon as everyone arrived at the flight field the next morning. For the first time in over a month it wasn't raining. The sky above Aquila couldn't exactly be described as blue, but since the pale grey wasn't currently leaking all over them, Orla would take it. She'd practically forgotten what colour the sky was supposed to be anyway.

"Now that you've all mastered the basics and can complete three full circuits without falling off -"

"All except Vhen and Cereyn anyway," some joker whooped from the back.

Orla glanced at her friend. Vhen looked as stern and stoic as always, while Cereyn was busily picking at his talons, not paying the least bit of attention. It wasn't that they couldn't complete three circuits of the field without Vhen falling off – in fact on the odd occasion Cereyn had been known to fly an extra two laps just to prove that he could – the miryhl just found such restrictions boring and tended to try new things. Things he forgot to warn Vhen about in advance, which usually left his poor Rider sitting in the mud.

"And when was the last time you fell out of the saddle, Student Loryt?" Lyrai asked, voice exquisitely polite, eyes ice cold. The rest of the class snickered at the reminder of the spectacular way Loryt had fallen off the day before, tangling himself so badly in his poorly fixed safety straps that he'd ended up dangling from the saddle like a freshly-caught grouse. Thrown off-balance, his miryhl had tumbled into the mud on top of him, dumping Loryt in a very mucky puddle.

Orla smiled. She liked this instructor. He was always fair, never showed favourites and always knew when someone was being sly and nasty. She wasn't the least bit surprised to find out that he and Captain Stirla were best friends or that he and Tutor Mhysra were married.

"As I was saying," Lyrai continued, wrestling back control of the lesson, "now you have mostly mastered the basics, I believe it's time to try something new."

Orla and her friends exchanged glances. It was rarely a good thing when their teachers tried to change things, and yet at the same time, after so much rain, they were all ready to do something exciting. Even Orla, who had been so nervous in her first few flying lessons, despite Milk taking so much care with her that they'd barely got off the ground.

"But first I need an assistant."

A shadow swept over the flying field and Orla looked up, gasping as a pair of enormous miryhls glided down from the mountainside. After almost two months at Aquila everyone was familiar with Cumulo and Hurricane. One was a legendary Wingborn, the other was a legendary marble. They often took part in miryhl care lessons, helping Mhysra to instruct the students, while also strutting about and inspecting their work. Still, as familiar as she was with both of them, Orla couldn't deny they made an impressive sight in flight.

Wingtip to wingtip, the pair soared around the field, then split apart. While Hurricane swooped low over the students' heads, Cumulo went into a high loop that turned him onto his back, before diving fast towards the ground. Shrieking a challenge, Hurricane banked around and shot up to meet him.

They collided with a clash of feathers and talons.

Students gasped. Someone screamed. Lyrai sighed.

"Not that," he called. "I don't expect you to do that." Putting two fingers to his lips, he issued a sharp whistle.

Laughing, the miryhls broke apart and swept into land on either side of the flight instructor.

"Sorry, couldn't resist," Hurricane murmured, preening Lyrai's bright blond hair. Cumulo just snickered.

Which was when Orla realised it was the Wingborn miryhl, not the marble, that was wearing a saddle and bridle. In the same way that it was easy to forget Tutor Lyrai's left arm was paralysed, since he mostly kept it tucked in his pocket, it was hard to remember that an old break in Hurricane's wing had left him unable to carry passengers. It seemed impossible after seeing him fly, and yet it was Cumulo's back Lyrai climbed aboard, mounting from the right because of his left arm.