Fly or Fall

Chapter Eight

"An adventure begins with one word. A word that entices the mind and body to go beyond their limits. A word that creates boundless opportunities to soar to new heights. A word so profound it's complex in its simplicity. Yes. Say YES to adventure." – Dorian Von, A Biography by Pita J. Jimm

Dorian Von was an explorer. A great one, maybe the greatest to ever live. He'd travelled the four corners of the globe, sailing across the five seas. He'd crossed the Gomean desert—the largest desert in this world—in a month with nothing but a knife and his wit. He'd climbed Mt. Futona, the tallest mountain. Many people had tried and died, the mountain was said to be littered with the bones of the men and women who'd failed to reach the peak. Von had been the first.

He'd fought against a Ponegonean warrior and lived, something Andy surmised was not an easy feat. But his greatest accomplishment was discovering this island. He'd named it after himself, Dorian's Isle, a bit ostentatious, maybe, but did it matter? No, Andy did not think so. This man had been brave, daring, and quick-witted. He'd faced danger with unwavering resolve. Andy wanted to be like him.

He'd never admit it to anyone other than himself but it was true. He wished he was braver, more daring and he didn't overthink everything so much. Maybe if he had been a little more like Dorian at the party, when Cedric Morgan had walked up to him he wouldn't have made such a fool of himself. He wasn't going to make that mistake again. It's why when Kol had invited him to go on an epic adventure he hadn't hesitated to say yes.

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Kol 'borrowed' one of the carriages the royal family kept on hand in the underground garage underneath the palace. He entered in the destination and sat back in his seat as the wheels turned. His eyes watched the palace through the window as it grew smaller and smaller until it was barely a spec in the horizon. He sighed. It'd been too long since he'd left the palace.

He'd hated every agonizingly long hour of being confined to the palace grounds doing absolutely nothing. He craved excitement, he craved danger. There was nothing dangerous about afternoons spent in a classroom going over mathematics and the long awfully dull history of Omora, unless the danger was dying of boredom.

This, the thrill of escaping into the night, this was what made life worth living. His body buzzed with adrenaline and he could already hear the sounds of the city. The dissonances of so much happening at the same time. It was enough to have his heart racing.

"Are you finally going to tell us where we're going?" Anna asked. She sat across from him.

He smirked. "If I tell you," he said, "then it's no longer a surprise, is it?"

She pouted and he laughed. She was so cute when she pouted he had to wrestle the urge to give into her. "I promise you'll like it," he said, looking her in the eyes. "Just be a little patient." That's hypocritical, he thought. He was the least patient person he knew. But she didn't know that.

Andy sat across from Val but from the look in his eyes he seemed to be worlds away. He bit down on his bottom lip and used his fingers to drum against his knee caps. Kol watched with laden curiosity, he wanted to know what was going on in his head. When he had planned on inviting him out he hadn't expected him to give in so easily. He figured Andy would be the type who preferred to stay inside and never do anything interesting, but he was wrong. Andy had surprised him. He loved surprises.

The carriage stopped just outside the city. The sides of the carriage were painted with the royal emblem, a twisted silver oak tree. It was a dead giveaway of where they'd come from. They didn't want to arouse any unnecessary attention. They hid the carriage behind some shrubbery and concealed it under fallen brunches before they started their way up to the city.