The Dragoso Series 1: Discovery in Hardship

Chapter 8

Six days later brought about a clear, sunny day. Though it wasn't a day for enjoying the sunshine as Trevor fell from the air, grunting as he landed on one of his wings. He stood and stretched his wing, looking up at his siblings hovering above him.

"You alright, Trevor?" Brenda called down to him. Trevor snorted and shook himself out, watching his siblings for a moment.

"Yeah, I'm fine." Trevor mumbled. He exhaled slowly before looking over at the flight teachers. Trevor wasn't sure about them, considering one stood in his dragon form while the other sat on his back in her human form.

The dragon was Sonar, the blind male who had woken them up their first morning at Voutneth. He was an Earth Dragon that was truly blind. He looked as though he stared off into space all the time. The human on his back was a Water Dragon that went by the name Tikimune. She was a handicapped dragon, having only one wing. The combination of a blind dragon and a dragon that couldn't even fly brought some doubt, but they had teamwork and unbroken trust.

"Get back up there, Trevor, try it again," Tikimune called and Trevor shook his head before opening his wings.

"I'm sick of this face planting," Trevor mumbled and he took to the air again. He faltered for a moment before he hovered with his siblings. "Why is it so hard for me to stay in the air?"

"Your wing beats, that's what," Sonar spoke below them. They looked down at him before landing, or in Trevor's case, falling.

"What do you mean?" Brenda asked. Tikimune dropped from his back.

"Despite dragon bones being hollow but super tough, there's still a lot of weight on your bodies. Two things are needed to be able to stay in the air. Strong wing muscles and correct wing strokes. Each dragon has a specific amount of time needed between wing beats to stay in the air. Small dragons need faster beats while larger dragons need less but stronger strokes. You need to work on your wing strokes more." Tikimune explained.

"And how am I supposed to figure that out?" Trevor snapped.

"You have to learn that on your own," Sonar snorted. He puffed his chest and stared at Trevor with his clouded pupils. Trevor backed up a few steps and looked away. "Back in the air everyone, give me ten laps around the track! Work on endurance, not speed." Trevor's siblings launched into the air and started their laps. Trevor exhaled and opened his wings to follow them, only to be stopped by a hand on his shoulder.

"Hang on, Trevor. We should get you started on some training suggestions to help with your wings. You were in football in high school, yes?" Trevor nodded to Tikimune. "You have more muscle in your body, your wings need strength as well."

"I'm listening." Trevor actually sat down and listened to Sonar and Tikimune explain different exercises for him to do everyday to strengthen his wings. By the time they finished, his siblings were done with their laps and panting.

"David, too much speed. Brenda, too many wing strokes. Aya, not enough height. You all need to work on that to keep your endurance up," Tikimune commanded. She looked at her watch before looking up at Trevor. "Get your siblings in on your wing workout as well, it'll help all of you. You best be getting to lunch." Trevor nodded and turned human.

"C'mon guys, lunchtime!" Trevor called and his siblings became human, running for the mansion to get to lunch. Trevor simply walked and took his normal spot with his siblings. Today's lunch was pizza sticks, something they hadn't had since school.

"Pizza sticks! Yum!" David exclaimed and dug in. The dragon that usually took their order, a Shadow Dragon named Darkness, smiled at them.

"Best part, you get as many as you want! I heard they only give students in human school just two. That's no fun!" Darkness stated and Trevor nodded.