Flying

Chapter 1: Unexpected Arrival

I dodge around a tree trunk and risk a glance over my shoulder. The beast is crashing through the undergrowth coming straight for me. Sweat trickles down my forehead, and my lungs feel like they are going to burst. The enormous creature is gaining on me. I can almost feel the hot breath coming from his nostrils. Putting on a last burst of speed, I break through the trees into a small clearing and skid to a halt. A sheer cliff face is in front of me, blocking my path forward. Quickly, I yank my double jian swords out and turn around to face the beast who smashes into the clearing. The creature has the head of a bull and the massive body of a man. His large arms with hooked fingernails are longer than the reach of my steel blades, and saliva drips from his mouth.

"I suppose you don't mind waiting for me to catch my breath before you eat me," I pant out.

The minotaur growls and begins advancing further into the clearing.

"Not very verbal, are you?" I comment.

Slowly, I back up until I feel the rocky cliff behind me. Lifting my swords into combat position, I grin at the beast.

"Well, what are you waiting for then?"

With a snarl, the minotaur leaps forward. I dart to the side and leap into the air. As my body soars upwards, the monstrous creature swings its muscular arms at me. Its sharp clwas miss me by only a few centimeters. I slash several ropes hanging from the cliff. A weighted net falls over the minotaur, dragging him to the earth. Grabbing a crystal vial hanging from my neck, I pull out the cork with my teeth and dump the sparkling fey dust over the trapped monster.

"Learn to speak Greek before coming back here," I yell as the minotaur vanishes.

I float down and land lightly on my toes and sheathe my swords. That is the fourth time I've faced that idiotic creature, and he always falls for the same trick. At least he hasn't destroyed the net this time. I slide my swords into the leather sheathes on my back.

After replacing the trap, I jump into the air and fly over the treetops. I have homes set up across my island in trees, caves, underground, on top of mountains and so forth. I check on all of them and each of my trails. Everything appears to be normal. Which is a good thing. Except now I'm bored. Usually, I would welcome a day of rest with no dangers or menacing creatures, but lately, I've been feeling restless. Being in charge of Neverland is wonderful, but it gets lonely at times.

I decide to go down to the beach to shake off my melancholic mood. Maybe I'm just tired. I haven't been sleeping well for the past few weeks. I keep having the same nightmare every night. With a loud sigh, I sit on a flat rock and gaze down at the blue water. I don't know why I'm feeling this way. Neverland is paradise. It's about three days journey across by walking, but it's much shorter with flying which I definitely prefer.  Not only does the island contain every type of terrain and season, but no one ever ages here. Although my diminutive height makes me seem young, I've been here for years. I don't even remember when I first arrived.

I'm the only permanent resident of the island. The rest of the visitors are from legends, stories and folk tales. They arrive only when in need of magical restoration. Flicker, my fey, transports them to and from the island. She sends me messages when they are coming, and I ready the island so they'll feel comfortable when they arrive.

But most of the time, it's just me. Which isn't too bad. Usually. I run my fingers through my long black hair and rest my head against my knees.

"Jimmy, what is wrong with you?" I whisper to myself. "You're fine on your own. You always have been. You don't need anyone else."

I stand up and brush the sand off my green tunic and pants. Glancing up at the sun, I gage how much daylight I have left. I put off my usual weapons training routine earlier today, so I might as well catch up on it now. I retrieve a bow and quiver of arrows from one of my hiding places on the beach. After placing a fresh string on the bow, I pick out my targets. I usually prefer fighting with my swords. Archery isn't really my forte. Which is exactly why Flicker would say I should practice more. The soft feathers tickle my fingers as I pull back the arrow. I take sight and release the string. Once my quiver is empty, I survey my results. I hit all my targets although only three of them were precisely in the center.

"Good enough for today," I mutter.

I'm too lazy to retrieve my arrows, so I simply raise my hand and twist my wrist. The arrows come speeding from their targets and bundle themselves neatly into my quiver. Flicker always scolds me when I use magic unnecessarily. She thinks that I should only use it when I'm in danger of dying. A little bit hypocritical of her given that, as a fey, she is literally pure magic. Neither of us are bound to channeling our magic essences through spells, potions or enchanted objects. We simply have to draw upon our spirit sparks to summon our powers.

Picking up my weapons, I start to put them back in their hiding place when I notice something on the ground behind the rock I was sitting on earlier. It almost looks like an enormous seashell, but as I draw nearer, I see that it's softer than a shell.

"What the...?" I exclaim as I reach the rock.

A hand is lying on the sand. Apprehensively, I draw my swords and walk around the rock. A young man is lying unconscious, halfway in the water.

"How did you get here?" I whisper.

Neverland's ocean only extends out about three days journey before turning into sky. It's one of the safety mechanisms designed to protect the island from people who would try to steal Neverland's magic.

After standing dumbfounded for several minutes, I realize I should probably pull him farther onto the beach since the waves are beginning to draw near his face. Grabbing his arms, I drag him out of the ocean and turn him over. His drenched hair falls over his face.

"You better be breathing because I am not giving you mouth to mouth."

Leaning down, I listen intently. Shallow breaths are coming from his parted lips. I brush his hair out of his eyes and place my hand on his neck to check his pulse. Suddenly, his eyes burst open, and he sits straight up.

"Who are you?" he gasps.

"I think that's a better question for me to ask you since you're on my island," I retort.

"I'm Peter," he breathes out.

His bright green eyes roll back in his head, and he collapses back on the sand.

"Great." I cross my arms over my chest. "Nice to meet you too, Peter."

Hey guys, thanks for reading the first chapter. Let me know what you think in the comments, and if you're enjoying the story, click the like button!

Fun Fact:

I know that fay is the old term spelling for fairies. Flicker is a fey, which is another type of being, made up entirely of my imagination. I will be elaborating on the difference between fays and feys deeper in the book, so keep reading!

I'll be updating every week, so add this book into your library to get regular updates. Until then, I remain...

Yours Forever,

Commodore Caroline