Day one of Team X boot camp was underway. Everyone was assembled at their station by the eighth hour of the morning. Mory was a part of the one-third of Team X members who were being trained by Rubi. She put them through hell. It seemed like Rubi had cranked up the intensity when they came to the Land of Mammals. For two hours, she had them alternate between running and strength training. They got a thirty-minute break and then did it all over again for another hour. Mory was glad that it was a cool and cloudy morning because he may have passed out if the weather was warmer.
They had six hours to rest before the night training session. Mory had three hours until he would meet with the old man in the forest. He ate some nuts and berries and then went to Furry Lake to hop in and clean himself off. Just about all of Team X was there. The cool water felt good on his aching muscles.
When he felt clean and rejuvenated, he dried himself off and went to his log cabin. He hung out there until it was time to go see the man. When the shadow of the sundial was nearly casting over the fifteenth hour, Mory walked to the forest. He went to the spot where they met the day before and waited.
Shortly after he arrived, the man glided in from a random direction, just like he had done the day before. He landed close to Mory.
“You ready to fly?” the man asked.
“Sure. But before we start, I need to know some things. Who are you and what type of manek do you have?”
Mory looked down into the cloudy, dark eyes of the man. His hair was was curly and messy just like Mory’s. The difference was that his hair was grey. He had wrinkled and leathery-looking skin. Despite obviously appearing to be in his seventies, he seemed like a fit and energetic man.
“My name is Peperaus, but you can call me Pepé. I have the manek of a sugar glider.”
“What do you know about the group of spora that are here?”
“Me and your leader, Barin go way back. He’s told me everything about your plans for world domination.”
“Wha- we don’t wanna take over the world.”
Pepé laughed and said, “It’s easy for this old mind of mine to forget things. I’m sure whatever it was, Barin has nothing but good intentions. You got any more questions?”
“Uh . . . just one more. This part of the Land of Mammals is supposed to be a remote area. Do you live out here or something?”
“I sure do. I’ve discovered that I like being a loner. People are just too much drama. So, what’s your name?”
“Mory.”
“Okay, Mory. That’s all I need to know about you. Now, let’s begin. Start by telling me what you think flying is.”
Mory took some time to think about the question.
“I guess I’d say it’s . . . being able to move through the air while controlling your direction and speed. Oh, also elevation.”
“So what if you’re moving through the air and you don’t have control over those things?”
“Then it’d be considered falling or gliding.”
“Hmm . . . sounds reasonable, but let’s see if you have those same thoughts by the end of flight school. Now we’ll get into the practical part of the course.” Pepé disengaged his manek. “We’re gonna need some heights to work with, but something tells me you’ve gotten a little too comfortable with these trees. Follow me.”
Mory stayed close behind Pepé as they traveled west through the forest. It didn’t take long for them to reach a point where the ground drastically sloped downward. They stood at the top of a very steep and long hill.
“Mory, what I’m going to have you do is fairly simple. I want you to run down that hill, then you’ll come back up and roll down it.”
“Roll?”
“Yep. Which way down the hill do you think you’ll have more control over?”
“Running, of course.”
“And which way will feel more natural to you or more comfortable?”
“Running. The more control I have, the better I’ll feel. What does any of this have to do with flying?”
“You’ll see. Whenever you’re ready, start running.”
Mory looked at the bottom of the hill, which was far down and far away. He had his doubts but pushed them back and started running. It was a lot harder than he thought it would be. As he made his way down the slope, he had to focus less on running and more on stopping himself from falling forward. The real test was trying to slow himself down. He did this by leaning back as much as he could and pounding his feet into the ground. When he reached the bottom, he tried to stop, but he had to go on for about another thirty meters. He took some time to catch his breath and then he started to walk up the hill. Pepé was waiting for him at the top with a smile on his face.
“Way to go. You got some pretty good balance. Must be from the squirrel power. You ready to roll?”
“Yeah, let’s get this over with.”
Mory sat down and then laid on his back. While looking at the grey sky, he once again questioned what he was doing. He turned his body over and started rolling. He was glad that the ground was soft. His body helplessly spun down the hill. The hill was so steep, he couldn’t stop himself if he wanted to. All he could do was wait until he reached the flattened land. He realized that there was no need to fight it.
Just roll with it.
After what felt like a hundred rolls, he finally came to a stop. He stood and began walking back up the hill. Going up the steep hill was difficult enough, but the dizziness that Mory felt added to the challenge.
“You’re really on a roll now,” said Pepé. “Which way down the hill felt more comfortable?”
“Honestly, I’d say it was rolling.”
“Why do you think that was?”
“I wasn’t working against myself. I didn’t really have to do anything.”
“You gave up control, and instead of trying to move down the hill, you allowed the hill to move you. It’s the same with gliding. Instead of seeking control in the air, let the air guide you. Let’s move on to the next part. Activate your manek.” Mory transformed and Pepé continued with the lesson. “Jump from the top of the hill and glide to the bottom. Return here and I’ll tell you what’s next.”
Mory nodded. He turned and jumped as far out as he could. It was almost like hopping off of trees. He was able to glide over the ground as he went down, but he only made it about halfway before his knees and feet brushed against the grass, and he landed. He went back to Pepé.
“Now I want you to jump and do nothing. Just fall.”
“I thought I was already doing that.”
“No. This time I really want you to let yourself fall. Relax your body just like when you were rolling. Trust me, everything we’ve done so far will make sense if you do this.”
Mory sighed and said, “I’ll try.”
He nervously approached the launch site and took a deep breath.
Just Roll.
He jumped. While completely relaxed, his body took over and wouldn’t allow him to hit the ground. He glided smoother than he ever had before. Not only did he get past the hill, but he kept going. By the time he landed, he had gotten about three times further than he did on his first glide attempt. Mory looked back towards Pepé, who was gliding over to him.
He landed right in front of Mory and asked, “Did you learn anything from that?”
“I did. I didn’t realize that I was holding myself back all this time.”
“That’s not your fault though. Clearly, those birds have influenced your technique. Do you see how trusting your body saves energy and makes your glide more efficient?”
“Yeah.”
Pepé looked up at a crossbill bird that flew high above them. The red bird was the only bit of color that slid across the cloudy sky canvas.
“Let me tell you why I believe you can fly, Mory. Flight is not about using wings to move through the air. Flying is an adventure in the sky, to get to where you belong.” Pepé looked Mory in the eyes and said, “You may not have wings, but you were born to fly.”
Those words struck Mory’s soul. No one had ever said such a thing to him. On the outside, he showed a calm smile, but on the inside, he was filled with pride. For Mory’s entire life, he had dreamed of being able to fly.
“Pepé, I can’t thank you enough for this. Why did you decide to help me?”
“I don’t know. I think I did it because . . . you sucked.”
“Wow. I was kinda expecting a more philosophical answer.”
They both found the brutal honesty to be funny and laughed, then Pepé revealed his true reason.
“My father had a flying squirrel manek. You reminded me of him.”
“Really? Maybe it was some kind of fate that brought us here together.”
“Maybe. Get back to the base so you can get some rest. I expect to see you tomorrow at the same time. There’s a lot more stuff that you need to work on to improve your gliding.”
“Alright. I’ll see you tomorrow.” Mory charged up the hill. When he reached the top he turned his head back and waved at the man while shouting, “Thanks for the lesson, Pepé!”
Fantasy