The sound of wind howled past my ears, my hair and dress flapping wildly behind me.

  I'd gotten a little too excited and jumped before thinking, plummeting nearly twenty feet before I'd managed to channel my manaura into the focus. The glider had responded instantly, generating its own updraft while the focus emitted a soft glow.

  The fall had quickly leveled out into a smooth glide once I'd gotten the hang of it. Heart attack aside, it was actually kind of nice— though my heart still threatened to break free of my ribcage as our flight stabilized.

  Now, I just needed to learn how to steer this thing before we crashed into the rapidly approaching spires.

  Leaning left or right changed my direction easily enough. Altitude control, on the other hand, proved to be a little more tricky. Several panicked minutes passed as I tried to figure out how to adjust the amount of manaura I channeled. Too much, and I shot up like a startled cat. Too little, and I fell like a rock who thought it could fly.

  Finally, I gained some semblance of control. Just in time to maneuver up and away from the first pillar that was quickly approaching.

  "I... think I got the hang of this now..." I said through frantic breaths.

  Rose's death grip on my neck loosened. I'm sure we'd both just gone through several panic attacks together.

  With the fear of plummeting to my second 'untimely demise' fading, the glide grew surprisingly peaceful. The wind still rushed past me, but at least the view was incredible. A sea of grayish-white clouds rolled far below, obscuring the ground from sight. Everything was illuminated by the two moons that cast a pale light across the sky. It actually reminded me of the very first night I'd spent in Elemora.

  Far ahead, the dim blue glow of the beacon beckoned me. I could make out the little strip of earth where I was meant to land, with the rest area around the landing zone covered in dense foliage.

  My mouth widened as I sailed around another massive stone pillar. They were much larger than they appeared, occasionally blocking my view of the landing zone as I drew close to them. Dozens sat between me and the finish line, which really put into perspective how small I was, how high we were, and how far was left to glide.

  The insanity of this situation finally hit— I was literally flying through the night sky on a magically propelled glider. I never would have put something like this on my bingo card!

  The first ten minutes of flying were terrifying, and the five that followed were actually quite relaxing. In just fifteen minutes, I'd nearly covered a third of the distance. Other than maneuvering around the pillars, I was off to a pretty good start.

  After about twenty minutes, I was nearly halfway across. I wove between two more towering stone spires, the cold night air beginning to bite at my cheeks and ears. Glancing downwards, I watched my shadow dance along the uneven blanket of clouds. Far below it all was the ground. The thought of a long, terrifying fall tugged at the back of my mind if my manaura were to run out.

  As I admired the rippling shadows below, a new one caught my attention. It had crept up behind mine, slowly gaining on me as I glided onward. Its shadow was much larger than mine, and while mine was triangular, this one appeared... feathered...

  * Strange... I thought Auren said I'd be taking this trial alone... *

  A knot formed in my stomach. The glider made it hard to see above me, but I knew something was wrong.

  "Rose... I think we're about to have company!" I said frantically.

  The knot in my gut tightened as I watched the second shadow surge toward mine. On impulse, I veered sharply to the left... and was glad I did.

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  A massive winged creature barreled past where I was moments ago. It was silent, precise, and very large. The draft it created as it sailed past sent my glider bumping up and down.

  My grip tightened on the bar as I attempted to maintain control. The creature leveled out its dive just above the cloud layer, barely disturbing the surface as it recovered from its missed attack.

  I'd only seen it for a few brief seconds after arriving in this world, but its silhouette was seared into my memory.

  "What's a final trial without a Noctyrix hunting you?" I groaned.

  For a few moments, we glided in parallel. I was finally able to get a good look at the creature that had once saved my life. The base of its body was covered with deep indigo-blue feathers, the tips of its wings fading into a gentle white. Two long white feathers rose like a crown from its head. Traces of white, orange, and purple feathers were scattered throughout its plumage. It wasn't bulky, rather slender like a falcon, and easily twice the size of my glider.

  Three beats of its massive wings was all it took for it to match my altitude. For a moment we glided together, as if it were a giant avian wingman.

  If I hadn't been worried I'd be its next meal, this might have been an amazing experience.

  Suddenly, it angled towards me and closed the gap in a heartbeat. I channeled a surge of manaura into the glider, which sent me rising several feet. The Noctyrix sailed under me with outstretched talons as it took another swipe.

  It was only now— heart pounding, muscles tensing— that the true weight of this trial began to sink in.

  I was naive to think a straight glide was all this trial entailed. Every turn, every frantic surge of manaura to dodge or climb, chipped away at my stamina. It was hard enough to sustain a steady flow of manaura to stay gliding in the first place.

  I was thankful for the 'rest' Auren had given me, and even more so for the wonder bread I'd eaten. Without those, my manaura would've already been tapped dry... and I don't even think the Noctyrix was trying yet.

  A sudden patch of turbulence dropped me a couple feet. My stomach did a somersault as Rose's grip on my neck tightened. Her presence was comforting, it was a nice reminder I wasn't completely alone.

  A heavy beat of wings snapped my attention back.

  After its second missed attack, the Noctyrix fell back into a loose formation beside me. A second later, it broke away and began gaining altitude until it was out of sight. While it was above me, all I could do was look for its shadow on the clouds below.

  An attack could come at any moment... I was going to need a plan.

  Was I a pilot? No. Did I know anything about aerodynamics? No— I may have slept through that class, though I did watch a dogfight documentary once.

  I steered the glider directly at one of the stone spires, hoping to use it as an obstacle. At the last possible second, I veered sharply to the right and skimmed along its edge.

  Glancing back, I winced as the Noctyrix smashed directly into the pillar. The sound of exploding rocks echoed behind me, shattered stone flying everywhere. The enormous creature seemed completely unfazed. It quickly tore itself free and climbed back into the sky, releasing the pulverised stone it had in its talons.

  The shriek it unleashed sent chills through my body, and made my ears ring. It sounded like the hoot of an owl mixed with the screech of a hawk— only ten times louder.

  It was mad now, for sure.

  "Rose, hang tight! Things are about to get spicy!"

  As I rounded the side of the spire, a soft blue glow appeared in the distance, maybe a hundred yards away. The finish line was in sight.

  The collision had slowed the Noctyrix, if only briefly. All stealth was abandoned by the Noctyrix now as heavy wing beats thundered behind me.

  The glow of the lantern was getting brighter by the second, but my thoughts were becoming hazy. My limit was quickly approaching.

  This was the final stretch, do or die.

  I forced another surge of manaura into the glider and shot upwards. I leveled out and risked a glance backwards— and screamed, my heart slamming into my ribcage.

  The Noctyrix was barely ten feet away.

  At this point, I could barely focus. I don't even know if I was thinking, just acting.

  I reached a hand back and shouted, "ElvaVexAris!" {Wind unleash with power}.

  A burst of wind exploded out of my palm, hitting the Noctyrix straight in the beak. As the spell unraveled, my vision flickered. The Noctyrix screeched again and peeled back several feet, just enough to buy me a few more precious seconds.

  With the last of my willpower, I dipped the tip of the glider down towards the landing. I went into a full nose dive towards the ground as the last of my manaura faded.

  Wind screamed past my ears. My eyes watered as the cold wind howled past my face. My grip barely holding on as I plummeted back to earth.

  I knew I was supposed to aim for the landing, but with my fading consciousness I decided to aim for the treetops instead. Even if I crash landed in the clearing, I'd be left wide open and the Noctyrix could finish the job.

  I hoped this would work like the movies, and I could use the trees to slow my fall.

  Moments before impact, my vision turned white.

  What happened after that was anybody's guess.