An Adventure with Aerith
The engine roared to life, and soon they were off. None of the passengers were stiff or frightened; in fact, one seemed ready to fall asleep.
The female reptilian yawned as she strapped on her vest, and the wyvern mimicked her actions, fumbling a bit.
“Are you certain this will be covered by our budget?” Griffin asked nervously, swallowing. “And that it will be covered by our insurance?”
Aerith scoffed. “Insurance? Like we need that. We’ll be fine, Griff. No worries.”
“Have you ever done this before?”
She grinned. “Nope.” In response, Griffin blanched.
The clouds blew by them, so close they could have touched them, but neither would have dared to do so. Not only had it been difficult to buy off the coaches’ silence (a man with wings was a bit of an abnormality, after all), but it would have made matters worse if they’d made it obvious to their other companions (a few simple humans with an excess of cash, a death wish or both) that their fellow skydiver didn’t have need of the parachute in the first place.
Now that they were high in the sky, Griffin’s nerves had calmed, the tension eased from his neck and shoulders. The sky was his domain, after all. Aerith still appeared bored, but her eyes were bright and full of life, unlike every other day in her existence.
The guide opened the door of the plane, allowing a gust of biting wind to enter the cabin. “Alright!” he shouted above the wind. “You all ready to jump?”
A chorus of “Yes!”’s met his call, but no one heard the Wyvern’s meager “Maybe.”
“Good to hear. Make sure your vest is strapped on nice and tight. Don’t want anyone falling out in the middle of their freefall, do we?” If Griffin could have shrank in on himself at all, he would have done so. “That’s right. We only let that happen once.” The Wyvern’s eye twitched. “Get ready. Who’s first?”
“We are!” Aerith announced, waving her hand in the air like a suck-up in elementary school. “We’re ready to dive, sir!”
“That’s the kind of enthusiasm I like to hear! Remember to pull when you get halfway down!”
“Sure,” Aerith said.
“Where is halfway?!” Griffin cried.
“Get ready for a rush,” the man said. “See ya on the flip side.” With a swift shove, he sent the two mythical creatures plummeting to their ultimate doom.
Spiralling through the air, Griffin struggled to keep his sights locked on his partner. “We are going to perish, and it is all your fault!”
Aerith barely heard him through the ringing in her ears, but she smiled anyway. “Nah, it’s totally safe. Just pull the cord when I do.”
“When do I do that?”
“When I do!”
He frowned. “‘Ken, my boo?’ Aerith, I do not care about your personal relations at this time!”
“Just pull the d*mn cord!” she shrieked, tugging on the wire. Behind her, a canopy of fabric billowed out.
But something was wrong.
It didn’t catch the air like it should have. Right along the center of the chute was a straight tear.
Griffin watched her struggle to release the defective parachute, but the ground was coming ever nearer. He contemplated pulling his own cord, but that would only secure her doom.
Aerith untangled the torn chute from her pack only to find that there was no spare.
She closed her eyes.
There was no other choice.
Griffin tossed off his pack, letting it fly on its own, and freed his wings from beneath his coat. Relishing in the sensation of open air on his scales, the Wyvern swooped down to catch the Water Dragon, using his own abilities to save them both.
Ten minutes later, they reached the ground, and Griffin gently set her down. She bit the inside of her cheek, clearly flustered.
“Thanks,” she finally muttered after an eternity of silence.
He shrugged. “I could not let you die, could I? You guaranteed our safety, and I do not peg you as a liar.” A hint of a smile brushed over her lips. “We are members of the same family. Ohana.”
“You just quoted Lilo and Stitch.”
“So I did.”
Aerith laughed. “You’re not such a bad guy, Griff. I kind of had you pegged as a stiff. But you’re not half bad.”
“I am glad you think so.” He paused to look at their surroundings before turning his attention back to the woman. “Now, do you happen to know how to get out of here?”
