❝The universe is full of stars. If it weren't for them, the galaxies wouldn't be bright and the night sky would be a lifeless veil of blue because one can rely on the moon only for so long. The universe wouldn't be itself if all those stars -althoug...
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LYLA WASN'T READY.
For a moment she stood in the air to collect herself. She was looking at her surroundings, at the clear blue sky ahead. The clouds had subsided during the session and Lyla was disoriented.
Maybe she had been nervous subconsciously about the practice. Or maybe, just maybe, all the anxiety she had gone through this morning, from waking up and learning from Melanie the news about her mother, to the nerve-wracking experience of the speed train and to the late appearance at Miss Indra's class decided to lash out.
She breathed in, gaze fixated straight ahead. She had to calm her racing heart.
Snap out of it.
Lyla blinked. Today hadn't started at the best note, but it wasn't a reason to pull her back from performing.
You can do this.
The encouragement had her breaking free from the trance her mind had lured her into. And just in time, she thought, since Miss Indra told her they didn't have all day.
She pushed her body forward, her wings picking up the speed. She was tempted to use her speed wings, to the degree it hurt not being able to do what her heart desired.
The speed and the air hitting her cheeks were beckoning her to change from the original to the advanced wings, but the consequence of her action was enough to stop her from acting on impulse.
She was flying with careless ease when a wall emerged a few metres away from her body and her eyes widened with surprise.
Lyla stood still. She shouldn't waste more than five seconds.
She flew to the side and continued. Another wall fell from above, sliding down, almost crashing her back in the process.
She gritted her teeth and swore internally at a realization. There wasn't a specific amount of obstacles.
There was a specific time. The more someone progressed within a short time span, the more the number of obstacles would increase.
The last wall had a target in the middle and was thrown to her from a diagonal direction, but Lyla didn't have the time to dodge it. The lack of awareness as far as using magic was permissible didn't stand in her way from using it at last.
She summoned an intangible magical orange pistol and waited for the perfect opening. "Fire pistol." She fired at the target, the bullet getting stuck close to the center.
Not bad, she praised herself, but her shot could've been more accurate.
The pistol dispersed into tiny orange twinkles and Lyla moved faster. She was about to surpass the five seconds.
She heard a howl from behind her, the unpleasant sound ringing in her ears and she angled her head to look at the source. She wanted someone to pinch her, to convince her this was a dream and that there wasn't a phoenix chasing her.
