In A BALLAD OF BROTHERS, fifteen-year-old Achim Arbitor searches for the last living member of his family; his brother. To that end, he wanders the ruin of an old world aided by powers believed to be a gift of God.
Years have passed since his quest...
Long after dawn and into summer noon, Adlai followed Nadine as she led him and Brielle to the training site. Through the ruin-riddled forests they lept, until the three arrived at a forgotten glade. The grove had been carved out of a collapsed skyscraper and, surrounded by heaps of debris, it was largely inaccessible to the common scavenger.
The dancing grass. The bobbing dandelions. The cool breeze. It all seemed to cleanse Adlai's spirit as he wandered the clearing. At the center of the glade stood three pillars, standing stones that caught Adlai's eye. He walked toward the concrete ruins and placed a hand on the stoney surface. Indeed. When he saw the glade in totality, Adlai smiled with his worldly woes forgotten, for a time.
The three pillars that stood at the center of the glade were of varying heights. Nadine floated herself to the top of the tallest column on a conjured breeze, and Adlai turned to find Brielle struggling to climb the smallest. Wirth both now occupied, Adlai seemed ordained for the middling pillar to which he mounted with ease. Once all three columns were occupied, Nadine instructed him and his sibling to clear their minds. Adlai had already begun the process before Nadine completed her instructions. A process which required him to close his eyes, slow his breathing, and take a dive into the ethereal sea with a mind at ease. Between the glade and the exercise, Adlai was overcome with a rare clarity. One that saw him push the whispers aside in exchange of his own conscious thoughts.
Another "Title Cover" I made some time ago. It depicts Adlai with a grim look, but the keen eye might notice that he isn't just angry here, but a little sad too.
Oops! This image does not follow our content guidelines. To continue publishing, please remove it or upload a different image.
This self-reflection would not last long, for Adlai soon heard Nadine's voice. Her words did not ring in his ear though, for Nadine did not speak. Her voice was, instead, an encroaching echo in Adlai's mind. Of course, such was not unusual. The process always began this way. What often followed was the emergence of distant impressions that were not entirely his own. And so it was that Adlai felt them. At first it was a slithering sensation on the skin. The cool caress of the air began to crawl along his every contour. It was the winds his mentor called; the refreshing breeze, the goose bumps from the chill. Yes. Adlai felt himself floating as if he was the one floating atop the tall pillar. Brielle's distance stiffness was also becoming tangible. Her shallow breaths. Her fear. Adlai felt his heart race in conjunction with hers, and yet his was calm. Brielle's unease. Her latent distress. It was his and hers both. Adlai felt what they felt and vice versa.
This was Communion. A preternatural state that gave the communer insight into those that communed alongside them. Only in this state could an individual view the imprints upon another's eye, feel the fluctuations of their heart, and read the intents of their soul. Experience granted greater insight, but the writs for the technique remained the same. Immobility, unfettered focus, and a tranquility, both internal and external, that allowed one to adhere to the ethereal flow. Once completed successfully, one could explore the unseen threads that wove the world as one. Anyone could read the twine with training and time, but the black blooded brood, a group bound by their curse, had a unique affinity to one another. Using this primordial power, they could attune themselves to their kin and to understand their companions as well as themselves.
