Age of the Gods: The Complete, twelve novel, fantasy series (The Blood and Brotherhood Saga) (2 page)

Seth

The sun sank slowly over the mountains to the west, taking with it warmth and leaving behind a streak of crimson. The air was cool, cooler now without the direct sunlight to warm the forest below. Winter was coming sooner than most hoped it would, and apparently it was coming with a vengeance. The atmosphere of the treed canopy changed almost subconsciously as insects began to buzz and nocturnal predators began to stir. The wind blew cold, wistfully down the mountain slopes as breath turned to crystals and day turned to night.

Seth tracked the beast stealthily through the forest, carefully deciding each footfall. The rains had begun a week earlier, softening the loam and fallen leaves cushioning each step. Occasionally he would lose sight of the crafty creature behind brush or a large tree, though tracking it thus far had been easy enough. Several times he believed he had a shot but, unwilling to take it and miss, had not yet drawn his bow.

Thus he crept silently stalking the beast, arrow knocked, waiting for the perfect shot that he feared would never come. Though it was late in the fall and leaves carpeted the forest floor, the canopy above him was vast and still blocked out much of the light. The scent of rain was heavy in the air and from time to time he could see a glimpse of the cloud-covered sky above. Darkness was nearing and with it yet another storm.

The beast sprang from the brush ahead and darted to a small clearing only twenty yards from Seth’s own cover. This might be the last opportunity for a clear shot that he would get, and thus far it was the best vantage he had received to take the beast down cleanly.

Taking a deep breath he drew his bow to the full, tightening his abdominal muscles as he did to assure himself a steady shot. He drew down on the beast aiming just behind the head, hoping to sever the spinal cord and spare himself from following yet another blood trail. He exhaled, and just before releasing the arrow, he closed his eyes and gritted his teeth.

Seth couldn’t bring himself to actually witness the death blow to his prey. Instead he listened for the fraction of the second that it took for his arrow to reach its mark. Within an instant, he heard the familiar shink of metal meeting bone, followed by the thud of his arrow driving through the beast into the soft earth beneath it. Seth opened his eyes and surveyed the carnage. Approaching the beast, he realized that he had made a clean kill as he had hoped. The hare lay still in a pool of steaming blood, not bothering to twitch, let alone breathe or squeal.

Grabbing the tail end of his arrow, he gave a single tug dislodging it and the hare impaled upon it from the soil below. Careful not to shower himself in blood, he pulled the arrow from his catch and placed it back in his quiver. Seth dropped the beast into the leather sack tied to his belt. Pulling his head and one arm through his short bow, he slung it on his back. He had spent the entire day in the woods and had only bagged four small hares, but he knew his brother would easily make up for it with his own catch.

Turning, he strode back the way he had come, no longer bothering to be quiet. After nearly a mile he approached the trail where he hoped to meet his brother. At least, he was pretty sure this was the trail. In the forest with the light failing, Seth wasn't certain, even though he had hunted these trails nearly his whole life.

Walking alone in the lush forest had given him ample time to think throughout the day, yet no matter how hard he tried to avoid them, the same thoughts assailed him time and time again. Tomorrow he would leave home, and even though he wouldn't be going alone, the thought of leaving his life behind terrified him.

The uncertainty of the future weighed upon his heart and he feared the days ahead. He had no idea what the future held, but felt certain that it would not be easy. He not only feared for himself but also for his family. His father would be alone, forced to handle all the chores that he and his brother now did on top of his normal daily routine, and he worried that it would be too much for his father.

Sure, when he and his brother were small, their father managed it all on his own. However, his father wasn't getting any younger, and things that were easy in his youth proved more difficult now. He was afraid that all the extra responsibilities might take a toll on his father. He tried to reason that the neighbors would chip in to fill the void the boys left when they were gone, but rationalizing the situation didn't make him feel any better. He had so many worries; his father was just one of the many.

Seth also feared for himself and his brother. Though his brother had designs for his own future, Seth didn't share his ambitions. In fact, he didn't aspire to a grand future at all. All
he
wanted, was to spend the rest of his days in Vineleaf, eventually take over for his father, and live a long
quiet
life. Seth had imagined himself many times simply shirking his duties to the realm and just staying home to do just that, but he didn't want to disappoint his father, and neither did he want his brother to face the world alone. Thus were his thoughts as he heard the snap of a twig up ahead. Better safe than sorry, he altered his course into the deepening shadows of the trees, and crept ahead silently as death.

Garret

Only an hour of light remained in the forest valley, and being stuck in the forest in the cold dark was not what Garret would consider an enjoyable last night at home. His decision to head back made, he rose from the fallen tree he rested on, picked up his bow and the rabbits he had bagged and slung them across his shoulder. He tramped through the underbrush to the familiar trail he had walked many times in his years of living in Vineleaf and hunting in these forests. The sky threatened rain, but none forthcoming he shrugged, hoping the weather would hold for at least a few more days. He continued down the path, always downhill, listening to the small mountain river that ran parallel to the trail deeper within the trees. It was not long before he came to the fork in the path where he and Seth had separated. Looking around for any sign of his brother, Garret couldn’t help but hope that Seth had been watching the time. Unsure how far his brother had followed the trail to hunt, he decided to see if Seth was close.

“Seth, you coming?” Garret shouted in no particular direction.

“Of course.” The nearly whispered response from directly behind him startled him. “Wouldn’t want to keep Dad waiting!” Seth said with a mocking smile forming on his lips, obviously pleased he was able to catch his brother unaware.

Garret stared at his brother, so much like himself, and wondered silently how he hadn’t heard him coming. It was true, Seth was more agile than he, being leaner, but what gave
him
the advantage? They were both tall. Both were muscled from hard work, though Garret was obviously the stronger, bulkier. Both had chestnut hair and brown eyes. So very much the same, but in their entire lives together, Garret could not remember a single time he had ever caught Seth off guard. It was irritating.

Being twins, it was somehow hard to surprise each other as if their minds, like their bodies, were so much alike they could anticipate each other’s thoughts. It was kind of creepy to think about, yet familiar and comfortable. Garret couldn’t help but wonder how strained their bond might be if they were separated in the days to come. He could only hope that fate would keep them together, as they had been from birth. Being so much alike, he could not imagine them being chosen for different paths. They turned together and walked down the winding trail towards home.

“Still worried, huh?” Garret stated more than asked with feigned nonchalance.

“I wish I could be as sure as you are that everything will magically fall into place and our lives won’t change,” replied Seth. “It’s just all the possibilities, all the change, all so quickly. It’s like it’s utterly out of our control. What if something goes wrong?”

“Stop being such a pessimist, Seth,” Garret said. “It's not like the world is coming to an abrupt halt, it’s just another Chapter in our lives.”

“Yeah, a Chapter someone else is writing for us.”

“Oh, cut it out. Everyone has to go to The Choosing. It’s not like we’re the first ones.” Garret couldn’t help but be optimistic, even excited about the prospects.

The thought of being a soldier, maybe even fighting in the wars to the south, together with the romanticized glory of won battles, all the tales told to him over the fires at the inn, had struck a chord in his soul. He longed for adventure. He had been told once by a retired soldier that nearly two thirds of the people who had gathered for The Choosing went to the vast armies of Valdadore to train as soldiers. Two thirds was damn good odds.

Seth

Seth, himself, had no notions of glory. He knew all too well the stories of the great wars and battles won by the immense armies of Valdadore. Always the pessimist, or perhaps just a realist, he remembered the fallen and often forgotten comrades that the story tellers mentioned with misty eyes, but never dwelt upon in their tales of adventure. Blood, death, destruction, families broken, and love destroyed, hope shattered, soul wrenching loss. These were the parts of the stories left untold, hidden between the lines of the tales. Those were what Seth feared, the stories he had never been told but still heard beneath the surface; the stories of those lost that each began their final Chapters at The Choosing.

The trees began to clear as the path led through the dense brush and over growth that would soon take them to the small farms of their village; to Vineleaf. All but the last traces of daylight had faded from the sky, carrying with it the last of the day’s warmth. Both brothers shared a sigh of relief, or was it a sigh of anticipation? Probably both. This was the last night they would see their home for a while, and both slowed their walk to take it all in one last time. The farmhouses ahead were already alight from lanterns in the windows. Past them a few small houses stretched down the narrow road that ended at the inn.

Vineleaf was a small community, self-sufficient, and everyone got along well. There were only nine homes in the valley and everyone had a role to play in order to sustain the village. They pictured the faces as they passed, wondering how long it would be before they might see them again.

There were three farmhouses along the northern edge of the forest. The three families, the Briars all with red hair and freckles, the dark-haired and dark-eyed Stones, and the Golts with their brown hair and pale skin, shared seeds, feed and tools to keep their fields and herds growing. As things were, the food was given freely to everyone who lived in Vineleaf, and any excess food was taken to the inn for storage to be sold to travelers or hunters.

The first of the five remaining houses belonged to Julia and John Riser, who had a small mill and bakery. The second belonged to Max the butcher and his wife Ellen and their two young daughters, Tina and Samantha. The third house belonged to Jack. He was the village blacksmith and handyman. The fourth house belonged to Emily and Rose, two middle-aged sisters who had a loom and were excellent tailors. The fifth and final house belonged to Samuel Cobbler who could make anything out of leather, but specialized in shoes.

The last building on the road was the Vineleaf Inn. It was the only source of revenue for the village and so paid everyone’s taxes to the kingdom, and provided the funds to purchase anything that the villagers couldn’t make for themselves. The inn was Garret’s and Seth’s home. They lived here with their father James, who, had he been twenty years younger, could have been the twins’ triplet. Their mother had lived here once as well. The twins hardly remembered her face any longer, but many in the village held fond memories of her. Those that lived here in Vineleaf weren’t just neighbors, they were family.

Both Garret and Seth stopped at the bottom of the steps to the inn and shared a look of remembrance. This was their home. It was all they had ever known, yet tomorrow they would be leaving, not knowing when or if they might return. Light streamed through the front windows of the inn. Smoke rose lazily from the chimneys that jutted from the roof either side of the common room. The large oak door was closed to hold at bay the chill of the night-time air. From somewhere inside voices trailed mutely to their ears.

“It seems we have guests,” Garret thought out loud.

“Yeah, we better go see if Dad needs any help,” Seth replied, shaking the thoughts of dismay from his skull.

They climbed the three steps to the door and Garret, grasping the large iron handle, heaved it open. Blazing yellow light swallowed them through the door, and a rush of warm air greeted them with the scent of stew enticing their nostrils. Both brothers paused a moment inside the door to let their eyes adjust to the light.

“Boys!” their dad thundered from the back of the room, standing behind the long oak bar. “Come hang your catch in the kitchen and get cleaned up. There are some folks here to see you.”

“All right,” Seth replied, glancing to the seating area to see who had come, vaguely aware his brother was looking to see the guests as well.

The visitors were gathered around the fireplace at the far right wall of the room, their backs to the twins. Both brothers recognized them even from behind, and headed off to the kitchen. Walking around the bar towards the kitchen door, Garret leaned towards his father with a smirk and said, “I beat him.”

“I heard that,” remarked Seth, and continued with a slightly annoyed tone. “You always beat me but you'll never outsmart me.”

Garret growled in response and shoved Seth through the door to the kitchen, flashing a smile towards their father as he passed. They walked to the back of the kitchen past the twin cooking fires to the back door. Both brothers unslung their hares and hung them on the pegs above the door, and placed their bows and quivers in the corner behind the crates of preserved foods.

Garret’s forehead creased, and his eyebrows came together, obviously in deep thought about something. Seth knew the look; this was something his brother and himself did not have in common. For some reason Garret was unable to concentrate without mangling his features. It was not a habit he shared with his father so it must have been inherited from their mother.

“Whatcha thinking about?” Seth asked after staring at his brother’s grimace for a moment.

“Dad is cooking,” Garret replied, his face still entangled in thought.

“And...?” Seth questioned, hoping for a more enlightening answer.

“Well, its kind of late…and only Jack, Samuel and Emily are here. I’m sure they would have already eaten. Dad doesn’t usually cook a large pot of stew for just the three of us.”

“Well, it’s our last night at home. He probably wants to make sure we’re good and stuffed before we head out in the morning. Besides, there are four of us that need to eat.”

“Four?” Garret’s face scrunched back up in thought. “Who else needs to eat?”

“So you didn’t notice the man at the dining table near the window?” Seth waited for his brother’s response, though he already knew the answer.

“No, I hadn’t noticed. Who is he?” Garret’s was still pondering, his eyebrows trying desperately to touch one another.

“He looks our age, so I would guess he is headed to The Choosing too. Dad probably figures there might be a few more kids coming this way, hence all the food.”

“That makes sense.” Garret’s face finally smoothed out before he continued. “Why do you think Jack, Emily and Samuel are here?”

“I suppose they came to say goodbye, but there is only one way we are going to find out.”

Seth shrugged his shoulders, smiling at his brother, and slugged him in the arm before making a wild run back to the common room with Garret on his heels. Seth raced in with Garret wheeling right behind him and dancing nimbly around the bar, trotted across the room towards the fireplace where James had joined their neighbors around the fire. Seth stopped abruptly as he approached the gathering and noticed the dark swelling around their eyes. Garret, right behind him, nearly barreled him over, not expecting the sudden stop. Walking around his brother, Garret too noticed the ashen faces of the people whom he considered family. He and his brother, thinking much the same, both gave a half nervous smile to the small group.

“We’re only leaving for a while,” Seth said. “We’re not dead.”

Garret nodded in agreement.

This proclamation brought out smiles from the sullen faces of those loved ones who had gathered to wish them farewell. James waved the boys nearer the fire and it was then the twins noticed the bundles at their visitors’ feet. It was no surprise that they had brought the twins some going-away gifts. They had done the same in the past for others who had made their eighteenth birthday and had left for The Choosing.

The brothers looked at each other with a knowing glance and each gave Emily a hug and Jack and Samuel a stiff handshake and thump on the back. Jack being, as always, straight to the point, reached down and picked up the large leather bundle beside him. It was nearly four feet long, appeared quite heavy and clanked as he picked it up.

“I’ve made you each something that I hope will come in handy along the way, boys. They say that beasts from the south have been found venturing even this far north," Jack said knowingly in his thick, low voice.

He raised the bundle into one arm. Cradling it like a baby he reached over the top with one enormous calloused hand and gave a tug to the small leather strap that kept the bundle wrapped up tight. The strap gave way and Jack quickly laid the bundle across both his arms, allowing it to unroll down their length. It clanked like steel on steel as it unraveled and came to a stop as it reached his palms. Upon the leather lay two exquisite swords and a pair of twin daggers.

The first sword was long and broad. Made from the finest steel, it gleamed in the light of the fire as if it too were ablaze. Its surfaces were so polished it reflected everyone’s faces back at them. To balance the enormous blade was a huge two-handed hilt, at the butt of which a large ball of gleaming steel was held in place by a dragon’s claws, with each of the talons facing down away from the blade, making even the hilt end of the sword deadly.

The second sword lay beside the first. It was nearly as long but it was narrower, much narrower. The blade tapered starting at the hilt and working ever narrower all the way to the tip. Made of polished blackened steel, the blade looked menacing, as if it were forged out of darkness itself. The hilt was a hand and a half allowing the wielder to use one or two hands. Slithering down and around the handle was a serpent in polished silver. At the butt of the handle the serpent was coiled around and around itself with its tail sticking straight out at the end and sharpened to a point. At the other end of the handle, the serpent split into two long necks ending with wide-toothed grins, these making up the hand guards.

The daggers, lying end to end just above the swords, looked as if they were a mirror image of each other. Both had blades polished to a mirror surface like the larger sword, and both had blackened steel handles wrapped in leather dyed black to match the steel. All four of the weapons were both beautiful and threatening.

Seth and Garret smiled at Jack. These were by far the most amazing pieces they had ever seen, above and beyond anything else they had seen him craft over the years. It was obvious whose sword was whose. Garret would be more easily able to wield the broadsword as he was the bulkier, more massively built of the twins. Seth, being leaner, perhaps even a bit lanky, instinctively picked up the black blade. The brothers each held and appraised their new weapons.

“These are amazing Jack. You have really outdone yourself,” Seth said, eyeing the intricately detailed serpent.

“They’re made of dwarven steel,” Jack proclaimed, obviously proud of his creations. “They should hold an edge for a long time and shouldn’t rust if I've tempered them correctly. I hope you like them.”

The twins nodded in response, unable to speak and still in awe of their spectacular gifts.

“Well, I should guess that makes us next,” Samuel said gesturing to Emily. “We have been working together on these projects so everything will fit and look just right.”

He reached down beneath his chair and slid from under it a large wooden case. He undid the clasp holding the lid in place, and grasping either side of the lid flipped it effortlessly over the box where it rested on its hinges against the back of the case.

Laying in the case was a jumble of objects, the topmost of which was a long, slender, black leather scabbard. Dyed black to match the blade it was created to fit, and stitched with leather dyed silver, it was an amazing piece.

As he stood to give the scabbard to Seth, Samuel flipped it over to reveal a silver serpent embroidered down the side. Recognizing the work, Seth flashed a smile at Emily, and as was her custom she nodded in response. Samuel held the scabbard out to Seth who readily accepted it and slid his new blade into it to admire the two together. The blade slipped effortlessly, silently in. A perfect fit.

Garret shifted his weight impatiently eyeing the next item in Samuel's case on the floor. It too was a scabbard, wide and long, dyed a midnight blue and trimmed in the same silver as Seth’s. On its face was embroidered a sky blue dragon, jaws opened wide to the top where the sword would enter, as if it would swallow it. Garret remained speechless as he accepted the scabbard and slid his enormous blade into it.

Samuel was already leaning over to the case at his feet. He removed a sheath for each of the twins' daggers and a leather cloak for both boys, one black and trimmed in silver, the other midnight blue and also trimmed in silver.

"There are a couple of new outfits here in the trunk for each of you, compliments of Emily and Rose, and some new boots as well. I’ve also made each of you a good sturdy pack for the trip south.” Samuel brimmed with pride. “I’ve given them to James so he can pack you some supplies for your trip.”

"Thank you so much!" Seth said.

“How could we resist for you boys?” Emily asked. “We can’t have you out traveling the world looking like beggars. As I always say, first impressions are the most important.”