Tale of Two Brothers by Daniel Fernández Masís

Author:Daniel Fernández Masís [Fernández Masís, Daniel]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2018-12-05T08:00:00+00:00

23

The Elder

Separate Paths

Just as Em predicted, after nine days we can almost see the village ahead. It blends in well enough with the surroundings to be hidden from plain view if you don’t know to look. We are about two hundred meters away from what looks like a hut, but if our companions hadn’t seen it, we might have gone by without recognizing it.

Khan, Chester, and Lisbeth have shown us how much more advanced Strength is when it comes to survival. They never let their guard down, are constantly thinking about what to do and how to overcome any threat, and they move and work in unison, the consequence of years of training.

Our talks during the journey have shown us their fighting methods. Fighting is never simply a reaction; it is always planned. They draw up their plans and implement and adjust them based on the changing environment, then assess and improve continuously.

The only thing I resent is their detachment from the world, how they’ve lived hidden without helping others. Sure, they’ve stood up to fight for humanity now, but a long time has gone by without their help. I have not spoken about it, but I sense Silver and Jay feel the same blend of excitement and amusement at their abilities and teamwork, and resentment, judgement, and doubt about why they have not used them for good. I feel a vacuum inside, resulting from the clash of those emotions. My silence is the sign of this internal struggle. Jay can probably sense it.

Khan, Chester, and Lisbeth signal us to stop with closed fists held high. Their torchlight flickers as the six of us stand in the middle of the forest at night. There is a construction in front of us; it looks like a watch station. Thirty meters ahead, more camouflaged buildings stand, almost invisible. The three of them go past the watch station, which is surrounded with flora, and we stand next to it looking around its corner, Jay holding one torch to illuminate us. They walk toward the camouflaged buildings. I can see two buildings in the same line as this watch station, and a smaller and taller outpost toward the right.

Khan goes to inspect the outpost by himself, as Chester and Lisbeth walk each on one side of the buildings ahead. They are crouching, moving forward silently. They inspect the buildings through their windows before continuing. Khan catches up with them, deciding the outpost did not pose a threat to us. As they go further, I lose sight of them and there is no sound other than our breathing.

Minutes go by and Silver, Jay, and I are in a circle, looking back to the place we just came from, to have a complete view of our surroundings. Our arrows are at the ready to shoot at any threat. I tell Jay to throw the torch a couple of meters to our left to avoid attracting attention to our location.

My eyes grow accustomed to the darkness in front of us and the torch’s light coming from our left.

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