VIGNETTE 3. BLOOD BROTHER.

The bittersweet flavor of the memory stayed during my search. It was the second time that I entered that forest. On both occasions, the reason why I was there was dreadful.

I continued walking in the forest. There was an unnatural silence, like the one I encountered on my first arrival. I was a little bit afraid, but I had taken my bow and was preparing an arrow, just in case.

I walked between the firs. Everything smelled of wood and rain. There was little light. A greenish and mild light that made me realize how beautiful nature was. But everything that was covered by the shades of the leaves, was being bitten by darkness as if it was a big mouth trying to gobble down the forest. I had a weird sensation when I looked at those dark places. Whenever my eyes stopped there, I thought I could hear a whisper calling Caleb's name. A sound so close to the noise that the leaves make when they crash into each other that it made me doubt if it was my own head the one creating those hallucinations. It was probably because of my bad experience there. I stopped to listen to the voices, but a sudden silence invaded the space again. I resume my walk.

When the vegetation of the forest became denser, I discovered some red petals on the floor. I looked around me to see if there were any roses, but there weren't. Somehow, they looked different from a rose petal, very similar, but I couldn't identify the exact species. And I knew a fair well number of red-flowered species. The red was like blood, shining with an abnormal intensity. The freshness of the petals astonished me. How could they stay so fresh? They looked recently cut.

I reached for one. And when my fingers felt the velvet touch of the petal, a horned shape flashed through my mind. I looked around me, making sure I was alone. Everything was quiet. But my intuition was alerting me. Petals, like the ones the baker mentioned. And a horned shape. It must have been connected, and that meant Caleb was in danger.

I started running through the forests. I run very fast trying to see more petals around. The branches whipped my legs, and they started hurting. After a long time running, I let myself fall to the floor. I was devastated. I was looking for him without a plan. I was desperate to find him, because what would I do without him? He always accompanied me to my games. He used to talk to me when I felt lonely. He was the one that understood me so well. I started crying. My tears made it difficult to see. My heart tortured my chest when it pumped, but I didn't care. What was I going to do? Had he disappeared because of me? Maybe he was angry, though I couldn't remember upsetting him. Maybe it was because I wasn't praying for him.

'Were you mad because I didn't pray last night?', I asked out loud 'Please, return, I will pray whenever you want if you come back'.

Again, no answer. I kneeled to prove my point right.

'Blessed Akarat, the eternal Light protects me. The divine wisdom guides me. Though my path is wrought with darkness, guide my soul to your sacred Light[1]', I started.

Nothing happened, but I stayed there, in silence, hoping Akarat would do his magic. After a few moments, I stood up and cleaned my knees.

'This is ridiculous. If I want him back, I'll have to find him myself'.

I dried my tears and took courage. I was going to find him, whatever it took.

I speeded up while one tear fell from my eye. The petals guided me.

***

Somewhere in the garden, I was breathing carefully, trying to be silent. I could hear him calling me, and that made me laugh. However, I needed to be unnoticeable. I heard his steps approaching.

'Where are you, Lennah?', he said spookily.

I stopped breathing.

'I know you're somewhere near'.

Silence. Then steps. I could see him looking in the bushes now.

'Are you hiding behind these… bushes?!'.

He jumped and my heart pumped faster. He was really near. But I wasn't hiding in the bushes.

'Or maybe…?'.

Another jump and he was looking behind a tree. I wasn't there either.

His footsteps continued out of my vision. I heard him walking away. I sighed in relief. My stomach felt the joy of the game time. Once a day my brother would invent a game to which we both played. We called it game time, simple but effective. Since he liked creating games, he would prepare something special to make me laugh. That game time we played ghosts in the graveyard until nightfall, which made it more difficult to see. But it was funnier. He pretended to be a ghost who wanted to haunt me, so I had to hide to not be discovered and run to another hiding place whenever I thought he wasn't around. If he discovered me, he would chase me until he caught me, and I would become a haunting ghost.

I was hiding in a little hole I found in a tree, so I was literally inside of it. It had been difficult to fit my body in there in just a few seconds, but I was sure enough to know that he would never look in a rotten trunk of a tree. Suddenly I heard a jump right by my side.

'You're here!', he said loudly, scaring me.

I saw his smile and got out of the hole giggling. He helped me get out.

'How did you fit in there?', he said. 'The space is so little…'.

'I'm little too, Caleb', I answered. 'And I'm an expert at ghosts in the graveyard now, you know?'.

'Oh, yeah? How's that?'.

'Well, you know last week when Sean was looking for me around the monastery because he wanted me to start the prayers?'.

He nodded with the head.

'I discovered a few cool places to hide in'.

'Oh, so you entered a banished library or something like that?'.

'No. But I've realized I can be very silent if I want to'.

He mocked me.

'Yeah, of course. That's why I won this time, right?'

He laughed. And I laughed too. It was great playing with him.

That same night he promised me we would never split apart. He took a knife and cut his right palm. Some blood drops fell to the floor.

'Lennah, I know that we were born from different parents, but I still want to be your blood brother', he told me.

The clerics were doing the last prayers, and after the dinner, they gave us permission to play another round of ghosts in the graveyard in the garden. The sky was covered by white dots and a soft warm breeze moved my hair.

He passed me the knife and I didn't hesitate to cut my own palm as he has done. A red drop began to grow there too.

'I love you, Caleb. You're the best brother'.

I shook his right hand, and a pact was sealed.

'I love you too', he answered.

***

[1] Blizzard Entertainment sentence from the story launch trailer.