Luminary

Episode 20 - Childhood

"Again"

Said the gruff man who was sitting on a rock with arms crossed, frowned eyebrows and appeared to be in his late 30s looking at his blonde young son that was holding his hips, trying to catch his breath.

Leo: Yes, father...

Leo was doing his best to complete that magic exercise, a simple task on paper, but so hard to do in practice. He clenched his fist and tried again, only to fail miserably, making his father even more angry.

Leo: I'm sorry...

The Zugspitze, at 2,962m (9,718 ft) above sea level, is the highest mountain in Germany. It lies south of the town of Garmisch-Partenkirchen, and the Austria–Germany border runs over its western summit and, right now, Leo and his father were training at the top of it.

Steinwand, Leo's father, was about to scold him again, but a man with two giant pairs of wings flew to their location.

Falke: Steinwand, didn't I tell you to stop training your son at Zugspitze's peak? You are scaring the tourists.

Steinwand: They are free to come, it's not my fault that they are a bunch of pussies. Besides, we're not done here.

He looked at his son.

Steinwand: Not until he summons his cannon.

Leo: We don't even know if I can summon such a huge weapon.

Steinwand: Nonsense, our family summons giant cannons since our ancestor that had gun powers met his wife who had summoning powers. You are no different.

Falke: Aren't you being too hard on him?

Steinwand: How can he fulfil his destiny if I go easy? Did you forget your father literally pushed you from a cliff so your wings would start to work?

Falke: Hey, I could've died that day.

Steinwand: But you didn't.

Falke: Just find another place to train or do it in a non touristic spot of the mountain, all right?

The winged man took off.

Leo: I'll try again.

Steinwand: Look, it's like this.

He concentrated, making a strong blue aura swarm his body and a giant red with white cannon appeared, which he grabbed with ease.

Steinwand: The cannons of our family, incredibly heavy for anyone who isn't it's owner.

Leo clenched his fist again and tried to summon a cannon, concentrating deeply as a blue aura swarmed his body, the same one that appeared around his father, yet a bit weaker, making a white with blue smaller cannon appear around his arm, which he managed to grab while being stunned for it's surprising low weight.

Steinwand: Heh, took you long enough.

Leo: Only 2 months of training with smaller guns.

His father smiled, genuinely and gave a light stroke on Leo's hair.

Steinwand: Yes, savor this moment, remember it everytime you ever summon this weapon again. As we can always summon any gun, but this weapon...

He placed his hand on Leo's cannon.

Steinwand: ...is your life. With it you may attack from distance and smash your enemies at close range.

Steinwand told Leo to remember that moment meaning the satisfaction of summoning his soul weapon for the first time, but Leo actually remembered it for the sweet memory of the first time his father was proud of him.