A Tale of Two Brothers: Volume I

Chapter II - Crumbling City

Early one morning, as the sun had just begun to rise, the golden brilliance spilled into Ace's home that was on the tenth floor of a run down skyscraper that was a part of the small community he lived in. The light seeped through the large holes in the structure where windows once were as the German slowly opened his bright yellow eyes.

Ace sat up in his bed, stretching and running his fingers through his shoulder length brown hair that was slightly amess. The German threw off the covers of his bed as he rolled out of bed, landing on his hands and feet as he began doing his morning exercise routine starting with ten sets of pushups in increments of ten per set.

He finished his fifteen minute full body workout with a one minute handstand. Ace's body was illuminated in the day's golden light as sweat slowly rolled down his muscular torso, hitting the floor. The German wastelander had closed his eyes to meditate so he could focus on his breathing as he could feel every muscle in his body work in unison to support his position.

Ace had been in a handstand, counting his heartbeat when he felt a presence lay underneath him. "Morning, Zeke." Ace could hear the tiger's joyful purrs as Zeke was laying on his back with his face just mere inches away from his friend's; the tiger was watching Ace's every movement.

Ace shifted his weight, landing on all fours as he opened his eyes to look into Zeke's lime green optics as he hovered on top of the tiger's frame. "Did you sleep well?" Ace's morning voice was deep and throaty as it echoed off the concrete walls of the derelict building.

Zeke shrugged his shoulders slightly to his friend's question.

Ace sighed seeing the tiger's response. "Alright, well, we have a busy day today; let's go." Ace placed a gentle kiss on the tiger's nose causing it to twitch as Zeke wiggled his ears happily.

Ace kicked his legs up as he balanced on his hands and walked back away from Zeke, flipping to stand once he was clear of his furniture.

Ace always slept without clothes on as he felt it was nicer to be nude while sleeping than having clothes on. He did not mind Zeke seeing him that way as he knew the two had a mutual understanding that nakedness was not something sexual, but a thing of beauty. The German understood the people of his village and others in the area did not share the same perspective so he always made sure to be clothed outside his home.

Zeke rarely wore clothes and when he did, he'd prefer to wear a simple pair of sweatpants. The tiger did not like being looked at as he preferred to stay cloaked using his optical camouflage while outside of the village he and Ace resided in. He did not mind being without clothes unlike other bots he has faced and seen on his and Ace's journeys.

Ace had gotten dressed in a pair of gray cargo pants that were worn and abused, a black form fitting commando sweater and his tan combat boots that had seen many miles of walking and battle. On top of his clothing choice, he equipped his trusty sidearm in the holdster that sat on the front side of his waist concealed underneath his shirt, he put on his bulletproof vest with a tactical carry belt that held other accessories for him to use out in the field. He also pulled his hair into a messy bun using two sharpened metal chopsticks that a family had given to him as payment while he lived on the West Coast.

Ace finished getting dressed by brushing his teeth in a basin that used collected rainwater that he set up on the roof of the building he lived in. He walked into his kitchen that was set up with a simple gas stove and a small refrigeration unit to store his produce that he grew in the garden he set up on the roof and the meat from his hunting excursions; he was a master huntsman.

He sat down at the counter where Zeke had prepared his morning tea with honey that was locally sourced from an associate of his nearby that bred honey bees. He sipped on his tea that was brewed to the perfect temperature as he looked on his holo-tablet and read the local news of the area.