Faults

Part 1: Fallen -- Chapter 1: Taylor

Something slightly sharp pokes my arm, followed by the feeling of cold skin against my bicep. I keep my eyes narrowed on the path and the rest of my classmates in front of me, pursing my lips. I then slowly turn my head to the side that bears a person clinging to my arm. "What do you want now, Emmie?" I ask, eyeing her blonde hair, as all I can see is the top of her head at the moment.

"Nothing. I'm just saying hi," she replies. Her voice is sweeter than the candy they give out to the little kids during the street festivals.

I roll my eyes, but the thought of festivals makes my stomach turn. They're always something that the people of this kingdom look forward to at the beginning of every season, but not me. When I was five, that very candy–the sugary sweet, disgusting candy–made me sick. I hurled in front of everyone, and the one person whom I had expected to help me in that moment turned on me.

My own twin brother laughed in my face.

Since that day, I've resented my identical twin, Aydin. I've also never looked forward to the festivals since then. Well, maybe I have looked forward to the festivals. Maybe just because of the fact that I've made it my duty to make a public fool of my brother every year. Now, the repulsed expression on my face turns to a smirk.

Yet, it's also possible that there's barely anything worth looking forward to in this kingdom, only this very special day. The Honing of the Lifeblood.

All this thinking about the one person I hate the most has distracted me from the excitement. Excitement? No, more like boredom. We've been walking through the forest for over an hour, and at the pace we're walking, we won't get there for another two.

While the walk isn't overly entertaining, the prospect of what our journey is leading up to is quite the enticer. The real name of this day isn't actually "The Honing of the Lifeblood", it's some other long name that I couldn't be bothered to remember. The Honing is what today is usually called by the common folk, anyway.

We're heading to Galariesse's–this damned kingdom's–lifeblood. This special tree keeps us alive. Not just the people but the land as well. Everyone has dubbed this ancient tree as "the Lifeblood", hence today's name. The real name of this leafy being is The Tree of Wisdom and Mysticality. I'm not so sure about the wisdom part, since this giant block of wood has never taught me anything.

The mystical side, on the other hand, definitely has some truth to it. Not just some, it's entirely true. This tree possesses the ability to grant magical powers to the people of Galariesse. This is where the "honing" part of today's title comes in. All the magic that runs through the roots and the very ground we're walking on is honed in upon, granting us all a special ability. That's why I've been really looking forward to this. The very thought of having an ability so great that others look up to you almost with fear carries insurmountable exuberance.

When a child comes of age, sixteen years old, the Lifeblood grants an ability. This only happens once a year and some kids do miss it and are forced to wait another year. For some reason, I've never felt pity for them. Especially not this year. However, I'll be feeling pity for myself if I get some useless power.

Out of the people that are here with the class, there are only two with abilities. One being our teacher, Mr. Mellish, and the other being one of our classmates.

Archie Evans.

If there's someone that comes close to the amount of hatred I've conceived for my brother, it's got to be Archie. Unfortunately for me, though, I can't hate him that much. Not publicly, at least. Archie was forced to take the throne early as of last month, following the mysterious death of his father.

Edward Evans was an incredible king with a deplorable son. The only strange thing about Archie's predecessor was that he was the only person throughout Galariesse's history to not be granted an ability. Now that Archie has been crowned, it feels like our kingdom has come to a standstill. Granted, it's only been a month, but I don't foresee Archie doing anything notable with this place. It could be my longstanding hatred of him, but I'd like to believe it isn't.