The Sins of the Father

Chapter One

Stephen's hand slipped where he gripped the tree branch, and he yelped, scrabbling for a handhold with his other hand.

"Focus!" His mentor shouted from below. "Don't rush yourself. You know what your body is capable of, use it to its fullest."

"Yeah, I do know what my body can do!" Stephen grunted, pushing off of the trunk to get a better grip on the branch and pull himself up. "Teleport!"

"That isn't the point of this exercise." His mentor called patiently. "Focus on what you're doing, I'm not catching you if you fall." Stephen scowled, but turned his attention back to the tree, soon finding another handhold and scaling the remaining branches. Reaching the top of the trunk, he grabbed the metal ball that rested in a hollow of the tree, then turned back to the branches to plot out his trip back to the ground.

The way back down was slightly more treacherous, given that he only had one hand to climb with, but gravity was on his side this time. Soon enough, he was jumping the last few feet, rolling as he hit the ground and scrambling upright to present the ball to his teacher.

"Good." Lucius nodded, accepting the prize from his hand. "You were quick." Steve grinned, leaning back to look up at the sky as he caught his breath. "Now put it back."

Steve's smile dropped. "Oh come on!"

"A soldier must be prepared for unexpected challenges." Lucius held up his stopwatch. "Clock's still ticking." He offered back the ball, and Stephen growled, snatching it from his hand and scrambling up the tree again.

At least it was a good day for practicing drills, Stephen mused as he set the ball back in the hollow he had found it in, starting to clamber down through the branches again. The sky was blue and cloudless, a light breeze blowing, and the air was warm for mid-spring. Not too warm, though, which he was thankful for, as he was starting to sweat from running back and forth.

He could see the camp from about halfway up the tree, just over the hill. They had moved every 3-6 months throughout his childhood, and every tent had been replaced at one point or another, but this place was still his home, and these people, the Sons of the Aether, his family. Even though he didn't look like them. Their current residence was on a small hill in the middle of a forest, sheltered by the huge spruce trees that grew in patches over the primarily flat terrain. This, coupled with the river that wound through the woods and gave them easy access to water, made it an ideal location for them to train as the trees would help shelter them from anyone who wished them harm.

"Eight minutes and forty-three seconds." Lucius reported as Steve dropped onto the ground, immediately collapsing into the soft grass. "Not bad."

"Yeahhh. Please tell me we're done with fetch quests for today."

"We're done." Lucius walked over, smiling down at him. "Go get a drink and wash yourself off, I'll meet you back at camp."

"Yessir." Steve remained on his back until the valkyrie had taken off, taking the shortest path back to their camp. Finally, he pushed himself up, dusting off his hands on his pants before lugging himself upright and trudging through the trees to where the small river flowed. He stripped off his shirt as he approached the water, kicking off his boots, and splashed into the shallow water to relieve his sweat-soaked skin.

After a quick dip, Stephen retrieved his clothes and hurried back to camp. He didn't want to leave his teacher waiting.

Lucius was standing around the campfire pit that had been dug in the center of the campgrounds, around which the tents that made up the camp had been arranged. He was discussing a sheet of paper with Malech, but rolled it up and handed it off as Steve approached the two of them.