Ezra Thorne - Lightning Rebirth

EZRA: THE BEGINNING OF IT ALL

The sound of metal striking metal rang in my ears that entire morning, etching away at my hearing and more importantly, my sanity. Beads of sweat poured down my face as I worked tirelessly, constantly, not allowed any food or water. I watched as my hands subconsciously glided across the metal I was working on, staring in awe as they brought the inanimate material to life. The more I worked at it, the more form and shape it took, the more detailed its surface became, the more alive it felt. I plunged the metal into the coals again, giving it time to heat and soften so I could continue working. I took the chance to take a breather, feeling my body melt into the stool I sat on and the wall behind me.

"Oh...taking a break I see? Now, who told you that you could do that son?" A deep voice boomed behind me and my body immediately stiffened up, my eyes going wide and my throat suddenly dry.

"N-no one Sir. I-I was just waiting for the metal to-to heat up again."

"Hmmm...I see. So, you think that this is the time for you to take a little rest now, eh?" By now the voice has shown itself to belong to a man in the middle of his twenties, white wisps of hair mixed in with his dark brown locks. Towering over me, his stern face and hardened eyes held me in place, my body completely unresponsive, frozen in fear. He made his way over to my work bench, his boots clicking against the cobblestone floors of the workspace. He picked up a couple pieces of paper from it and eyed them, glancing back at me from time to time. He then placed down the papers and looked me dead in the eyes although my pupils darted all across the room, focusing on anything but him. He stiff features the fractured and his cold, distant demeanour melted away, leaving behind a smile. A smirk spread across our faces as me began to crack up.

"Well it's about time you got out of the sauna of a blacksmith shop. You have been in here for almost the entire day! Don't you know you have to eat and take a break? You have poor Evelyn inside worried sick about you. The only reason she hasn't come in here and dragged you inside is because she hates having to suffer through all this heat." He ranted on and on, waving his hands about frantically, emphasizing his point. I simply rolled my eyes playfully.

"Okay Arthur, you don't need to be that way. And you know I'm most comfortable in the workshop." He looked at me and then at the clutter all around me, then back at me again. He shook his head in defeat and smiled.

"You are one hell of a child, you know that? Where on earth did you get it from?" He asked unaware, but my face hardened ever so slightly. He took notice and his smile morphed. He looked at me with regret in his eyes.

"I'm so sorry Ez. You know I didn't mean it like that. It must be really hard not knowing who you are or where you came from." He strode over to me and placed his hands on my shoulder.

"Nah it's okay. We both know you were just speaking and didn't mean anything by it. I think I'm ready to go inside now though." With that I got up from my stool and made my way to the door, engulfed by Arthur's shadow. He followed me into the adjacent house, the two of us heading into the dining area to see a young lady sitting at the table, her back to us. A smile grew across my face as an idea entered my head. I snuck up behind her and jabbed her side sharply but lightly. She leapt out of the chair, tripping over her feet and hurtled toward the ground. In an instant Arthur's arm stretched out and caught her, pulling her back to safety.

"Gosh darn it Ezra! You gave me a heart attack! Not to mention that you almost made me faceplant myself!" She glared at me, and I know that this probably made me a horrible person, but I couldn't help but laughed. I clutched my stomach as I gasped for air, my lungs in complete disarray. She moved closer to me and her entire demeanour screamed at me. I immediately shut my mouth, my eyes widening to the size of size of dinner plates.