Othea smelled of cut flower and nerves to the skin. The sky was too clear, too blue - as if trying to fool those who knew that day would not be common.
It was a day of ceremony. The continent of Eldoria held its breath. The whole city gathered in front of the ancient Temple of Erudition, an imposing structure of white stone, adorned with statues of higher gods. The large wooden doors were open, revealing a gleaming interior, lit by torches and decorated with flowers and golden ribbons.
It was the day when the god of wheat, chosen host for that year, would make the solemn and rare announcement.
But that was something young Cale did not know.
Cale leaned against the trunk of the tree, the shadow covering half his face. His amethyst eyes scanned the movement ahead as if looking for flaws, or exits.
The collar bothered him. The white ceremonial tunic, embroidered with blue symbols was beautiful but too heavy for his taste. Everything there seemed to impress gods, or crush mortals.
"Will you say that you are nervous?" Alinys appeared next to him, arms crossed.
"Nervous is how you get when you can't find your sword. I'm just... doing mental statistics about chances of public humiliation."
Alinys raised an eyebrow, amused.
"You're a terrible liar."
"And you're terrible at comforting. We're even."
A buzz took over the newbies. In the center, surrounded as if it were in its own orbit, was a figure of dark dress studded with stars. Skin like night, golden eyes and a calm that could swallow armies.
"Hm, look who came to shine today" commented Alinys, dry.
Cale looked at her from the corner.
"Yvaine, right? The goddess of prophecies."
"The very."
Cale did not respond immediately. His eyes met hers for a moment — and, unlike what Cale expected, he did not feel that divine weight that crushed the spine. Just... a presence. Intense, familiar. As a reminder that he don't know where it came from.
She looked away first.
"It's going to rain" Alinys muttered, looking up at the sky.
Alinys' comment caught Cale's attention. He raised his eyes to the heavens, the clouds were gathering on the horizon, swollen and heavy, as if they held something more than water. Remembering Mikhal's warning and Aries' concern, Cale could not avoid being on alert.
"Of course it will. With so much accumulated, it's only a matter of time. It will be wonderful to slip and spin during the demonstration, making the humiliation worse."
"Ah, it seems that dad arrived" Alinys commented, watching from afar the figure of Gaspar entering the temple, wearing ceremonial robes.
The man of tanned skin and white hair as snow looked at them, and smiled tenderly in disguise, without stopping his path. Seeing him like that made Cale's chest to squeeze in homesickness.
Finally arrived the time.
"After today, we can go back" Cale muttered, clenching his fingers against his chest "Finally all this will end, and we won't need to hide anymore."
Alinys looked at him and smiled lightly. Unexpectedly, she hugged him tightly, bringing it to her chest.
"Haa... little brother. I'm really glad we got so far and well."
"What about that 'we need to avoid being seen together' thing?"
"Just pretend that you are a sweetheart and hold me hm?"
Cale smiled amused. Hugging his sister, he sighed relieved. Her smell was so... nostalgic. It made him remember home.
He wanted to come home.
The temple bells rang three times. The crowd was silent. The teachers gathered the demigods in order and silence.
Gaspar appeared at the entrance of the temple, wrapped in golden light that danced over his ceremonial robes. He did not need to ask for silence — he was the silence. It was the voice of the wheat, the cycle, the harvest that observed everything.
His gaze passed through the crowd like a mature wind, recognizing the field he sowed. His gaze rose to the immense thrones at the top of the temple, where some figures were present. Gaspar faced them and supported, without waking up, even being of a rank lower than theirs publicly.
"Today, we witness the passage" his voice sounded like low thunder. "Of sons and daughters who carry the god's blood. Of seeds thrown to the earth that now grow towards the sky."
No child goes through this temple without being marked.
"May this generation honor the gifts that have been bestowed upon it. May they protect the living, the dreams, and the balance of this world."
Cale pressed his fingers against his chest. At her side, Alinys kept her breath calm but firm.
The side gate opened with a deaf snap. The demigods who did not have a Theiodesmos still appeared in a row, walking in sync. The air changed. It was not just a celebration. It was a judgment.
Walking through the central arena, Gaspar stopped in front of some young people lined up.
"You, my young ones, who decided to support our future heroes and be part of their stories, were destined for a master" the bright eyes of Gaspar passed by some familiar faces, being that some transpareciam the nervousness. "The thread of destiny that the Universe has tied in your hearts will be pulled as soon as the face of its master is revealed."
"May the cosmos guide us!" shouted the young people lined up.
Gaspar shook his head with seriousness and pride. Turning to the huge entrance, he saw the young hooded demigods ready to make their debut.
Gaspar raised one of his hands.
"Let the Coming-age ceremony begin."
The demigods entered in a row and orderly. They stopped in the center of the arena and when their names were called, the hood was taken off and the person stepped forward. A small show of strength was made, where the demigod would fight with a temple priest to show his determination to be a warrior.
One by one was called. This made Cale anxious as he realized that his turn was coming.
Mainly because at the top of the temple, they were. Sweeping the twelve chairs at the top of the temple, Cale perceived that the majestic throne was empty.
The supreme god was absent.
Ereghast.
The one who was "missing" for more than twenty years.
Returning to observe some of the higher gods. Cale felt his body tremble just to meet with the cold and intense looks. His presence was overwhelming to the point of making him feel like an ant.
"Alinys Arkalis."
The voice echoed through the pillars like a blade.
Alinys took a step forward. The boots hit the ground with the firmness of one who owed nothing to anyone. The hood fell.
The purple eyes shone in the light of the torches. The crowd held their breath.
A sword was delivered. Alinys turned it with a lightness that defied the weight. And then she attacked.
The priest retreated. One, two blows — on the third, he was already on the ground, and his expression said it would be foolish to lift.
Silence.
Then, nervous applause. Murmurs. The higher gods, from the top of their thrones, watched without blinking.
"Cale Arkalis."
"Another Arkalis?"
"Are they cousins? Must be the same age..."
Oh, of course — thought Cale, walking like one who goes to the scaffold — because nothing cries "surprise" as repeating the surname of someone who has just knocked out a priest.
When his hood fell, the audience choked with shock.
"Twins?"
"They are identical."
"Is this allowed?"
A roar cut off the whispers:
"Explain yourself Gaspar!" cried Krynt, the voice of a higher deity could make the stones tremble. And it did, indeed.
Gaspar, however, did not hesitate.
He walked up to his children, putting one hand on each shoulder. He looked older there, but not smaller.
"Today, before the gods and men, I proclaim that the Universe has blessed me with two sons. Twins, mirror of the same soul. Alinys and Cale Arkalis."
"Twins?!" shouted some local deity of the audience.
"What is it, Gaspar!"
Ah, this reaction was expected. Gaspar was practically screaming for everyone to hear that the Universe saw him with good eyes by giving him two twin sons.
"My children, Alinys and Cale Arkalis", continued Gaspar, his eyes tenderly landing on the two. "are proof that the balance of the universe is still present. May this rare union be a symbol of hope and strength for us all."
Most of those gathered in the audience were influenced by Gaspar's positivity and applauded welcoming the twins. But Cale could feel the negative pressure on his shoulders. Raising his eyes to the higher gods, Cale saw no sign of joy.
"You can do your demonstration, Cale. Remember to stay calm."
'Of course, because it's super easy to keep calm when hundreds of divine eyes are judging your existence,' he thought, already marching into the center like someone who will turn statue of shame in public square.
The sword weighed. Or maybe it was just the look of Aries at the bottom of the bleachers, stuck in his soul.
The priest in front of him seemed too kind. That was bad.
Cale advanced, trying a simple blow. What he received was a blow to his rib.
"Ok. A mistake. It happens", he muttered to himself.
He tried again, only faster. Got a slap on the leg, which made him stumble.
"Right. This is just theater, isn't it? Torture theater?"
A third blow, now on the shoulder. Red ink stained his robe like a flower of failure.
The audience mumbled. And he knew. He felt.
"Why does he seem so weak?"
"How can a coward be a blessing?"
One last try. Cale went ahead. His feet slipped, and the ground embraced him like an old friend.
End of the demo.
He stood up, not for his dignity — which had already gone away — but for his sister, who was waiting for him with a firm and silent look. She gave him a touch on the shoulder, being enough of comfort.
Then the display of skills from which the demigods trained with effort continued. Everyone looked better than Cale, who tried to hide his existence. Long minutes, which seemed an eternity, finally passed reaching the part that everyone was waiting for.
The Theiodesmos bonds.
In the center of the arena, the symbol shone with interlaced lines in the form of ancient constellations. The strands of light flickered softly, as if they were alive, waiting to reveal the bonds of fate. One at a time stopped in the center of the circle, it would shine making the connection between master and subordinate more perceptible for bond recognition.
When it was Alinys' turn, the symbol shone... and went out.
"Empty?"
The whisper went through the temple.
"She has no subordination bond?"
Cale stared at his sister concerned, even though he knew she was hiding her true feelings beneath that imposing posture. There were some cases where a future warrior would be without his partner, but it was still rare.
"What is this... one is weak and the other can not form a Theiodesmos..."
Everyone watched Alinys leave the circle and return to her place unaccompanied. Cale wanted to go up to her and comfort her, but before that...
"Cale Arkalis."
'Here we go again,' he thought, now officially starring in a tragic comedy play.
Despite his calm exterior, Cale was hesitant inside. Should he expect the worst too? He was already accustomed to humiliation. Despite this, he closed his eyes without wanting to face the terrible end that ceremony could bring him.
The light enveloped him warmly.
Hot. Alive. Almost familiar.
But then the heat increased. A lot.
"What the hell is that?!!!"
"What?!!"
The ground trembled. The symbol on the floor shone with tremendous force, lights swirling like lightning wires. The audience began to scream. Something — or someone — was approaching.