Phantom Hunters | Saphir Casters Academy

3 | The Falcons

III | THE FALCONS

    "Honestly, Kael, what were you thinking?" Lana scolded as she wrapped Kael's bleeding hand in a bandage. She tightened the linen before moving on to cleaning up the bloodied cotton balls doused in hot water.

    "What? It wasn't my fault Roder left me for dead," Kael deflected, trying his hardest not to wince at the sting.

    He turned his gaze to Kly, who was now in deep conversation with their uncle. It was obvious that the two were brothers. Both had loose black hair, thick eyebrows, and a straight nose — traits they'd inherited from their father. The similarities ended there, however, as Kly had a strong jawline and deep set eyes whereas Kael sported softer features — more of a baby face — and almond shaped eyes that held an innocence often lost by maturity.

    A twinge of melancholy stirred in Kael's heart as he realised how much the brothers had grown in the absence of the other. He wondered, as he often did, if they would have been as close as true brothers if they hadn't been separated by circumstance.

    Lana stood, instinctively drawing her arms to her back where little Afia was tied by a blanket. With assurance that the baby was secure, Lana gathered the medical supplies in a box and returned it to a cabinet.

    "Kly, you must be starving from your trip. Let me cook something up. How does boar sound?"

    Kly shifted his attention from Hont to Lana. "Sure, Aunt. That sounds great."

    Kael grinned, unable to suppress the need to let everyone know who was responsible for the meal. "I caught the boar, Kly. I used casting on a scythe and caught the boar all by myself. Dragged it a whole kilometer, too!"

    Hearing this, Hont snorted and muttered something about "reckless young kids" under his breath, but his comment went unnoticed. He took a sip of tea, clutching a newspaper delivered from the town and reading over the headlines, which mainly consisted of the recent attacks.

    Kly chuckled, ruffling Kael's hair. "Did you, now? You've grown a lot since I last saw you. We have a lot of catching up to do"

    Kael laughed and playfully smacked his brother's hand away. "I know! And I've got to show you everything! There's a new school that I just graduated from, and did you see the new cab station in town?"

    "No. I came directly here with a rented horse."

    "Why'd you do that? To save money?"

    "Sure. And I missed the old days when we rode together. Maybe we can go out sometime."

    Kael's wide smile couldn't have grown. His heart felt like it would burn from the glow of admiration and excitement he had at his brother's arrival. His worries dissipated; he felt as if he and his brother hadn't been separated at all, picking off from where they left despite growing up in each other's absence.

    "So, Kly," Lana interjected, shoving a pan of seasoned boar into the oven. She turned a knob, which activated the uthra battery that ran electricity through the machine. The insignia of the company that created the machine glowed yellow. "What really brings you out here?"

    Kly took a sip of his chrysos tea — a tea made with boiling water and golden petals of the mountain flower. "Ever the sharp one, Aunt. Looks like age has nothing on you."

    Lana winced. "Are you implying something?"

    "No, not at all," Kly assured with a crooked smile.