Chapter 1:

  Family First

  My uncle is an enigma in our family. The day my brother and I found his picture tucked inside a long forgotten crawlspace was the first time we’d ever seen our father lose control.

  Our father is a hard man, not the emotional type by any means, but I would never call him cruel. He’s always been our family’s anchor, steady no matter the season. That was just the way the people of The Belt were, my father being a product of his environment, chose to show his love through action rather than gentle word.

  That day, though, I could still remember the beating he gave us, as angry tears streaked down his cheeks. We were bruised for days, and our father never explained why he had whipped us so thoroughly. After that, my brother and I never dared to ask about our uncle again.

  Though I didn’t enjoy revisiting those memories, I couldn’t help but ponder them after a strange letter had arrived earlier this morning.

  It had been addressed to me, my name written in black ink, Samuel Garner, and had been sealed with an unfamiliar crest, a motif of a winged serpent.

  My father had asked the postman who had sent it, then promptly snatched it away after he had replied, "You don’t know? That is the crest of Sir Lucian Garner.”

  My thoughts went wild at the implication. I wasn’t the most well read or knowledgeable person by any means, but I was aware that those with titles like Sir often represented people of high importance within the kingdom. Not only that, this Sir Lucian Garner shared the same last name as myself.

  My curiosity burned within me and no matter how I tried to ignore it. I couldn't help but ask myself, why? Why would he be writing me?

  I had been tempted several times to ask my father if he would let me read the letter, but the memory of that one terrible day urged me to reconsider.

  Frustration continued to gnaw away at my patience as I spied on my father through the kitchen window. He was currently outside, angrily swinging his scythe through the fields of wheat out back.

  “Your father’s in a chipper mood this morning, isn’t he?” My mother said, as she set a basket of freshly gathered eggs on the table.

  “I don’t know what happened between those two, but I wish he wouldn’t take it out on me,” I replied bitterly, stealing another glance out the window. “He wouldn’t even let me read the letter.”

  My mother moved to stand beside me and gently took my face into her hands.

  “Sam,” she said softly. “Ignore your father for now. He’ll come around eventually. Today is your Choosing Day after all.”

  Tears welled in her eyes as she looked at me before pulling me into a fierce hug. “I’m not ready for my boy to be all grown up. It’s hard on us mothers.”

  After a long moment, she finally released me and wiped the tears from her eyes.

  "Now go on before I find something to keep you busy.”

  "Yes, ma’am,” I replied with a salute, which earned me an eye roll before she shooed me out of the kitchen. Resolved not to push my luck, I made my way through the living room and slipped out the front door.

  As I stepped out onto the front porch, I suddenly found myself with unexpected free time. This was a rare thing as our parents kept us fairly busy working on the farm, especially during the summer harvest.

  Mom obviously wanted me to use this time to think about the choices I’d be making later tonight, but all I could think about was that damned letter. I let out an audible sigh and leaned against the wooden rails of the front porch. Willing myself to find a distraction, I took a moment to survey my family’s property.

  It was a decent stretch of land that had been cultivated and passed down for several generations. We were, by all accounts, a traditional farming family. My father is a farmer, my grandfather had been a farmer, and everyone who came before them, unsurprisingly, had been farmers. Now, it was my little brother and I who stood next in line to inherit the land and, with it, the expectation to carry on the family traditions.

  I wouldn’t consider our family ridiculously wealthy by any means, but life was comfortable enough. Between the fields and the animals, we never had to worry about food, and there had always been plenty of produce to sell for whatever else we might need. By all accounts, it was a simple, quiet, and secure life.

  The narrative has been illicitly obtained; should you discover it on Amazon, report the violation.

  And I couldn’t help but feel trapped by it.

  A week ago, the local priest of Wheat Hollow gathered all those who had come of age within the small church at the center of town. He did his best to prepare us for the upcoming ceremony, speaking patiently and answering our questions about The Path. Though his words were meant to bring comfort, I think most of us left with more uncertainty than before we had arrived.

  According to the priest, there were four domains that gave access to unique paths: the Martial domain, the Arcane, the Divine, and Cultivation. Each domain had its own benefits and unique abilities that accompanied the choices that would be offered to us upon our choosing.

  The priest said our choices were, to some degree, predetermined. A boy or girl raised in a family of warriors, for instance, would never find themselves offered a Path tied to the Arcane or the Divine. When their Choosing Day came, their three options would all fall under the Martial domain, a reflection of the life they were born into.

  Which means someone like me, who has grown up on a farm, with a long history of farmers, who wanted nothing more than to be farmers, would likely result in me being, well, a farmer.

  To be honest, I didn’t know what I wanted my choices to be. I knew my father expected me to select a Path related to farming in some way, something that would make me more useful when planting crops or tending to animals. Even a Path tied to trade would serve the family well, keeping me grounded, close to home…for the rest of my life.

  Maybe he was right, maybe it was best to just settle down and not dream beyond The Belt and fields that surrounded our little town of Wheat Hollow.

  Still, I couldn’t help but wonder who I could be if I simply had the courage to step out and try something new. It was an itch I couldn’t seem to scratch, no matter how much I tried to convince myself otherwise.

  My thoughts were soon interrupted, as my little brother, burst through the front door running at full speed. Upon seeing me, he slid to a stop and quickly moved to stand in front of me.

  “Oh, good! I thought you’d wandered off into town to be with Grace.” Seth, as usual, spoke with a barely contained excitement, eyes practically shining. “Today’s the big day, are you nervous?”

  “I guess so, but I don’t really feel nervous yet. It feels like it’s out of my hands anyway. My choices have practically been made for me.”

  “That’s true,” Seth said matter of factly. “I have no doubt you’ll end up with a farming path like Dad, and we can all work and live together just like we planned.”

  Despite being a year younger than me, Seth always seemed to have a much clearer vision of his future than myself.

  “Yeah, family first,” I said half heartedly, as I got up to stretch and stepped off the porch. “I guess I’d better go talk with Dad and see if he needs any help.”

  Seth nodded and then ran back inside to finish his chores.

  As I walked around the house, I couldn't help but hear the steady stream of curses coming from the barn that sat a little ways behind our home.

  The large doors of the barn were open, and I could see the vague silhouette of my father trying to shoe our donkey. Blue, who by every definition, was a jackass. He had always had a foul temperament, and he made even the simplest tasks way harder than they ought to be.

  “Damnit, Blue, stop being so difficult!”

  My father’s voice carried across the yard and was followed by the obnoxious braying of Blue’s protest.

  “You need a hand Dad?” I asked, as I stepped into the barn.

  Before waiting for a response, I grabbed a handful of feed and walked over to Blue, offering him a treat. This seemed to mollify the indignant donkey as he accepted the offering before him.

  “Thank you, son, I’ll just be a minute longer, maybe less now that this old bastard has calmed down.” Dad glared at Blue before tacking the shoe into place.

  With his morning chores completed, Dad led Blue back to his stall before grabbing two stools and setting them down by the open door of the barn. He gestured for me to join him as he pulled out his pipe, tamping down the ember reeds inside before lighting it.

  “Things will get a lot easier around here once you choose your path,” he said, taking a draw from his pipe and then blowing out the smoke a moment later. “How nice would it be if it were something animal related, then even ole Blue would have to be a little more reasonable.”

  Before I could respond, my father placed a hand on my shoulder and looked me in the eye. “Son, I know I don’t have to remind you that today is a big day. You’re about to become a man, after all. Just remember, you’re setting the example for your little brother coming up after you.”

  Looking at my father, I nodded my head in understanding. “Yeah, I know, I honestly can’t tell if I’m nervous or excited.”

  “Oh, I remember that feeling well,” my father said, pausing to take another draw from his pipe. “Your uncle and I were up all night trying to guess what Paths we might be offered.”

  A brief smile flickered across his face before it quickly faded into a grimace.

  Despite my fear that my father’s anger might flare up again, I braced myself, and chose to ask the question that had been burning inside of me all morning.

  “Dad, what happened between you and Uncle Lucian?”

  Whatever contentment that had been in my father’s face dried up in an instant, and the silence between us seemed to stretch on forever.

  Well, great. Now I’ll probably get stuck with chores as a reward for prying into my father’s business. Just when I was about to give up and make an excuse to leave, my father finally responded.

  “Your uncle and I had a pretty heated argument the day he left home. Well, more than an argument, we came to blows after never once fighting in all our years together. We’re twins, he and I, and I loved him more than anything.”

  He paused, taking another slow drag from his pipe as he gathered his thoughts. “We were both supposed to choose a path to help the family farm grow. Raise our families together, live together, and support one another. When Lucian took his steps onto the path after me, he chose to go a different way. Your grandfather, gods rest him, always said ‘family comes first.’ But that day, your uncle made a selfish decision and left me to carry all these responsibilities on my own.”

  As my father spoke, I saw the corner of his eyes take on a misty quality as the man held back tears.

  “Your uncle broke my heart. I admired him more than anyone, and then.. he left me on my own. I thought we shared the same dream of growing our families together, but ….here we are. Now he’s off doing gods know what somewhere in the world, the bastard couldn’t even come home to help me bury your grandfather.”

  He took one final drag from his pipe before tamping out the contents onto the ground. As he blew out a steady stream of smoke, he turned to look at me, his voice filled with unfamiliar emotion. “Make me proud, son”