He’d never been quite right, but who in his family had been?
His parents should have been sworn enemies, but like a cliched romance novel, they fell in love and stole away in the dead of night to build a life together, away from the contentious atmospheres of their respective homes. While each parent clearly did not fit into traditional stereotypes, there was just enough Baltian militant rigidity and compassionate Stratosian gentility to result in four children that covered virtually every area of the personality map. Though so different, they were each well-loved by their parents and each other.
There were the two girls.. his “twin-but-not-twin” younger sister was most like their mother, both in appearance and in their quiet and kind demeanors—Samaritans in every aspect of the word. On the opposite side of the spectrum, was his wild-child baby sister and the irreverent impulsivity that got under their skins. Still, she was charming and ultimately loved by everyone that crossed the path of her hurricane. And then there were the boys.. Eddie had once been a bright, silly child that loved only one thing more than creating laughter, and that was being surrounded by music of any kind. The love of music remained, but little of the rest survived after it happened.
The eldest by several years, his brother had been a morose, irascible type with no clear goals in life. Nothing ever really seemed to satisfy or soothe his brother, but that did not stop Eddie from clinging to every word or mimicking every action during their time together. However, that insatiability may have contributed to the premature conclusion of all of their childhoods that occurred when his wingless brother abruptly threw himself from the highest peak he could find. Eddie had been the one to find his brother.. the images haunted him from that day, but they were nothing compared to the guilt that had also sunk its claws into that young boy. He’d thought that there had been an unbreakable bond between him and his brother, so he never understood why his brother would leave like that. Darkness crept over him as he grew, stealing his joy to leave anger and bitterness in its place.
Life had not been kind, but Eddie thought he had been finding his way out of the consuming shadows, that he had been coming to terms with the loss.
Until now.
The disasters that had torn down the walls concealing Baltia and Stratos from Beqanna had also ripped away the remainder of Eddie’s family. While they were imperfect and constantly butted heads in the years following his brother’s death, the five of them loved each other fiercely and were always there for each other when someone needed support. And now?
He walks along the riverbank, utterly lost, both physically and emotionally, and unsure where to look next. He is desperate to find his family, but so much time has passed that hope has dwindled to the tiniest flame. A quiet sigh escapes with his next breath and he turns his eyes from the unfamiliar ground beneath his feet. They fall upon the horizon instead. He can see the ruins looking down on the bucolic scene the river and its meadows create. An intrusive thought bullies its way to the forefront of his mind.. perhaps it would be better to follow in his brother’s footsteps. After all, what is remains to tie him to this world?
But the thought is fleeting. There is still that flicker of faith deep within his heart and he cannot find the fortitude to quell its fire, however small it may be. So he sighs again and climbs the slope leading to the meadow. Nothing wrong with a quick meal before he continues on in the search.
