I splashed water on my face from the stream. The chilly water cooled me down and felt heavenly after dragging the fence posts into place for my brother to drop into the holes he dug. 

“Lucas! Stop being useless and bring me more posts! We only have three left!”

I frowned before scooping another handful of water onto my head, shivering as the icy water dripped down my back. I trudged up the hill and then over to my brother Jasper. He was sitting on the ground, his back to the latest fence post he locked in place with his skills. 

Jasper looked up at me, giving me a smug smirk, “Took you long enough, my Broken Brother. We are almost done, and you scampered off again. Get me the last three posts. I’m hungry and ready to go home to eat.” He waved me down the path to where our cart sat.

I turned before letting my face settle into a frown. Broken, that’s what everyone calls me. Well, not just me. That’s what they call anyone who’s Stratum has been marred beyond repair through battle, accidents, or a failed ritual.

So now I’m just one of the Broken that does what little unspecialized work I can find. Unfortunately, that means today I’m helping Jasper. It’s bad enough to have the pitying or sad looks I usually get, but it’s worse when Jasper antagonizes me. I sighed heavily before getting an arm around the long post and slowly dragging it back. 

It took me half a bell to get the last two over to Jasper. “It’s about time. I could have done that in just a few breaths,” Jasper said before he stood up. He picked up the three posts at once and easily walked over to the spot the fence posts needed to be placed. He stomped, and a perfectly round hole opened up in the exact location that was marked. 

Jasper repeated the movement twice more at the other marks on the ground and set the last two down in a handful of breaths. He grabbed his stone hammer and tacked the boards into place, completing the fence while I stood there. He turned back to me, not a drop of sweat on his face, while I was drenched again.

“Take my hammer back to the cart for me. You can walk home,” Jasper said before dropping his hammer to the ground with a thud and walking up the path. 

I took deep breaths to cool the rise of anger in my chest. I picked up the heavy granite hammer, carrying it to the cart, and dropped it in the back. As soon as it hit, Jasper tapped on the reigns of our Sooli, a beast that had been tamed for centuries to help porters and workers carry things they normally couldn’t, and they took off at a clip heading home. I watched as Jasper gave a lazy wave without looking in my direction shortly before disappearing over the next hill.

The Sooli would make the cart only take half a bell to get back to Mirren, but it would take more than one bell on foot. I grumbled to myself before carefully sliding back down the hill to the river’s edge. 

I scooped more water onto my head and sat down to cool off under the trees along the slow-moving river. The river was teeming with life, small birds were flitting around, waterfowl were floating along the shallows picking in the river bed for food, and occasionally a fish would jump out before splashing back into the water. It was serene. I laid back into the grass that covered the bank. I hate working with Jasper. I let the feelings flood through me as I was lulled to sleep by the sound of the wind and water.

--

Our parents were evenhanded; they treated the two of us as equals, loving both of us. But when the city official completed Jasper’s Stratum Ritual, and it turned out he had two Bindings, he became insufferable. 

Two weeks passed since Jasper’s Stratum Ritual, and he was as pushy as ever. His Stratum had an Earth Mark and two bindings. He had decided to become a specialized laborer using his Earthmoving binding and increased strength. 

Obsession took him. He poked and prodded to see how much stronger he was, but since no one else was as close to him as I was, I was forced to take the brunt of it. He would make me do a job, then show me up by doing it many times faster before rubbing it in my face.

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So when we were out taking care of the Oxen one day, he shoved me into the dirt. “It’s time to see how you measure up, little brother,” he said with a sneer. I found my arms and legs stuck in the ground. He had used his Binding to lock my arms and legs in place.

He ripped my shirt, baring my back, and sat next to me, opening a small wooden box. “Do you know what these are?” I awkwardly bent my head and neck to look at him, and Jasper waved a narrow metal cylinder in my face. “This is a pin and ritual kit. I’m not sure what the element is, but we’ll find out now, won’t we?” He set it down, opened the bottles of ink, unrolled the pattern before looking it over, and then barked in laughter. “Wind. It’s a Wind Stratum Ritual Kit. Unlucky, that’s what you are.”

“I can at least warn you that it hurts. Feels like a swarm of Stinger Ants.” Jasper dipped the pin in the inks and moved it over my back. “Stop wiggling, do you want to become Broken?”

“You don’t have to do this, Jasper! My Ritual is in three more years!” I stilled my body through pure force of will, not willing to let him ruin me. 

“That’s too long. I’m better than you, and I’ll prove it today.” He jabbed the pin through the pattern he laid over my back. It did feel like Stinger Ants, just like Jasper warned. He slowly poked the next nine points in the pattern, each one sending a lance of fire through my back.

“Now we wait, little brother,” Jasper said coldly.

The burning sensation traveled from my back to my limbs, shooting through my fingers and toes, before doubling back and then looping up my spine. The power stilled as it came back to the Mark Jasper left on me. It spun in that location, a maelstrom of flames that were rapidly cooling. I felt the force get stronger and stronger until it peaked, and the pain knocked me out.

Seconds later, I came back to consciousness and felt the power fading. I could feel the thrum of the energy but felt no release. 

“Really?” Jasper scoffed. “You managed to sit still the whole time and still turned out to be Broken. You truly are a useless little brother.”

I felt Jasper get to his feet, and the pressure on my arms and legs fell away. “What?” I asked feebly. My energy felt lessened, and my mouth was dry. Like I had been running all day.

“Idiot. Broken idiot. Your Stratum failed to manifest. You’re useless, weak, and an idiot. Probably never had any real power in you anyway.” Jasper started walking away. “Better head home. Mom and Dad won’t be happy you lied to get your Ritual completed early.”

--

I woke with a start. That nightmare has plagued me for the last three years, and now it’s even in my daytime dreams. I sighed heavily. My Stratum Ritual would have been this year. I sat up and wiped at the cold sweat that was on my forehead. I used the water one last time to wash it away. The sun was still up and hadn’t moved much, so when the sixth bell rang out, I figured it should be time to head back. 

The walk was quiet through the hills, perfect for ruminating on the nightmare. Jasper told our parents that he tried to stop me, but that I didn’t listen. 

My parents immediately frog marched me to one of the officials who looked at the marks and explained. The idiot that performed the ritual only used the ink of power. They didn’t use any of the ink of temperance or ink of freedom. In effect, I now had an immense pool of available power but no way to moderate or release it. 

My mood plunged further into darkness as I walked. I finished this job with Jasper, so thankfully, I didn’t have to interact with him until this pay ran out. But, come next week, I’d be looking for another job, and my brother would show up again. I’d be forced to accept when I couldn’t find any jobs that I could do. No one wanted to hire the Broken. 

I trudged into town, tired from the walk, then followed the familiar path to the small houses set aside for the Broken. I unlocked my door and stepped inside, the scent of home bringing me a bit of peace. I settled in making dinner in the cramped space. “Home” was only one room. It had a bed lofted with a table below it, and the opposite was a small metal oven with a runed cooktop.

These tiny homes were provided by the city to house the Broken and the Kin. They were less than eight paces from wall to wall and were three floors to conserve more space. It was cramped, but the housing facility felt more like home because my neighbors didn’t judge me. 

After dinner, I cleaned up and then watched the sunset while trying to come up with some other way of making a sustainable income and daydreaming about how a working Stratum would feel. 

With nothing else to do, I headed to bed rolling and trying to get comfortable for what felt like hours before slipping into a fitful sleep.

--

I woke up to first bell. Without runes on my home to block the cacophony of the three ringing bells, there was little I could do but get up for the day. Days without work were the only thing I really looked forward to. Without obligations, I could walk the forests right outside town. There was a small amount of danger with the Skulds, Wolvir, and other creatures that called the forest their own. 

I washed up, changed clothes, and brushed my dark hair back to tie into a tail. I headed out and waved to Adele, the older Kin that lived next door. She was sitting in a chair outside her room while soaking up the sun. She waved both her hand and flicked her silver and black cat’s tail in my direction.

The Kin are the human and beast hybrids. Their features can vary greatly, sometimes you can’t tell when someone is one of the Kin, and other times it’s entirely obvious. Adele had her silver and black cat ears, as well as a long tail.

“Lucas,” Adele called out once I was a few paces out.

I turned and barely managed to catch the small sack she had tossed my way. I tilted my head in a question, and she snickered. “For helping fix the fence. That was my cousin’s farm.”

I held out the bag and started to refuse, but Adele overruled me. “Boy, I have people to take care of me. And I’m old enough to do whatever I want.”

I nodded and bowed, “Thank you, Adele.” 

“Begone, boy.” She waved at me again, and I headed to the gate, feeling like today would be a good day.