The Black Heritage

Chapter 3: Adjustment

"Little Brother, closed your eyes." Logan shouted as they were falling down on a high gorge. Ethan followed him without question. 

After a while, the siblings fell badly to the hard ground which created an explosion effect all over the place.

They inevitably went on continuing into rolling over, wounded from protruding sharp rocks and objects, and eventually lost consciousness as they collided horizontally to the large tree. Even despite the bad fall, the two elder brothers didn't let go of their arms in order to protect their little brother. Unfortunately, Ethan naturally has a weak body. Hence, with that fatal fall, he got serious injuries. More severe from the injury of the two elder brothers.

After a short while, Ethan was woken up by Brayden. He crawled aback with eyes popping wide to see his beloved brother covered all over with blood. He was more like just done having a big feast with raw meat.

"Little Brother, what is wrong? Are you in pain? Here, suck it." Logan said, squatting next to him and bringing his bleeding wrist into Ethan's mouth. 

"No. No. I don't want that." Ethan moved his face away. "This is not real. How could you drink blood?" 

Brayden laid down at the other side of Ethan with his right elbow bracing on the ground to support his head while grinning like a roasted dog. "Little Brother, if we don't drink blood we can't survive." He touched Ethan's hair, "Be good. Drink our blood. I promise, you can't feel pain anymore after this." 

"No. No." Ethan screamed. 

Suddenly, a thick smoke occupied the whole place which separated him and his brother. Ethan was slowly suffocated. He coughs and coughs while calling his two brother's names. 

"Brother Logan, Brother Ethan" 

COUGH! COUGH! COUGH! 

"Bro-- cough!" Ethan threw his body up from the bed, bathing with sweat and gasping his breath. 

"So, it was just a dream. Thank God. It freaks me out." He said, rubbing his chest. Only by then, he realised that the hut was intruded and covered with smoke. 

He coughed a couple of times again while picking himself up. He put on blue slippers and ran off outside. While covering his mouth, he shouted, "Brother Logan, Brother Brayden, where are you?" 

"Little Brother, why are you here?" Out of nowhere, Brayden just appeared in front of Ethan with his face too close to him. "You're fully healed?" Brayden spun him around and examined his every part. 

"Brother Brayden, what are you doing? If you keep turning me, I may faint again." Ethan said as Brayden kept examining him. "I am getting dizzy. Are you sure you can see which part of me is not fine under this thick smoke?" 

"Of course. My vision is clearer than a microscope."

"Seriously?" Ethan laughed. "Alright. That's enough brother. I am really fine. I am all healed now after the whole day of lying in bed."

"Little Brother, you should not stand yet. If the villagers see you standing now after severely injured just a day of rest, do you think they won't think you are weird?"

"You are right. I am indeed weird. That is also what I exactly think of myself now. Why do I suddenly just recover? I should have asked you that. What medicine did you feed me while I was asleep?" 

"Hep? We are innocent. We didn't feed you anything except Uncle Simon's prescribed medicine." Brayden didn't lie but he also hid something that he couldn't tell. 

"Alright, alright. Wait. What's that smell?" Ethan sniffed his nose around. "Is someone burning a house or something?" 

Brayden held Ethan's shoulder suddenly, "Oh no! My little brother, your fish, I think it is burning." Brayden quickly zoomed off towards a corner where the fireplace flared up all of a sudden. 

As the fire grew big and the smoke dissipated, Ethan saw Logan holding a long stick on his hand and harrowing something in the fire. He guessed, it must be something they were grilling. Ethan couldn't help but smile watching the two in panic as they tried to save the thing they broiled in the fire.

These Saunders brothers had neither experienced life suffering before nor experienced living like ordinary people. So, this sudden change of their life might be hard for them but because of Ethan, they were willing to endure anything. 

"What are my two handsome brothers doing here?" Ethan smiled at them with hands clasping behind his back. 

Logan glued, knitting his brows as he scanned Ethan up and down. "Why did you stand up?" 

"I'm healed. Look." Ethan spread his arms and spun around. "I am not lying to you right?" 

"Brayden!" Logan waved his head to Brayden. "Bring the thing over here."

"Okay." Brayden quickly walked away. 

"What thing?" Ethan inquired Logan. 

Logan pulled Ethan to sit on his side. "Just sit down. Or else people will wonder why you are suddenly able to stand."

"Okay, I will listen to you." Ethan saw a big fish in the fireplace which was already all burnt. Shaking his head, he just grabbed the stick from Logan's hand. "Brother Logan, let me help you."

"This-- what are you do--" Logan didn't manage to finish his sentence when he saw Ethan just easily harrowed the fish out from the fire. "Since when did you learn to do this kind of stuff?" 

"This one? I didn't learn it. Just an instinct."

"Instinct?"

"What are the two of you discussing?" The cheerful voice of Brayden interrupted the two. 

"Wheelchair?" Ethan exclaimed to see the thing that Brayden was pushing towards him and in just one look, Ethan could tell that it was just newly made. "Are you telling me to sit in the wheelchair and pretend weak?" 

Brayden snapped his fingers and said, "Bingo!" 

"Why?" Although Ethan already knew the reason, he still asked. 

"Don't give the villagers a false idea about you. They had seen your injuries. Even in a month, it was impossible for you to recover. How much more in just a day?" Logan explained. 

"Oh, okay. Okay. I got it." Ethan stood and sat on the wheelchair. 

Brayden bent down and lifted the plate with the burnt fish. "My goodness, my fish--" He looked at Ethan sadly. "Little Brother, I originally caught a fish for you but look--it's burnt. I'm sorry. You can't eat it now. But don't worry, I will catch another one for you tomorrow."

"No need to bother yourself Brother Brayden." Ethan moved forward and smoothly snatched the plate. "This one can do." Ethan laid the plate on his lap and picked the fish in two hands, and bit a big flesh on it. 

'My Goodness, it's too bitter.' Ethan's mind mumbled. 

"Ethan, give that to me. That is not edible anymore." Logan tried to snatch the plate too but Ethan was quick. He slid the wheelchair in ease as he put back the fish on the plate and transferred it to the other hand. His movement was like he was just rolling a ball on his arm.

"Brother Logan, how can you say it is not edible? Look, this trout is too savory. Although it is burnt but Brother Brayden painstakingly caught it for me. Moreover, you also grilled it for me. How could I have a heart to just throw it away?" Ethan took a bite to the fish again and again. His mouth was now covered with fish skin ashes, still smiling at them. 

Brayden and Logan were shocked. They weren't listening to what Ethan said, but instead dazed off from what they saw. 

Ethan could really dodge Logan just like that? How could a frail Ethan move even faster than his strong brother?

"Brother Logan Brother Brayden? What is wrong?" Ethan waved his hand to wake them up from daydreaming. 

"Little Brother, why do I feel you are too different today? You seem a different person." Brayden said. 

Ethan was stupefied. He was wondering if he had just disclosed himself to them. Since he wanted to live as the real him, then changes of the Ethan's here was unavoidable. Thus, he didn't plan to hide what he knows. Of course, he has to make a reason that would not suspect them that he wasn't their real brother. 

"Where part of me is strange Brother Brayden?" Ethan had finished the fish. He put aside the plate and wiped his mouth.

"I can't tell clearly but--" 

"The way you dodge me, it was a basic skill of dodging techniques of a martial artist. How did you know that?" Logan looked at Ethan with his cold unfathomable eyes again. 

Ethan scratched his head as he turned the wheelchair around. "Brother, will you believe if I had been practicing martial arts for almost a year already? Every time you go out for work, I diligently learn martial art because I want to be strong like the two of you. I wanted to know how to protect myself. Of course, I also want to protect the two of you. Since our parents died mysteriously, I swore to become strong. So what happened to our parents won't happen to the two of you. Besides, I can't be a burden to the two of you forever. "

"What are you saying?" Logan and Brayden said in unison. They walked around in front of him. They squatted down, holding each other's hands. 

"Little Brother, you are not a burden to us and you will never be." Logan looked at Ethan with full brotherly love. 

"Yes. Yes. Big Brother is right. Don't ever think you are a burden to us. We are family. This is what we should do. Take good care of each other." Brayden said. 

"Brothers, can I ask a serious question?" 

"Go ahead." The two said together again. 

"If, I am saying just if, if someday you will discover that I am not your brother, what are you going to do?" 

Logan and Brayden fell into a deep pondering. Ethan's question was so unexpected so they were a bit confused.

Seeing the unsure expression of the two brothers, Ethan slowly pulled his hands and turned around again. He breathed deep and smiled bitterly. He looked at the sky and said, "I got it. No need to respond to me."

"As long as you are Ethan, we will always treat you as what we used to be." The words of Logan sounded too sweet to the ears. 

Brayden suddenly chortled as he stood next to Ethan. "Big Brother, look at your cold expression, how could Little Brother believe your word?" 

"What? Is my expression surprising to you? I've always been like this, why did you have to care about it now?" Logan curved his left brow. He stood up too and held the wheelchair. "Brayden, kill the fire and follow immediately inside. We are going to have dinner. It's getting colder now."

"Yes."

"Little Brother, let's go!" Logan pushed the wheelchair going inside the house. 

"Brother Logan, are you hiding something from me?" Ethan asked. "I don't understand. We clearly jumped off the cliff together, why was it only me who was injured."

Logan stopped, clenching his fingers on the wheelchair. "Little Brother, we are not hiding anything from you. Yes, we jump together. It was because you have a weak body that was why you fell badly on the ground while us, we fell still unscathed." Logan lied. "I am sorry for that."

Ethan felt something weird about it but he chose to ignore it since tonight.

The every  day of Saunders' Brothers in the Matiwasay Village were peaceful and happy. Logan and Brayden were meticulous in looking after Ethan and all villagers liked them because of their respectful attitude and outgoing personality especially Brayden and Ethan. 

Ethan and Brayden would sometimes play childish games to the kids while Logan only kept busying himself doing household chores. 

Sitting in the wheelchair the whole day really bored Ethan, especially pretending to be sick but when night came and everyone was asleep, Ethan would sneak out and go into a nearby forest with a small lampshade in his hand and practice martial arts. 

Ethan had done it everyday for the straight whole month and he was getting even faster and strong. His techniques of dodging, attacking and defending against imaginary opponents became more refined and efficient. 

Ethan really thought that no one was watching him practicing martial art at night but he was unaware that his two brothers were accompanying him every night. 

Actually, they were happy for his total change. He wasn't only became healthy and strong but also became independent and caring. However, they were also worried for an unknown reason. 

Tonight, the two brothers planned to give Ethan a surprise visit while in full focus of practicing. They wanted to see if he was cautious even without enemies around. 

As usual, Ethan went to his favourite spot inside the forest. The area was round and full of small grasses. 

Ethan tonight brought a weapon. Last time, as he was walking back to their hut, he found two rusty daggers stuck in a mud. He pulled it and sharpened. Now, he was using it while practicing. 

Ethan was practicing a hand flipping technique with a dagger when suddenly Logan rushed and jumped in. As he landed behind Ethan, he didn't move. He waited to see Ethan's reaction but to his surprise, as Ethan flipped the daggers in an outward circular motion on its side, he suddenly turned around after and brought the sharp edge of the dagger close to Logan's neck. Of course he stopped after leaving an inch away. 

"Brother Logan, what are you doing here? Where is Brother Brayden?" Ethan put down his hand while gasping his breath. 

"He is over there." Logan answered. "You have improved a lot. You could even control your hand well."

"You had been watching me?" 

"Can't I?" 

"That's right!" Brayden came out from hiding behind the tree. "Can't we watch you?" 

"Of course you can. I was just not good enough to make you two watch me." Ethan lowered his head. 

"But-- your hand flipping technique seems unfamiliar. Who did you learn that from?"

"Actually, none."

"None?" Brayden yelled. 

"Are you saying you learn that yourself?" Logan confirmed. 

"Yeah. And it is very useful to kill uncommon enemies." Ethan put his arms around the shoulders of each brother. "Brothers, it's too late already. Let's go back and rest."