Bound to the Abyss by James Vernon

spent hours every day practicing with the sword he had received before his age was in double digits, making him more than proficient as well as keeping him in great shape. A few years ago, he had even been appointed as one of the protectors of the village. Unlike his brother, he wore a simple white shirt, opened in the front, and gray pants. His sword swung in its scabbard from its usual place on his belt.
    To say that Ean was jealous of the older boy would be an understatement. An excellent fighter, beloved by the village and adored by Jaslen, Bran had everything that Ean wanted and more. The worst part about it was that Ean couldn’t even despise him. Bran was a model of virtue, always doing what was right and standing up for the weak. Of course, that mostly meant standing up for Ean. Other than the last time, Bran often was there in time to keep Krane and his underlings from doing Ean much harm. Bran had even gone so far as to try and befriend Ean, but that simply couldn’t happen. As much as Ean wanted to have people he could trust and talk to, he just couldn’t see himself in the constant presence of someone that reminded him of all of the things he was not. Also, it was difficult to watch how close he and Jaslen were growing every day.
    Bran walked with a casual stride into the alley, his eyes moving between Jaslen and Krane, completely overlooking Ean for the moment. Stopping at Jaslen’s side, he gently placed a hand on her back, and then leaned down to give her a kiss on the cheek. Ean knelt there, feeling like he had been punched again. Standing back up, Bran regarded his younger brother.  
    “I’ve had it with you bullying the weaker boys of this village.” Ean cringed. If one more person called him weak, he would explode. Staring down his brother, Bran continued on. “From now on, every time I hear about you hurting someone else, I’m going to give you an even worse beating.”
    Sneering, Krane laughed in response. “You wouldn’t dare. Father wouldn’t allow...” Faster than Ean would have expected, Bran moved right up in Krane’s face, grabbing his shirt roughly with his left hand and holding his right fist in front of the now terrified boy’s face.  
    “Father won’t do a thing, and you know it.” Bran’s face was red now with anger, a sight that Ean had never witnessed before. Apparently, Jaslen hadn’t either as she was looking at Bran with a look of both awe and adoration. Ean’s heart sunk even further.
    “Now,” Bran continued. “Have I made myself clear?”  
    Krane glanced at Ean with hate-filled eyes, but then turned back to his brother. “Yes, fine, fine, I understand. Now let me go.” Seemingly satisfied, Bran gave his brother a not-so-gentle shove away from himself. The two brothers stared each other for a moment longer then Krane took off down another alley. Turning back around, Bran faced Ean and gave him a half-hearted smile.  
    “Hopefully that will settle things between you and my brother now, Ean. If he gives you any more trouble, you just let me know. Here, let me help you both up.” Extending both of his hands in their direction, Bran moved over to their side.
    Jaslen took his hand immediately, while Ean moved a bit more reluctantly. “I could have handled that myself, you know,” Ean said as Bran pulled him to his feet, “I’m not as weak as everyone seems to think I am.”  
    Bran frowned a bit at the response, but Jaslen simply laughed. “Oh, it’s true Bran. Ean is quite strong. Apparently, he fought with the beast and survived!” On her feet now, she wrapped an arm around Bran’s waist.  
    At her comment, one of Bran’s eyebrows raised, and he regarded Ean skeptically. “That sounds a little hard to believe. Have you been telling my girl stories, Ean?”
    Brushing himself off, Ean shook his head. “I never said I fought the beast. All I said was that I had seen it up close and had been able to get away. Jaslen is the one that is