Chapter Two: Preparations

Exodus' mother and father were thrilled that the holder of Hope, Nathaniel, was chosen as a Competitor. Sure, they praised Exodus slightly too, but as usual, he fell into the shadow of his older brother. "You will do us proud!" their father exclaimed over dinner, in which Lilly was absent for, locked away in her room. No one else noticed. No one but Exodus. As his mother and father kept discussing the Hunt and winning with Nathaniel, Exodus quietly slipped away, making sure his feet did not creak against the smooth wooden floorboards as he headed upstairs. He looked around the landing, his eyes taking a few moments to focus on the darkness upstairs before carefully approaching his sister's door and knocking gently. Nothing. Exodus waited, making sure it settled in, and then tried again, his knuckles quickly rapping against the wood door. He heard rustling. Then the door swung open.

In the doorway stood Lilly, her eyes puffy and with the dried tracks of tears visible on her face. Before Exodus could say anything, she swung the door closed once more, a click telling Exodus his sister had just locked the door. "Lilly, let me in," Exodus whispered gently, and the smash inside startled him. He looked down at the stairs, and saw Nathaniel, staring back through the spindles of the banister. "She alright?" he whispered, and Exodus shrugged, his hand on the door handle still. Nathaniel quickly scaled the stairs and stood beside Exodus, looking down at the door handle, which Exodus promptly stepped away from. "It's locked," Exodus mentioned when Nathaniel quietly gripped the handle. As Exodus watched, Nathaniel's fist glowed a low yellow, the color of Hope, and then he gently twisted. The lock broke, not too quietly, and he pushed the door open.

They found pillows in shreds, the mattress to the bed against the wall and lumped, the pictures on the walls thrown across the room, their glass frames smashed to pieces. And there was Lilly. She sat, curled into a ball, in the furthest corner, quietly sobbing into her knees as she hugged herself. "Lilly," Nathaniel whispered gently, stepping forward and crouching beside his sister, who did not seem to notice the two had broken into her bedroom. As Nathaniel sat one Lilly's left, Exodus moved to sit on Lilly's other side. As he expected, she sensed both their presences, turned and curled up against Nathaniel's chest. Exodus felt the disappointment of her choosing Nathaniel over him, but he did not let that show on his face.

"You two can't leave!" she wailed sadly, and Nathaniel wrapped his arms around her comforting you. "We won't go anywhere," Nathaniel whispered into her air as she wept onto his shoulder. "We're going to win. He has the Hope on his side!" Exodus whispered, and Nathaniel looked up, something in his eyes that told Exodus he was wrong. "We both have the Hope." Exodus cocked his head to the side, confused, and then Nathaniel outstretched his right hand. It was a gesture that Exodus recognized. It had not been used before him ever, yet here they were. Exodus hesitated, a confused look upon his face. "You can't lessen your power." Nathaniel chuckled gently and nodded, "Knowing you are protected will give me strength." Exodus saw the plea in his brother's eyes, and took his hand, their fingers entwined tightly. Nathaniel closed his eyes, as did Exodus.

Lilly watched, intrigued, as a blinding yellow flashed around the room, illuminating all their faces from the darkness. Exodus felt something run up his arm. It felt cold and freezing, like the ice in the furthest reaches of Antarctica. Then, Nathaniel released his hand, which was red from the impossibly strong grip that Nathaniel wielded along with the Power of Hope. "Now we are officially equaling," Nathaniel breathed, shooting a wink at the stunned Exodus.

***

Exodus somehow slept soundlessly that night, one of the best sleeps he had ever received, and when he awoke, he saw something lying at the foot of his smooth bed. Groggily, still under the affects of tire, he climbed out of the smooth, silk-like sheets and crawled to where whatever it was lay. He reached forward with a curious hand and picked it from the bed, kneeling as he lifted it into the air. It was a suit, similar to what his brother wore as a uniform. Smooth, leather and skin-tight, meant to inflict fear into opponents. Exodus' was different in color, however. Instead of the gold and red colors of his brothers suit, this one had the torso in green, with the arms and legs turning into a bright orange color, the boots and gloves the same orange.

He smiled, gazing at it in wonder, his brown eyes locking onto it like a homing beacon. Then he set it down, stood and stretched, his black hair glinting in the light, the same kind of black as his brother's. Quickly, he changed out of his nightclothes and easily slid into the suit, zipping it up from the back and standing before the mirror on the wall to the left of his bed. "You look good," came a strong and confident voice from the doorway, and Exodus spun to find his brother, Nathaniel, standing there. He was wearing his suit too, which seemed to add to his muscles body and make the biceps seem even more pronounced. Exodus smiled back at him and went back to examining himself. "This does suit me," Exodus admitted, and he heard Nathaniel chuckle behind him. "It does too."

Exodus turned to his brother, who looked mighty as he leaned against the doorframe. "Do you really think we can win?" he asked nervously, shaking slightly as fear settled, and Nathaniel nodded confidently. "We have the Power of Hope combined between us. If we do not win, who will?" Exodus opened his mouth to respond, but then thought the better of it. His brother was overly confident and lacking in realism. Exodus guessed it would get his brother into trouble in the future. For now, he was the hero Hope. No one would take that from him. "So, what are these suits for?" Exodus asked, staring down at his clothing, and he heard his brother laugh a little. "Don't you understand? We are Chosen. We are Competitors. We have to go over to the Hunt." At the sound, Exodus went crestfallen as his brother said, "We're going to Algatir."