Barzilai Solos (Finished!)

 Barzilai Solos’ beginnings were relatively ordinary: As the son of a Finnek Forest lumberjack and a dust-seamstress, he spent most of his childhood running through the forest, chasing after his father, attempting to follow him to where the man would go about his business... before eventually being caught and sent home to help his mother with her work. Many days consisted of holding her thread steady as she sewed, often telling him stories of Remnant while she did so. Hunters, the magnificent Semblances and weapons they wielded, and the vicious, malignant Grimm they faced... Barz would spend hours running around the house, wrapped in a bed-sheet cape and with wooden sword in hand, reenacting the tales of legendary heroes for his parents, who would play and laugh along. And for 12 quiet, peaceful years, living in this solitary little log-cabin at the center of the forest, he was happy.

And then, in the space of a single day, it all changed.

It started simply enough: Barz was following his father through Finnek, expecting to be caught as usual. But he was surprised to see his father stop in the middle of a forest clearing, littered with the stumps of fallen trees, where the man put down his axe and pulled out two silvery objects. His father slid them onto his hands, settled himself in front of a giant tree, got into an unfamiliar stance, and punched. Barz saw a flash of white, and suddenly there was a gaping circular hole in the trunk where he had punched; the tree creaked, snapping at the break, before falling to the ground with a tremendous thud. Barz jumped out, shocked and excited, to greet his father, and the man turned around, surprised... but both were stunned to silence by the sound of roaring in the distance. The two turned towards the noise, and saw smoke rising in the direction of the cabin. They took off immediately for home, Barz’s father explaining things to his son as they went: His parents had once been pretty prolific Hunters, specializing in tracking down criminals too powerful for ordinary police to handle, before giving that life up when they’d found out she was pregnant. They then settled down in a cabin they had built in Finnek, where they’d hoped to raise Barz in seclusion, away from any enemies the two had made in their time as Bounty Huntsman.

Minutes later they arrived at the cabin… only to see it up in flames, with a horde of Beowolves and Ursai surrounding it. And on the roof stood Barz’s mother, twin daggers in hand, but severely wounded, squaring off against a figure Barz couldn’t quite make out due to the glare of the flames… but whose silhouette sent shivers down his father’s spine. The man turned to his son, kneeling down and telling him that he had to run, back to the clearing Barz had followed him to, and that he and his mother loved him. He then draped his silver jacket over the boy’s shoulders, kissed his forehead and straightened up, slipping his weapons onto his hands and running into the crowd of Grimm. Crying, Barz watched for a moment before turning and running, hugging the jacket to him, the tears blurring his vision as he made his way to the fallen tree. The boy collapsed, exhausted and in shock… and passed out.

It was dark by the time Barzilai regained consciousness. He quickly headed back to his house, wondering why his father hadn’t come for him, fighting a growing feeling of dread. He arrived to find the Grimm gone, and his house in ruins, burned down to embers. He cried out, running towards it, and stopping when he noticed two objects on the ground: his father’s weapons. He slowly knelt down, picking them up: They were cold. He looked around, pulling the jacket around him like a blanket, searching for any sign of his parents; save for his father’s tekko, there was none. The tears welled up again, and Barz fell to his knees, sobbing… scared, unsure of what to do… and alone.
 

“Okay, let’s do this.”
Barz rolled his shoulders, cracked his knuckles and settled into his stance. It was early morning in Finnek Forest; Sunlight passed through the trees, highlighting the blue of the leaves, and the ever-present trickling of a nearby stream could be heard from Barz’s cave. He jumped down from the entrance, landing lightly on the forest floor below, and dashed, heading out for his morning run.  Ten miles and an hour later he found himself in front of a giant tree. He stood there for a moment, remembering that day six years ago…. Had that tree been this size? No. This one was much bigger. He reached down to his waist and unclipped his father’s tekko, sliding them onto his hands.

“Alright, Dad… let’s see if I’m up to snuff…”

Barz got into the stance he’d once seen his father take, took in a deep breath, and closed his eyes, feeling his Aura surrounding and coursing through his body. Wait for it... Now! Barz’s eyes flew open, his arms raised, and then flicked it forward, cutting the air like a knife, straight for the trunk of the tree. At the moment of impact he twisted his wrist, keeping his fingers loose but his fist firm, twisting into the blow and cocking his other arm back in the same motion. He’d gone over this form hundreds and hundreds of times in these past six years, and he was sure he had finally done it…
There was a flash of silver light as Barz channeled his aura into the punch, followed by the resounding thud of metal on wood. Then a rending, creaking, ear-piercing sound; birds flew from the top of the tree, chirping frantically as it fell. Leaves came raining down, branches snapped against each other and with a final, whooshing slam, there was silence. Barz slowly pulled his hands from his ears, looking first at the fallen tree and then at the place it had been broken: there were gaping, rounded semicircles hollowing out the base of the trunk and the top of the chest-high stump.

“Yes!” Barz threw his arms in the air, taking a celebratory lap around the clearing. He looked down at his hands- The tekko, despite being rusted and worn from practice, shone silvery-white with his aura. He smiled, and hung them back on his waist. It was finally time… Barz took off at top speed, weaving between trees and hopping over boulders, heading north. A minute later he skidded to a stop, looking out at a familiar place. The walls had long since fallen apart, collapsed over a scorched pile of rubble and jagged wood. Barz gulped, looking over his former home, his mind flashing back to that night: he’d spent the first couple of weeks searching for signs of his parents, but he had found none. Barz’s hand instinctively went up to the collar of his silver leather jacket, rubbing the material in his hands… sewn by his mother, worn and passed down to him by his father… He nodded, making an about face and sprinting towards his destination: The last time he’d been to the village nearest his part of the forest he’d overheard some people talking about a Huntsman training school, sitting in the mountains high above Finnek, and how they were still accepting admissions. At the time he hadn’t even considered applying… but he’d slowly warmed up to the idea. Now, it made perfect sense: He would go to Syne Academy, and he’d do his absolute best to get in. And when he finally became a full-fledged Hunter, with the strength and resources that accompanied that status, he’d be able to truly search for his parents… and bring to justice that mysterious figure who'd taken them away.