Read The Armor of God for Free Online

Like his mother, whose family name they all took, nearly all children born with Blanchard blood had grown to become scholars and scientists of great renown. In a society like Roue’s, where intellect was celebrated, that had turned them into icons. His older sister had both been born with the Blanchard gift, and was presently being trained to follow in her parents’ footsteps. Even his eight-year-old sister was already displaying sparks of genius in the field of music.
    But Ezra had never shared that gift, or an interest in the intellectual life. He had been an adventurous brat—curious and inquisitive, but not one of above average intellect. He had always felt like a disappointment, and, perhaps a bit too late, this was the first time he realized that it had all been just his insecurity; his parents loved him for who he was.
    “Son?” his father said. “What are your thoughts?”
    “I don’t want to do this, Dad,” he said, and felt his voice beginning to crack.
    His mother got up and walked the length of the table to kneel next to her son. “Are you scared?” He nodded. “Of course you are. Uncertainty is a monster that can only be fought with patience; but it fades, Ezra. All this pain you’re feeling will disappear in Zenith, once you know exactly what that new life is going to be about.”
    “Can’t you do something about it? You’re rich, you’re powerful enough to—”
    “No, son,” she said. “This is something you can’t run away from. I know it’s scary, but there is a reason why these things happen, even if you can’t tell what it is right now.”
    “That’s not fair,” Ezra protested. He felt like a child.
    “Tara, why are you handling it like it’s some kind of curse?” his father said after he finished lighting a cigarette. “No, Ezra, it’s definitely not fair, but to the other kids your age. You will learn how wrong you are soon. Like your mother says, the uncertainty inevitably fades. You’ll have a new home in Zenith, and a new life. A lot of the questions that terrify most people your age will be answered, and you will be protecting Roue from—”
    “Patrich,” she silenced him.
    It became immediately obvious that his dad had said something he wasn’t supposed to say. So the Creux were used to protect Roue. Did that mean Ezra would be trained to use Creux—whatever they were—in battle ?
    His future became immediately scarier.
    “Sweetheart, just remember that it’s something you’ll have to do. It may be painful, and scary, but it has to come. You need to be strong enough to let it come, and let it transform you into someone new.”
    She sounded like Susan. All this talk about growth and change. He wasn’t ready.

    That night, Ezra went to sleep in his room, crying and letting his mother hold his head and play with his thick hair. She did her best to comfort him with stories, wisdom, and lullabies. Outside, the night was heavy, playing the song of dozens of nightbirds that didn’t really exist.
    He woke up early the next day, and his mother was still there in the room that he had made his own the instant he had been deemed old enough to sleep alone. All the art he had put on the walls, his drawings, pictures, books, and toys were still in the exact same places he had left them.
    “Mom,” he said. “Is there anything you can do to help me?”
    “I can be there for you,” she said. “And I will. Me and your father and your sisters. You’re not going away, Ezra, and we’ll always be here for you.”
    It was exactly the answer Ezra was hoping for.
     
    Ezra took a bath and got dressed. He found his mother sitting at the breakfast table, waiting for her husband to finish cooking breakfast. The Blanchards were unreasonably rich in Roue—one of the richest families, in fact—and despite having hired a cook of incredible talent, when it came to breakfast, it was always Patrich Blanchard standing in front of the stove. His dad put before him a plate of eggs,