Rumors of War

by Cynus 

War on Earth
 

Chapter Seven

        We ate breakfast together with my father, and then helped with the dishes until my father left for work. Marc and I had avoided showing affection in front of him, just because the relationship was still new to us, but as soon as the front door closed I was all over him. We slowly made our way upstairs and engaged in another passionate bout of making out, though we didn’t take it any further. As we settled into each other’s arms for the second time that morning, I realized that I had managed to put the fear and anxiety of what was going on behind me. I could take the fact that the Angels were trying to kill me as long as I got Marc out of that deal.

        With clothes soaked in sweat, we decided to shower before restarting our day. We toyed with the idea of sharing the water, but I knew that my shower stall was far too small to fit us both comfortably, so instead he simply joined me in the bathroom and talked to me as I cleaned up, and I did the same for him. Despite the situation we were involved in, we ended up speaking about video games and music again. It was easy to forget what was really going on. I wasn’t sure if it was because Marc was still an adolescent at heart, or if it was because he was trying to take my mind off of it. Either way, I was grateful to have him there, especially when we kissed as we switched places in the shower. That took my mind off of everything but him.

        I was brought back to reality not long after though, when he reminded me that we were going to see Keith, and that we didn’t have time to continue playing if we were going to make any headway in my training. I knew he was right, so I excused myself from the bathroom as he turned the water off so that I wouldn’t be tempted to get into anything with him. I figured that if I avoided being naked with him it wouldn’t be as difficult to keep myself under control. I quickly got dressed and waited for my boyfriend.

        His clean and fresh scent was almost enough for me to tear my clothes back off and tackle him to my bed, but I managed to keep my libido in check. Barely. His grin told me that he knew exactly what was going through my mind, and he turned his back on me in what I guessed was an attempt to cool me down. Of course shaking his tight butt in my direction did little to that effect. Soon though it was covered by yet another pair of my pants, but my mind could remember his gorgeous flesh well enough that the denim took nothing away from my imagination.

        As he pulled another shirt over his sleek torso, I did my best to calm myself the rest of the way. I knew that we had more important things to do than have sex all day, but I certainly wished that life could be that simple. With a sigh, I turned to leave and felt his arms embrace me from behind just before I stepped out the door.

        He whispered in my ear, “Don’t worry, when we get back we’ll have some more fun, unless you end up too tired.”

        I turned in his arms and kissed him lightly as I replied, “I’m sure that won’t be a problem. I’ll make sure I save some of myself for you, even if I have to run a marathon today.”

        He smiled and kissed me back, and then we left my house hand in hand. Marc had sent a text to whoever Keith was, and they had made an agreement to meet at Marc’s house, so we walked the short distance through the neighborhood. Several of our neighbors were outside, and though we did get some looks for holding hands, it didn’t bother me at all.

        There was something bothering me though. I thought back on the interaction with my father that morning, and the tears that Marc had shed when the three of us had embraced. Marc had mentioned several times that things were not great with his own family, and I couldn’t help but wonder if his tears were out of happiness at my father’s welcome, or disappointment that he would never receive the same welcome from his own kin.

        Marc seemed to notice that something was up, and he said, “What’s the matter Damien? You seem troubled by something.”

        “You’ve spoken about how you and your father don’t get along. I was wondering if he’s going to have a problem with our relationship when I finally get introduced to him,” I replied honestly.

        “You mean about me being gay, or about me dating a human? Homosexuality is actually very common among my people, and has never been an issue of cultural conflict. Gay demons do occasionally help propagate the species, but it would be the same principle as going to a sperm bank or acting as a surrogate mother. There is no worry that any children that are born out of this will receive any less love or attention than those born of mated pairs. Children belong to the entire race, and are raised by everyone, even though bloodlines are still recorded and remembered. Yes, King Icarus is my father, but for the most part he left me to be raised by my uncles and other adults in the community. His problems with me have nothing to do with my sexuality.”

        “It is normally the opposite, but in this case I am the traditionalist in the family. My father is not fond of the legends and history of our people, and our common practice of hiding and subterfuge instead of fighting all out with the Angels. The entire time he has been ruling he has been raising an army with the intent of finally fighting back again. We haven’t waged direct war on the angels in over two millennia, though some of us joined forces with groups such as the Druids. Except for those few small points, we have only defended ourselves when attacked, or performed small skirmishes from our hiding holes. While I agree that we should make a stronger offensive, I have always held the belief that we should use our natural talents, rather than focus on trying to be something that we’re not. We are not born to be soldiers that form uniform ranks, we are built for assassination and thievery, and we do that quite well.”

        “Wait a second,” I interrupted, not quite understanding his logic, “If that’s what your father thinks, I believe he may be right. Einstein said something along the lines of trying the same things and expecting different results is the definition of insanity. You can’t win if you try the same strategies.”

        “You may be right, and such has been argued with me before, but what can we do if it is outside of our nature? Besides, that isn’t really the heart of the issue I have with him. His disregard for the history is my main problem. Our history, our legends, they are the things that make us who we are. We won’t be strong unless we also pay respect to the greatest of all teachers, our past. It’s the reason why I was so intent on becoming your guardian like my uncle’s purpose had been. He and I are very like-minded people.”

        “You do have a point there, but I think it would be better if you met in the middle. You need to use your past as a tool to evaluate how you should act in the future. Dwelling on it will not help you any more than blindly trying to change without a logical basis.”

        He was sullen for the next few minutes as we reached his house and walked inside. I was sure he was annoyed with me disagreeing with me, but I also knew that he was thinking it over. I knew there had been a great deal of logic in my position, and I hoped he was smart enough to see it. I was not disappointed, and he turned back toward me with a half hearted smile and said, “You know, you may be right about that. I’m not ever going to give up on the legends though. It’s what has made me who I am, and what led me to you, but I suppose it wouldn’t hurt to reevaluate my father’s position. Maybe that’s what Merlin meant by you bringing an end to the war. Maybe he meant that you’ll finally bring logic to us all.”

        “I don’t know about that. I still don’t see any way that I will do anything to end the war, but I do want to avoid my own death at the hands of the Angels, and help you out. So what about me being a human? Is that something that your father will have an issue with?”

        “Unfortunately, yes. There are a few traditions that my father holds to in their entirety. One of those is that demons and humans should not mate. Of course, the fact that we can’t reproduce in our relationship lessens the consequence of breaking that law considerably. Childbearing unions happened every now and then in our far distant past, but it has only been recorded once in the last four thousand years, and that was a matter of politics. Of course, that one union could work in your favor, because that was the union of Merlin’s parents. His mother was human, but his father was one of our kin.”

         Once again I was shocked, and it took me a moment to digest the new information. “Wait, does that mean that I have demon blood in me? Why didn’t you tell me that in the first place?”

        “Are you really that upset? Your demon blood is so miniscule it is hardly worth mentioning, except for the possibility that it might win points with my father. Of course, it is also fairly likely that you will lose points because of it, but I’ll leave it up to you as to whether or not we bring it up, when or if we end up meeting him.”

        I thought it over and realized he had a point. By his reasoning Merlin was so many generations back in my bloodline that there would hardly be anything left, so I supposed that he couldn’t really be blamed for not mentioning it before. However, the revelation was still somewhat exciting that I had something in common with my boyfriend. “Okay, so is your father going to be home tonight? I think we should get meeting him over with.”

        His eyes widened and he started laughing nervously. I raised a questioning eyebrow and he explained, “I’m sorry, I did forget to mention that I wasn’t entirely truthful about my living arrangements. I had to have a convincing cover story to tell you, so I made up the part about my mother being a lawyer and my father being a writer. They don’t live here. They live in a nice estate in Germany, secluded from the outside world except the demons who come calling. We keep in touch through the internet, just like most long distant family relationships do. In general though, I only speak to my mother or my uncle; sometimes I speak to my siblings but only rarely my father. I also don’t really go to your school, though I suppose I could enroll in order to legitimately spend time there. I have to dodge administration and teachers quite often in order to keep myself from being questioned, but perhaps it would be easier if I simply enrolled.”

        “Wait, so that means that you live in this house all by yourself? How do you afford something like that? You don’t have a job or anything that I am aware of.”

        He gave me an incredulous look and replied, “Did you miss every time that I said my father was a king? How many kings have you heard of that didn’t have resources to throw around. My father has been sitting on demon gold his whole life. His human form is well known in upper business circles as one of the richest investors to have ever played the market. The amount it takes to keep me here is pocket change to him, so even though he doesn’t agree with my views, my meager allowance by itself pays for all my expenses that I incur here, and his fortune is only growing.”

        “I suppose that’s reasonable, plus with twice the age I suppose that demons have a lot more time to invest in planning a future than humans do. Well I’ll be damned; my boyfriend is sexy, rich, and magical. Looks like I’ve won in every respect. Your boyfriend is inexperienced, average, and just so happens to be on everyone’s kill list. I think you’ve got the bum end of the deal.”

        He walked over to me with a look of concern, and then to my surprise he patted my backside and whispered in my ear, “I am perfectly fine having your bum in the deal. I wouldn’t have it any other way. Now would you please stop selling yourself short and prepare for your lesson? You’re not going to become the powerful psychic you want to become if you don’t have confidence.”

        A knock at the door cancelled our tender moment and we both looked toward the sound. I knew that Marc had locked the door so I was about to ask him if he was going to get it when I saw the door seemingly unlock itself and fly open. A moment later a young man, around his early twenties in appearance, stepped through the doorway. He was wearing a dark gray hoodie, and he pushed back the hood to reveal his short-cropped blonde hair. He removed his sunglasses with his right hand and looked over at where I was still standing with Marc, the corner of his mouth slightly turned upward in a half smile. The door closed just as suddenly as it had opened, and he walked slowly toward me. It wasn’t that hard to tell that this was clearly the Keith that Marc had mentioned.

        When he reached me he stuck out his left hand for me to shake, which I found strange but followed suit anyway. He spoke, and his voice carried with it the weight of experience, despite his young appearance, “Hello, son of Merlin. I am Keith Morgan, High Druid of the North American Grove. I understand that I am to be your teacher.”

        “Now, for you first lesson, I’m going to teach you how to avoid projecting your nasty thoughts. I would appreciate it if you weren’t broadcasting your fantasies about Dae’Marca to the whole psychic neighborhood. We don’t all think of him that way.”

        With a blush I released his hand and looked away. This was going to be interesting.

*      *      *      *      *      *

        A big thanks goes to Paul for his wonderful and generous editing. I couldn’t have done this without him.

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