I'm back...
Chapter 11: Capture And Talk
It had been one hell of a night...
So it was when demi-gods were finally allowed to leave camp for the romp and clubhouses of the mortal town nearby. A night of partying had been on their minds all week, and so there would be no moment of delay when they were given permission to leave and entertain themselves here, provided they did not cause trouble that may spill back near the camp.
But who would care? The camp was hidden beyond mortal eyes. What, a huge strawberry farm? What was so strange about that? There would be nothing for any police to find, and if they were caught, then Chiron would always be able to bail them out. Sure, he might rip them a new one for behaving in such a manner, but at the moment, the fun of the air around them was all the young demi-gods were focusing on.
One of them danced in the center of the club, his body swinging to the music. His friends had already gone around picking up members of the opposite gender, and one, a son of Aphrodite, was already partaking in some pleasures such females offered. Another was practically biting off the face of the young female he had managed to snag.
The one in the middle ignored them, focusing only on his own task, and that was to show the crowd around him just what a dance was. His hips seemed to have a practical mind of their own as they swung and bucked, his hands moving in the air in a rhythm along with his hips, and the patrons near him clapped and whistled their support as he moved with such flawless grace. Her knew that if he kept this up, then he would have every female in the joint all over him. After all, what female was able to resist such a tantalizing dance. It did come with being a son of Aphrodite after all.
And the effect worked. Within minutes of his show, many a girl was around him, grinning from ear to ear, and some biting their lip in tension. The hormones raging though them, triggered by this particular dance the boy was doing, was sending them into a practical frenzy. He could feel their anticipation, and that only excited him to intensify the dance.
Finally, he simply ran out of breathe, and stood there panting, surrounded by girls. It was a rather interesting sight indeed, and he couldn't help but grin, liking what he was seeing.
"Need a date?" one of the girls asked him, a half-smile on her face.
He regarded her, her revealing clothes, her dashing green eyes, and her ample bosom. He nodded approvingly.
"Lead the way honey."
"Oh, you don't need her. Take me instead!" another girl suddenly burst out in protest. The girl who had initially asked him rounded on her, fury in her eyes.
"Excuse me? He is taken for already, darling!"
"What he needs is a real woman!"
"Oh, and what do you have that I don't have far more of!"
"Money."
The boy watched the show growing with interest. But he had a better idea. Stepping between the two girls, he reached forward and grasped the hand of both, stroking them tenderly.
"Ladies, Ladies. Please stop your bickering. I will gladly take you both."
The women stopped suddenly, as if the thought had actually struck a chord. Then both grinned like fiends."
"Please do."
The boy could only chuckle and smile. Bless the powers of his mother!
He wrapped an arm around the waist of both women and began to lead them away, both of them giggling like schoolgirls. And that was when his entire world went crashing down. Or so he thought it did.
"Hey, Romeo, we gotta go!"
Yep. He had gone through all the trouble of mastering the dance he had learned, harnessing all his "Aphrodite" powers into it, and finally hooked some action for the night. And now the group leader, who was suppose to be watching them and lead them back to camp safely, was calling him back.
At this point, he was sorely tempted to tell the ladies to wait here for a moment while he went back to his group leader and promptly scratched his eyes out with a fork. But unfortunately, that would be too much trouble. Instead he could only grumble really loud, and slowly look back at his leader, who was motioning him back toward the group that was already reassembling at the entrance.
Slowly he began to make his way over to the group, until he glanced to his left. The sight he saw before him was something not to be forgotten.
A woman, looking maybe eighteen or nineteen years of age, was sitting at a table, a drink near her hand. Her face was utterly perfect, as though carved by an ancient sculpture who had the talent of the gods themselves. Her hair was past her shoulders, black as midnight, and her legs. By the gods her legs were shaped like the legs of his mother herself. No, this girl would make Aphrodite jealous. Very jealous.
And to top it all off, her eyes were firmly locked onto him. and when he turned to look at her, those eyes were firmly locked onto his own. They looked as though they could be superwoman's eyes, as they seemed to shoot lasers into his eyes. She slowly smiled at him, sending a flutter down his back.
And then she slowly got up from her seat, moving as though she were a snake uncoiling, and slowly walked up to him. He could almost feel her, so intoxicating to him was her looks. And then fate's cruel twist struck, and she slowly guided herself past him, gently brushing his side, and walked toward the ladies room. The thunderstruck boy watched her, and saw her open the door and step in, but not before looking back at him, and giving him another smile, her eyes seeming to tell him what to do. And he did as he knew she wanted.
"Hey guys, I'll catch you later. I've got to go to the bathroom!"
"Dammit man, can't you hold it till we get back!"
"Nope, sorry," the son of Aphrodite said with a grin. The group leader shook his head.
"Alright then, we'll wait outside for the taxi. But Gods help you if you are not out there when it arrives!"
The boy cast an eye toward the bathroom door.
"Oh, I'll be quick!"
With that, his group walked outside. Now was his chance.
He made a beeline toward the bathroom, acknowledging nothing else. He had his prey cornered, and now he would move in for the kill. And he would make this a rather delicious moment.
He pushed the bathroom door open and walked in, locking it behind him. Then he turned to face the woman, who instantly filled how whole field of vision. He tried to take a step back in shock, but he soon found that he was right in front of the door, and his retreat was cut off sharply. But all that went away when the woman latched her lips onto his.
It was better than nectar, or ambrosia. Her lips, oh gods be praised, her lips! They tasted as though the Heavens themselves had been placed within those lips. Her mouth thrust his open and her tongue shot forward into his mouth. His hands found her waist and he held her close to him, her own hands doing the same with the back of his head.
To hell with Elysium. He had found his paradise right here in the bathroom. He could do this forever. Or until he got tired of it, which wasn't going to be anytime soon. But of course, he had business to attend to outside.
He cursed his luck and somewhat forced her off him. She gave him a look of hurt.
"Sorry sweetheart, but this boy has to go."
"Oh, please stay. I have something to show you..."
That got his attention. He cocked an eyebrow and grinned.
"And just what would that be?"
"A little ability I have. I call it taking over your mind."
He liked the sound of that...
"And just what does this entail?" he asked. A grin spread across her face.
"Oh, just relax. I'll show you..."
With that, she attacked him again. And the bliss of before was multiplied by ten. He felt himself almost becoming weak with delight and...wait a minute, something didn't feel right about that. Why would he be feeling weak?
He tried to force her back once more, to give himself time to figure out just what she was doing, but she was latched onto him good. And then he felt a new sensation. A sort of slipping away, as though he were losing consciousness, yet were still very much active. He screamed against her lips, but he hardly even heard himself. The girl withdrew her lips and smiled, his vision slowly becoming darker and darker, yet he still stood.
"And I knew you would like it..."
-0-
Outside the club, the group waited for the taxi, which was sure taking it's beloved sweet time. The group leader made a mental note to tip the taxi driver very little. No golden drachma for him!
He impatiently tapped his shoe against the sidewalk, his companions waiting outside doing whatever various little things they tended to do when there was absolutely nothing going on. And speaking of companions, where the bloody hell was his last one? The Aphrodite son? The one who was insisting on snogging every single girl in the club. The guy was like a freaking man-whore! But sometimes...damn, he could get lucky.
The leader grinned at his guilty pleasure thought. But then straightened up as he saw the headlights of a yellow car coming toward them. He straightened his coat and looked around for accountability. Then he swore. That man slut still had not gotten the hell out of there!
"Okay, someone go in there and tell him that if he is not out in the next twenty seconds, I am busting down the bathroom door and dragging him out myself, and I do not care if he is in the middle of wiping his ass or not!"
"Is that a fact? I suppose that is something you would love to see," a familiar voice called from the doorway to the club. Growling in annoyance, the leader turned to find the tardy member of his group at the entryway, already stepping out onto the pavement.
"The sight of my glorious ass, perfectly made, would probably send you into orbit."
"Oh just shut it. What the bloody hell took you so damn long!" he said. The Aphrodite boy raised his hands defensively.
"When one must go, Nature waits for none. Plus I got a little more then I thought I was going to get, if you can read between the lines..." he grinned with that last part.
"Just get in the damn cab..." the leader grumbled.
-0-
Death was all around him. He smelled it through his nose. Tasted it with his lips. He saw it through his eyes, but most of all, he was the one dealing it out.
Monsters all around him shrieked and fell before him, for Jason had become a practical hurricane of death, cutting through everything that lay before his path. Nothing but the gods themselves would be able to stop him now, and even then, with the determination he held within him, if even they could stop him was doubtful.
His sword was not even visible in his hand. His shield was not used for it's defensive purpose, but just another weapon, another extension of his body. He nailed a brute in the face and before it could react to the blow, a sword sliced through below it's chin and through it's brain, rendering it dust.
And Jason found himself enjoying it. Enjoying ripping these beats to shreds. Until he heard it...
From behind him, he saw Orion. His leader. His father figure. The only one he ever had. His sword was on the ground, dropped from a bloody hand. He had fallen to a knee, breathing heavily as he tried to stem the bleeding coursing from his mid-section. As he did so, a large man stood before him, his own sword poised to deliver a death blow.
Jason howled with rage and began to rampage toward the scene, but as he got closer and closer, he encountered more and more opposition. Soon, even the hurricane of death he had been earlier would not be enough to stop the lethal thrust, as it was heading for Orion even as Jason opened his mouth to scream...
With a loud gasp, Jason's eyes flung open and he lifted his head. His heart was pounding so hard and fast in his body that it almost drowned out the sound of the crickets chirping in the night. His eyes, glazed over with sleep, were still open in a mad panic as he scanned his surroundings. When his vision finally cleared of the blotches of darkness that always clouds one's vision when awoken suddenly, he saw the familiar surroundings of the inside of his tent.
With a sigh, he laid back down. He took several deep breathes. A dream. A terrible dream he had just borne, but a dream nonetheless.
He laid there for some time, contemplating what he had witness behind his closed eyes, what visions his mind had fed him as he slept. He had heard of demi-gods having such dreams, and that they sometimes were prophetic in nature. But he was not a demi-god. He had been taken into the Brotherhood a mortal. He may have risen in skill beyond the overwhelming majority of mortals, but that was still what he was. A mortal, flesh and blood, full human.
Still, the dream was enough to warrant a feeling of dread within him. Orion was clearly fighting with someone, and that someone had just beaten him. Who was it that could conquer the man who had truly raised him? Who had taught him everything he knew and held dear, his skills and virtues.
He dreamed of Orion dying. There was no way to mask or lighten it. Orion was going to die before he woke up. Something like that was not something that Jason could take lightly. it was certainly enough to warrant not going back to sleep. The adrenaline rush from bolting awake certainly would not allow anything like that anytime soon.
He sighed and threw back his sleeping bag, slowly sitting up. he put on his shoes and opened the tent flap. There was nobody awake. The sentries would be stationed a ways away, in intervals around the camp. In the very heart of their sanctuary, there would be no one to bother him with questions of his well being. It was the perfect time to think, in Jason's view.
The fire was still burning, not quite as powerful as before, but enough to provide some basic illumination. Some would say that would be dangerous, but no one was worried about the camp burning down. Besides, the fire was needed for light anyway, with these recent attacks, some strange things could happen in the midst of night, right in their camp. Better safe then sorry.
And it provided the perfect atmosphere for Jason to contemplate his dream and simply to think and feel. It was, essentially, a good personal time.
He sat on a log that had been placed next to the fire and stared at the burning wood for a time. Before his vision could water though, he found himself staring at the stars above him. Now those were something that always comforted him, down to his soul. The stars.
The stars never left. The stars never failed. They brightened the night sky every time, whether it be cloudy or clear. And Jason found comfort in that, as he would allow himself to believe, despite obvious reasons, that those who came before him, as well as those whom he felt kinship with, watched over him through those stars.
The faces of those he had lost appeared in his mind's eye. He stared at the stars as if he were staring back at those faces, the faces of those that were forever enshrined within his heart, his being. Gabriel, one of the original sub-lieutenants, who had fallen against the very huntresses that now shared their campsite.
And Mikhail. The son of Ares that just wouldn't go down without a fight. He died to give others freedom. To give a shred of hope to a group of refugees that had been robbed of it all.
And all the rest. Every single brother who had dared to take the oath, the oath of "immortality at the dagger's edge". He remembered their faces, because he refused not to, despite how much pain it would cause him. They had earned that place within him, within the very soul of every brother that now walked this Earth.
They deserved to be truly immortal...
And that was when he had a thought. One that seemed to have been sparked by the recent dream's influence. If Orion was gone from this world, through means to be determined by the fates, would he truly be fit to lead the Brotherhood?
He would have to, at least if the command chain would work. He was the lieutenant, second in command and answerable to Orion alone. Not the gods, not even the fates. To Orion would he take his orders. But if he was gone, and he became the leader of these boys, would he be able to do so, with the wisdom and courage that Orion had demonstrated time and time again?
No...he just could not see it. The confidence he showed daily to his brothers was indeed confidence. Jason was not one to doubt himself very severely. But these boys had showed just as much valor as he, and if Orion were to fall by an outside hand, as he would have to to depart this world, Jason felt that he would not be able, be worthy of leading this group. A group that prion had forged together.
And then he felt a presence beside him. He jerked from his stupor and gasped through his nose, cursing the fact that he had not taken his sword. But relief washed over him as he saw that Orion had sat next to him. He let out a whoosh of air and Orion chuckled.
"Did sleep evade you this night, my boy?"
"I am afraid so Lord Orion."
Jason did not want to tell him of the dream. Not yet. Not when he was still unsure of it. Could the dream simply be a showing of his subconsciousness fears, as dreams have also been able to do?
"I see. I was never one for sleeping very much myself. The night always seemed too beautiful to miss."
"That is is, my lord. That it is."
His voice did not seem as confident as he would have liked. Orion turned to him with concern in his eyes. Damn it!
"Does something trouble you, my son?"
Jason decided that, while he would not tell Orion of the dream right now, he needed to know something. Jason need to hear something from Orion himself, the man who made him what he was now.
"Lord Orion, there is something I must ask."
"Speak freely Jason. You need not hide or hold your tongue. You know that."
"I do Lord Orion..."
Orion turned to face him completely.
"And what is it?"
Jason turned to face Orion, and look him dead in the eye. This was something that needed to be asked to him in such a manner.
"Lord Orion, am I worthy of leading the Brotherhood, should you fall?"
Orion seemed somewhat taken back by the question. He looked at the fire, and then toward the stars, while Jason continued to stare. Finally, he nodded, as if in thought.
"Is this what has you troubled?"
"Yes sir."
Orion nodded.
"Good."
Huh? What had did Orion just say?
"Sir?"
Orion turned back to face Jason. He narrowed his eyes and gave Jason a look that sent shivers down his spine. It was not a look of anger or resentment. It was a look of power. Confident power.
"Jason, everyone doubts themselves. Especially a leader. It is a natural reaction to leadership. You are going to doubt yourself several times in your life."
Jason nodded his understanding. Orion continued.
"So Jason, it is good to go ahead and doubt yourself. Do it now, and get it out of the way here, while it is safe to do so. Once you have, you can go forth leading from the front with no further distraction. Does that help?"
No, actually it did not. For some reason, it only sparked the doubt in Jason further. But he nodded anyway.
"Yes Lord Orion. It does."
"No it didn't. You are lying to me."
Jason was taken back. Had Orion seen right though the mask of confidence that Jason had put up to satisfy him? It would most certainly appear so.
"I...I..."
"I know what it looks like Jason, when one tries to seem confident at new information, yet still lacks the confidence to take it to heart."
Jason swallowed. Orion sat straighter, allowing himself to tower over Jason. Jason felt the sheer power beginning to emanate from Orion, and Orion looked at him with the same powerful expression.
"Jason, I know you. I have seen you grow from a wounded puppy, abused by an unloving family, into a warrior willing to charge at the very Fates themselves to help a comrade. I have taught you everything I know, and do not think that I myself have not picked up things from you.
"You have?" Jason asked. He honestly had not thought of this. Orion gave a slight grin and nodded.
"Oh yes Jason. The teacher sometimes learns just as much from the student as the student learns from the teacher. One does not usually think of it so, but learning is a two lane road."
Jason nodded. Orion gave a deep breathe and smiled.
"Jason, I want to you to know that even I have these occasional bouts of doubt. I may be good at hiding them after all the years, but they will come and they will strike hard. But do you know what stops them?"
Jason shook his head. Orion seemed to emanate even more power, if at all possible.
"You do, Jason. You and the rest of your brothers. When I find myself wondering if I have made the right decision, or if I myself am even worthy of you all, I see the confidence that all have, in each other and me. And that gives me the confidence that I need to press on when the odds are not entirely in my favor."
Jason allowed himself to take it all in.
"And do you know the most important lesson I have learned from you all?"
"No, Lord."
"That even when I feel I am beaten. When I feel that is is hopeless to continue fighting, and should simply surrender to my fate, I see you all fighting with everything you have. And that is what gives me the strength to do so myself."
Jason did not even nod to acknowledge. Tonight was definitely a night of soul-bearing.
Orion reached forward and placed his hand on Jason's shoulder. It was not a grip of power. It was not the grip of a master. it was the grip of a father. The only father that Jason had ever known, or wanted.
"Jason, I would not have chosen you, if I did not think you could not lead the Brotherhood. I have anticipated my death for years. Everyone with half a brain does. Why do you think I have taught you all this, every little bit of knowledge that I can? It is because of, if I do indeed depart this world once more, then the brothers I have brought together, and forged in blood, shall have someone that I know, without a doubt, can lead them to a bright tomorrow."
That was that Jason needed to hear. He could feel the jaws of the doubt begging to crack at the power of Orion's words of confidence.
Orion patted his shoulder and stood up from the log. He looked down at Jason's face, and nodded when he saw the same eyes from so long ago, staring at him in awe.
"You make me proud, my son."
So...did you miss me? I certainly missed you all. And I hope you enjoyed this little revival chapter. I promise that I will begin typing the next as soon as possible. It has been far too long. I have grown up far too much. Basic Training and Tech School took a lot out of me. But I keep my promises. This story is coming back. Come Hell or high water...
I didn't die...I was just reloading.
