April 20, 1943
Douxie screamed when the ground exploded with smoke and fire. He was knocked to the ground in the aftershock, curled into a ball as he waited for the world to stop rattling. His ears were ringing, his breathing shaky. He felt something deep inside him burn terribly-painfully hot-and then tear away, leaving a raw, empty cavity in his chest.
He lifted his head when the scorching heat became just a tiny bit more bearable and the ground stopped shaking. All around him was death and destruction and chaos. Faintly he could hear people screaming. In his peripheral he saw soldiers trying to drag their comrades to safety.
"Carter?" He croaked out, face streaked with dirt as he shakily pushed himself to his feet. Douxie stumbled through the smoke and fire, looking around for his partner. "Carter!" He called out again, picking up speed. "Carter, where are you!?"
Carter woke with a gasp. He blinked, once. Twice. He tried to re-orient himself, sitting up on the old couch. He looked down, hand rubbing against the familiar fabric. This was…- with a start, Carter looked up, swiveling his head to look around the room. This was his mom's apartment. The one he grew up in… the one he'd watched her die in.
"What…?" He whispered, clambering to his feet. "The f-"
"So do you just go looking for danger or does it find you?"
Carter jumped at the voice, hand reaching for his gun. He was a bit surprised he didn't have it. He looked up at the person who spoke, eyes narrowing. "Who the hell are you?"
The man studied him for a moment before a smile pulled at the corners of his mouth. "You look just like your mother."
Carter frowned. He studied the man too, taking in all his features. He was tall, taller than Carter by a foot or two at least. He had long black hair which he'd tied into a loose ponytail at the back of his head. It didn't help the few strands that fell out around his face. And his face… the dude was handsome in a biker gang sort of way. His features were sharp and angular, hooked nose sporting a nasty scar that ran from the bridge of his nose to the edge of his jaw. A neat beard and mustache covered smaller knicks and scars. And above his left eyebrow down his cheek were three scars, like a wild animal had clawed at his face. The scarred eye was blood red.
"Who are you?" Carter asked again, taking a step back when the man stepped forward.
He smiled warmly and kindly, looking at Carter as if he were the most precious thing in the world. Carter recognized that look. His mother used to look at him that way.
"Carter…" Affection flooded his voice, making Carter back away again. He didn't know this man. "My boy…" He spread his arms, like he was going to hug him. "I've waited twenty years to see you."
Carter stopped and stared at him. Before, he hadn't recognized this man. But now… he could see it. The way he smiled, the mischievous glint in his eye… this was… "Dad?" He asked carefully.
His father smiled wider and approached him, clearly happy when Carter didn't back away again. "My son," he cupped Carter's face gently, rubbing his cheeks with his thumbs. "I've waited so long to see you in person." He studied his face, smile growing fonder, and maybe a bit prouder. "Look at you. You've grown into such a strong young man."
Carter wasn't sure if he should cry, shout, or hug him. So he just stood there staring at him like an idiot. "I… you…-" He closed his eyes and drew in a shaking breath, looking at him once more. "Why did you leave us?"
His father's smile fell and he sighed. "I didn't want to, Carter. Please believe me when I say that. I would have wanted nothing more than to watch you grow up, but… I couldn't stay. It would have put you and your mother in too much danger." He gently brushed his hair away. "I did what was best for you."
Carter let out a shaking breath, trying to hold his tears back. "You, uh… she-" he choked on a sob. "She's dead." He met his father's eyes, tears brimming. "She died."
He brushed his tears away with a thumb. "Shh… it's okay. I know." He smiled gently. "She's in a better place. And… Carter, she can't wait to see you again."
Carter blinked at him. "What are you talking about?"
His father grimaced, hands sliding to his shoulders. "Son, you're dead." He pursed his lips at Carter's horror-struck face. "You died not more than three minutes ago in the mortal world. I think by now that wizard of yours has found your body."
Carter suddenly felt dizzy. "Douxie… oh gods…"
"You were killed in the explosion," he continued. "But," he looked at him, eyes sparkling with a hint of pride. "You single-handedly slaughtered nearly half of your foes today. I couldn't be prouder."
Carter swallowed his rising vomit. "I'm dead?" He asked weakly.
"Well," his father tilted his head to the side. "Yes. Technically. But your soul has yet to move on." He cleared his throat. "That's why I brought you here."
Carter stared at him. "What?"
"To offer you a choice," He said. "I can reunite you with your mother. You two can spend eternity in paradise. No more sickness. No more pain. Or," he gave him a serious look. "I can send you back, grant you immortality. You can spend forever with your wizard, protecting the world with him. You can join him in his duty to keep the world safe. You two can be together for much longer than you thought."
"I can?" He asked. "I mean- you can do that?"
He smiled. "I'm a god, Carter. Yes I can do that." He held his face gently again. "For you I can do that."
Carter looked away from him, weighing the two options in his mind. On one hand, his mother… the one person he'd give up anything to have just one more minute with. Well… maybe not anything.
He closed his eyes and took in a breath. His decision was made. He looked at his father. "I want to go back," he said. "I want… I want to go back to Douxie."
Clearly unsurprised by the answer, his father smiled and nodded. He leaned forward and pressed his forehead against Carter's. "Good luck then, my brave, beloved son." He stepped back, spreading his arms with flourish. "I, Vameus of the Arcanum Pantheon, God of Battle and Strategy, hereby grant you, Carter Howard a second chance at life. Live it well."
With a whoosh of light, Carter's world faded around him and he fell.
As the smoke cleared away, Douxie saw him. He was lying unmoving on the scorched earth, the entire left side of his body burned nearly beyond recognition. A scream caught in his throat as he ran towards Carter. He fell to his knees next to him, bringing him into his arms despite the gut-wrenching horrific state he was in.
"Carter-" he sobbed, clamping a hand over his mouth as he took in the damage. The left side of Carter's face was burned badly, the marks the flames had left stretching down his body. His shirt and pant leg was peppered with burn holes, blood seeping through the fabric. His left hand up to his wrist had been either burned or blown off, and his left leg up to his mid-thigh was gone too. "Oh gods…" he choked on his words, tears streaming down his cheeks, but he was so numb with shock and horror that he couldn't feel them. "Please… please no."
Douxie ran his thumb gently over his unburnt cheek, desperation and grief clawing at his chest. He was gone. Carter was gone. "No!" Douxie screamed, holding Carter's body close to him as he sobbed and wailed. "No! Please don't take him away from me! Please don't take him away!"
There was no answer to his cries of grief. There was only the crushing, horrific realization that Carter was dead and Douxie couldn't save him in time. He screamed at the merciless universe for taking his Sunshine away from him so soon.
He'd felt it, he realized, as his screaming descended into hysterical sobbing. He'd felt the exact moment Carter had died. That was what the sudden hollow emptiness in his chest had been. He'd felt it because… because Carter is his soulmate.
Was his soulmate.
That realization alone made Douxie cry harder.
He'd lost his love before he'd even known what he had. What they were.
Hours seemed to pass before Douxie's sobbing ceased into hiccuping tears. He held Carter close to him, whispering senseless apologies into the crook of his neck as he rocked back forth.
"I love you." Douxie sobbed, voice hoarse from crying so much. He took in a shaking, uneven breath, pressing his lips to Carter's forehead gently. "You are my Sunshine… my only Sunshine…" his voice cracked with tears as he sang, hugging Carter's limp body just a little tighter. "You make me happy, when skies are gray. You'll never know dear… how much I love you. Please don't ta-ake… my Sunshine away…"
Douxie didn't know how long he sat there. It felt like hours. Even so, he made no effort to move. He felt a dull pain in his chest like someone had stabbed him a million times. It was dwarfed by the waves of grief that washed over him every second like a tsunami.
He wished a thousand times over that someone from the other side would see him and end his misery. What he'd give to follow his love to the afterlife. How he wished someone would let him do that.
He was startled out of his thoughts by the body in his arms shifting. Douxie sat straight up, staring at Carter with wide, tear stained eyes. His heart hammered in his chest as he watched the injuries that marred Carter's body heal as if they'd never even been there. Even his missing limbs were growing back.
He laid a gentle hand on his chest, feeling the soft fluttering of a heartbeat beneath his fingertips. "Carter?" He whispered, almost not daring to hope-
A breath. A single breath. Then he shifted again against Douxie and his eyes opened. He blinked a few times, seemingly confused, until his gaze locked onto Douxie's. He smiled. "Hey there, Blue."
Douxie couldn't breathe. "Carter?" He felt something burrow its way back into his chest, nestling comfortably against his soul again. A breathless laugh escaped his lips. "You… you're alive." He buried his fingers into Carter's hair, pulling him close again. "Gods… love… I- you were dead." The words caught up with him and he nearly started crying again. "Carter."
Carter's hand gently came up, wiping dirt and blood off his cheek. "Doux… I-"
Douxie cut him off with a kiss, pressing his lips deep and hard against Carter's, hands winding around his body to pull him closer than he already was. By the gods he'd nearly lost him today. He had for a few minutes. And by some miracle Carter was alive again. Douxie was determined to keep him that way.
Carter's hand moved to the back of his neck, fingers tangling into the hairs at his nape. Douxie didn't want to let him go. He didn't want to risk losing him again. But eventually, the need to breathe became too great and he broke the kiss.
He pressed his forehead against Carter's, their breaths mixing together with how close they were. "Never do that again." He whispered, sniffling and wiping his remaining tears away as he let there be a bit of distance between them. He helped Carter sit up, keeping a hand on the back of his neck. "Do you hear me, Carter Howard?" He waited for Carter to look at him. "Never pull a goddamn stunt like that again."
Carter cracked a smile. "I'll do my best."
Douxie ran his thumb over his cheekbone gently, eyes running over his face. There were only a few scars left over from the explosion. It looked like they were there to stay. He leaned forward and pressed his lips to a scar over his brow. "You're giving me gray hair."
Carter smiled to himself, closing his eyes as Douxie's lips lingered. "Funny."
"I'm serious." Douxie muttered, pressing a kiss to his cheek. "You scared me… more than that, love. Seeing you… dead. Feeling you die? That was devastating."
Carter's smile fell away, and a guilty look flooded his eyes. "I'm sorry."
Douxie pursed his lips. "I love you, Sunshine. Too much to go through that again. I can't lose you again. I refuse to lose you again."
