Instert standard disclaimer here. Everyone should know that I don't own these characters. Also chopped the story up into chapters. Sorry if the transitions are rough. If you want to read it without chapters, head over to vejiitasei.com.

Absolution- Part 1, Chapter 3
by the Prime Minister

Xellos looked at her as he tucked her in, her head lolling about in her unconsciousness. She had cried all day, the ferocity of her sobs shaking the entire bed. Concern fluttered at the edges of his awareness, but he didn't know what to do for her. He could remember what despair felt like, and hopelessness. Such feelings had plagued him for quite some time after he had been turned into a human. Lina, however, had helped him through it. Of course, she hadn't really done it very well, nor had she been particularly kind to him. No, she had abandoned him, but then returned. Her remedy to his sadness had been distraction. He had the feeling, though, that it would not be as easy to distract her. She truly loved the swordsman, and there was precious little he could do about that.

He walked over to the edge of the room, bending and picking up the ring she had discarded. Frowning, he dropped it into a pocket and looked back at Lina's sleeping form. She had rejected his gift, the gift she had kept for so long. It had been awful, experiencing her pain, especially when he normally could feel nothing at all. Any sweetness he might have derived from her misery was completely obliterated when he became aware of her grief. The emotion was simply too much for him. He went out and stood on his balcony, watching the moonlight flutter across the ocean waves. There had to be a way he could speed along the healing of her heart, but he really had no idea what that might be. Looking around, he wondered if his accommodations might not be too dark for her. She needed sunlight and ocean breezes, not his stately furniture and subdued decor. Perhaps a bungalow just off of the island's beach would be just right for her. It certainly wouldn't hurt to try. He would ask his mistress. It was time for him to retrieve his daughter, anyway. No matter how Xellas proclaimed her positive intent toward the child, she still had no inkling of what it was like to be human, and he felt human knowledge was necessary to truly care for his child. Resolve hardened, he transported himself to Xellas' throne room.

Beastmaster looked up at him as he appeared before her and knelt, Lecia cradled easily in one arm as she suckled a bottle. the Monster Lord purred.

I know she is in good hands, Xellos said, belying his distrust.

The best of hands, Xellas murmured, tickling the baby with her fingers. Sighing, she tore her attention away from the baby and eyed him carefully, her gaze making his skin tighten with apprehension. She is entirely too happy, however. Her sweetness has actually made some of the underlings ill.

It isn't my fault they can't feed off of her, Xellos said, a tad too sharply.

Xellas raised an eyebrow.

Xellos could not keep a scowl from his face. Lecia is a human, mistress, and therefore is subject to special treatment. My daughter cannot be raised as anything other than human if she is to survive.

And if you had not once been human, you would not care if she survived at all, Beastmaster commented, running a long, tan finger along the baby's chubby jaw. Then again, most of our brothers and sisters cannot savor the more subtle of human emotions. Most of them would simply try to terrify her and gain power from that. They don't understand that anxiety is just as fulfilling and much, much more satisfying. Uncertainty, despair, guilt. . . All of these emotions are just as lovely as blatant fear, pain, or hatred. Your woman, for example, is giving off splendid amounts of negative emotions. Then again, she always has, hasn't she? Isn't that partially why you followed her, even when my instructions didn't expressly indicate you to do so?

She's not my woman, Xellos said, trying to keep the bite from the tone of his voice.

My poor pup, if you were just a tad more human than you are right now, I'd even be able to feed off of you. Such behavior isn't appropriate for a Monster, you know.

Xellos rose to standing and marched over to the throne's pedestal, holding out his arms. Give her here, he grated.

Very unbecoming tones, his mistress replied coldly, her grip on the child tightening. You should take care in how you speak to your superiors.

Xellos mastered himself with visible effort. Forgive me. It has been a difficult day.

What else can you expect from a wretched mortal? she replied. I pity you your tainted soul, pup. I deeply wish you weren't so damaged from your time as a human.

That makes two of us, Xellos murmured. What's done is done, I'm afraid.

Xellas sighed and gently handed his child back to him. You are correct. It is too late. I have done what I could, and I am afraid there's nothing to do but go on. It is a shame, though, that you fathered this child, that I turned you human. You were the perfect Monster. You had everything.

Xellos shook his head. Everything for a Monster was far different than everything for a human. He had everything as both a pure Monster and a pure human; now, as a bastard mixture of both, he had precious little that mattered. Thank you for caring for my daughter, he said reverently, pressing his daughter to his chest. The little girl squealed and put her tiny hands against his face, her unbelievably soft skin pressed against his cheeks. It amazed him how big she had grown already. Since he and every other Monster ever created had been brought into being fully-formed, he had never really been present for a life cycle before, and he found it fascinating. He wondered what his daughter would look like in another twenty years.

It is partially my fault that my best minion was spoiled, she muttered. If I am to ever fix you I must play the mortal game for a while.

he said with a low bow, and teleported back to Lina.

When he returned, Lina was lying on her side, looking out the window with blank eyes. She did not respond when he greeted her, not even when he knelt at the bedside. Lecia squirmed in his arms when he brought the two females near, a soft, uncomfortable cry coming from her tiny lungs. Lina shut her eyes at the sound, tears forming at the corners of her eyes and falling onto the sheets. Hush, hush, Xellos said, gently rocking the baby as he sat down on the floor with a sigh. The curtains to the balcony fluttered in a nighttime ocean breeze, filling the room with the smell of the sea and sand. Lecia began to cry in earnest, the halting wails shaking her tiny body. Don't cry, little one, Xellos cooed, wrapping some of his cloak around the baby. Your mother is crying for both of you.

Lecia began to scream and Xellos quickly went to the balcony, shutting the glass doors that lead to outside. He shifted the baby in his arms, casting a glance at Lina, who had curled in upon herself and burrowed under the covers. From the way the blankets were shaking he could only assume that she had started to cry again. A touch of wetness encountered a patch of bare skin on his wrist, and he realized why his daughter had been crying. Clearing a space on one of the many impeccably-kept tables, he laid out a cloth and put Lecia on it, quickly changing her diaper and replacing her clothes. Lecia was noisy for a little while longer, then settled on playing with the hem of his cloak. Xellos chuckled and cooed at her, igniting the fire in the hearth with a glance. He seated himself in a chair by the fireplace and placed the little girl in his lap, watching with a smile as she sat up by herself. Such a clever girl, just like your mother, he cooed, casting a glance toward the bed. He couldn't make out her features, but a shining in the shadows of her face let him know that Lina was watching him. Well, let her think whatever she would. If she needed time, that was what he would give her. He seemed to have no shortage of it.

He played noise games with the baby for a while longer, delighting as the girl tried to copy the sounds he was making. A laugh escaped him as she moved her mouth helplessly, a tiny scowl on her brow as his words escaped her. After a while Lecia slumped against him, and by her slow, steady breathing he knew she was asleep. He cradled her for quite some time, just watching the rise and fall of her chest, not able to comprehend how something so awe-inspiring could have come from two mortals. It seemed incredible that the little creature he held was somehow a part of him and proof of his union with Lina. His gaze flickered to the bed and he saw that Lina was on her side, her face turned in his direction. She seemed deflated and he wondered if her wounds were so deep that she had ceased to feel altogether. Do you want to hold her? Xellos asked softly, looking from mother to child.

Lina whispered sharply, and rolled over.

He walked down the corridor, holding Lecia upright so she could observe their path. In the past couple of days she had become fussy if he didn't let her see what was going on in the world around them, and he had finally given in. He smiled and responded to her little noises, nodding on occasion as if he understood her. Perhaps things would change once they were moved into the bungalow. Lina would be away from the darkness of the mountain, and the further they were from Xellas the better he could pretend that his duties lay with his family alone. He was grateful his Mistress had seen fit to grant his request, and he anticipated that only a few more days would pass before it was completed. As he strolled down the smooth stone corridor he became aware of shadows passing by him. It struck him as odd, then he realized that the shadows were underlings trying to avoid his notice. Straining, he tried to hear their whispers.

He bred with a human, some said.

Look at the beastly thing he carries.

Humans are better dead than alive.

Should we kill the child or the mother?

They're humans. Kill them both.

Xellos felt pure rage boil up inside of him at the last comments he heard. Anger was not an uncommon Monster emotion, but he had never felt such wrath flow through him in all his long years of existence. He stopped in the middle of the passageway and heard the slithering shadows around him cease movement as well. Did you think I couldn't hear you? he said softly, opening his eyes and looking around, the light reflecting off of his hard, amethyst eyes.

a few pleaded, trying to slither away.

Xellos flung a hand aside, unleashing a barrage of black cones and pinning shadows to the stone. Lecia giggled and clapped as rock fragments flew about, the sound accompanied by the shrieking of underlings. Not only can I hear that you're there, I can hear what you're saying, he continued, walking over to where the nearest shadow was pinned. He reached down and forced the underling to solidify in his grip, the thing screaming as it returned to full physical existence from the astral plane. He smiled and ripped the underling away, taking its head in his hand as he stood. He looked around at the other underlings, who had all gone perfectly still in their attempts to escape his notice, and then slowly crushed the underling's head with a single hand. The beast screamed and writhed as Xellos squeezed the life from it, a cold smile on his face the entire time. It finally cried its last and he flung it to the side, staring down at the other underlings gathered there.

Lecia squealed and pointed at a few of the trembling shadows, but still the underlings did not dare move. You will never threaten my family again, Xellos said softly, his mild expression grossly different from the frozen tones of his voice. He tightened his grip on Lecia and let loose a curtain of black energy, cutting the underlings in half almost immediately. The hall was soon filled with the death cries of Monsters, and Xellos laughed above the racket. Lecia began to giggle and scream as well, and then the deed was finished, leaving only charred marks on the rock where underlings had once been.

Pretty fireworks, weren't they? he said brightly to his daughter. I'll wager that our house will be completed much more quickly now.

Lecia just burbled in reply and blew a spit bubble, her father's icy laughter accompanying them as they wandered down the hall.