by Lisa Oliver
The problems stemmed from the Great War. Many of the deities were out of favor with humans by then. They got bored, started fighting among themselves. Countless innocents got caught in the crossfire and many of the mythical monsters of old were destroyed.
It was a useless, senseless waste of life, and Silvanus had been proud to represent the Mother at the council that finally determined all gods were forbidden to interfere in human affairs. They could tend their domain – Hades still looked after the spirits in the Underworld, and Poseidon still watched out for men at sea, Helios still rode the chariot that pulled the sun each day, but direct interference in crops, accidents, weather patterns and the countless other problems humans seemed to blame on the gods was stopped. Mother Nature was the only being entitled to redress any imbalances she saw on the planet.
And then Crane came along with his half-baked ideas, with no respect, knowledge, or caring about what the gods had gone through. Immortality could be a curse; Silvanus knew that from his own experiences. He wasn’t the first god to petition the Fates for the right to cease to exist. But without the gods providing the frame for the tapestry which all humans were woven into, there would be no life as Crane and others like him knew it.
“Stupid ingrate.” Silvanus punched at the shower tiles, his anger seething hot. Wave a trident indeed. The solution to man’s problems could be found in the humans themselves. The gods believed it, the Fates were counting on it, bringing into life those humans who would finally make a positive difference. People like Crane wanted an easy answer – they were the same people who blamed the gods for their misfortunes without ever wondering if they were simply suffering the consequences of their own choices.
Just as quickly, Silvanus’s anger passed. His knuckles throbbing, he sank to his knees, the shower water washing away his tears. “Fucking hell, why do any of us bother?” It was so hard, soul achingly hard to just let life proceed the way it did. Every time a tree was felled, Silvanus felt a tear in his soul. New tree plantings helped to heal those tears, but there were far more cuts than new life. As for the land… Silvanus knew it would be a long time before his beloved pastures would be able to breathe and grow the way they were meant to again.
“Silvanus?” Silvanus jerked up his head, quickly wiping any remaining tears away. But Artemas had already seen, and totally disregarding his suit, plunged into the running shower with him, crouching down, pulling Silvanus’s head to his chest. “By the Fates, what’s wrong? Please tell me it was nothing I said or did to cause you to weep this way.”
“It wasn’t you.” Silvanus’s throat was choked up. “I’m sorry I upset you to the point you wanted to leave, but I met Crane, after… you know, after.” Reaching up, he took a chance it would work, brushing Artemas’s temples with his thumbs, projecting the whole scene at the park. The way Artemas stiffened, and then the air charged with electricity around them, let him know Artemas could see it all.
“That sanctimonious bastard.” When Silvanus was finished, Artemas sank down onto the tiles beside him. Reaching up, Silvanus turned off the water although his mate’s suit was already ruined. “Does that shit have any idea the pain Poseidon goes through every time there’s another oil spill leaking into the ocean, killing his creatures? Does he give a shit that Hades is so overworked and stressed over the levels of pure hatred that infect his domain every day? Has Crane ever given a thought for Thanatos whose heart breaks every time he collects a young soul so black it has no chance of redemption? And that’s just the gods I know about. You, you and your love of the trees and the land. Do people like Crane have any idea how much they hurt you?”
“It’s why we are being given mates,” Silvanus said, pleased he and his mate were on the same page about Crane at least. “To help us shoulder those burdens, to give us someone to hold close when the pain gets too much to bear. The gods have seen how things will come to pass, the Fates believe mankind will turn themselves around. But there is no easy path. It was never going to be easy and I fear it will get worse before it gets better.”
“People like Crane don’t make it any better,” Artemas said bitterly. And then his faced cleared. “Do you think there’s a god behind all this? Not the destruction of earth of course, but this business with Crane?”
“It’s possible, I suppose, but who?” Since his self-imposed exile, Silvanus hadn’t kept up much with what was going on with other gods.
“Think about it. Those gods who thrive on chaos. Loki comes to mind, Odin too. They wouldn’t be the only ones though. Wait a minute, wait a minute. Poseidon told me one of the gods was interfering with one of Claude’s brothers, trying to stir shit up when they first met. Claude’s the son of Fenrir.” Artemas tapped his forehead as he thought. “Nope… nope, that was Odin too, apparently. Damn it, but there must be others.”
“Is it so hard to think Odin or Loki would be behind this?” Silvanus knew both gods, and didn’t think they were bad as such, they just got bored easily and liked to stir shit up.
“I was kinda hoping it was someone else,” Artemas said, looking almost shy. “Thor and I have become sort of friends since he mated with Orin, and he’s Lasse’s best friend, and Loki’s brother. Odin, being Thor’s father… well, you can see I was hoping it was a god from another pantheon completely.”
“It could well be.” Lord knows there were hundreds of gods and demigods. “Or it could have nothing to do with the gods at all. Maybe it’s a demon causing all this.”
“Teilo suggested the same thing, or maybe it was Raff. I’m not sure, but any way, they did mention that possibility. Silvanus, I’m sorry for leaving you the way I did. I shouldn’t have let my jealousy get the better of me.”
“This is going to sound ridiculously smug,” Silvanus reached for Artemas’s hands, “but I’m quietly pleased that you care enough for me to be jealous over, although I am deeply sorry that I was insensitive enough to suggest you actually meet someone I’ve been close to before. That was uncalled for, and I’ll….”
“Continue being you. A calm, generous, kindly ancient god, although,” Artemas looked up at the tiles Silvanus smashed, “thankfully also prone to anger and despair. I was beginning to worry that you would never be emotionally impacted by anything. That sort of perfection is hard to live up to, or live with.”
“I’m impacted by you,” Silvanus let his voice deepen. “I clearly don’t do a very good job of showing it, but I’m impacted by you every minute we’re together, and none of the thoughts I have about you could be considered calm. You stir my emotions like none other, ever, and that I promise you.”
“You have the same impact on me.” Artemas leaned closer and Silvanus met him halfway. Peace from Artemas’s gentle kiss flushed out his aggravation, swiftly followed by the heat of lust. With a single thought, Silvanus translocated them both, naked, dry and on the bed. Oh, my mate, you are absolutely everything to me, he thought as he let Artemas take over their lip lock.
Chapter Twenty Four
Whenever you’re near, all my aches disappear. Artemas loved on his mate, desperate for his actions to show what he couldn’t find the words for. Seeing Silvanus in tears, in tears, resurrected the caring genes Artemas had packed away when his brothers had grown. But now wasn’t the time for thinking about brothers, or fathers, or even that asshole Crane. Now, his mate needed him to love him, and while Artemas wasn’t sure the words would mean anything if he could say them, he could show his mate how much he was adored.
Silvanus’s chest was a thing of beauty. Smooth like silk, tanned and adorned with two flat, darker pebbles that tempted Artemas’s tongue. Silvanus hadn’t been worshipped much, back in the days when those things happened, but Artemas could worship him now, and he did.
Long lathes of his tongue covered every inch of Silvanus’s skin. Sweet nibbles, nothing too painful, dragged rumbling moans from Silvanus’s throat. Artemas’s fingers sketched sigils, signs, and ancient words from a language long forgotten, over muscles that trembled under his
touch. A strong suck over Silvanus’s left nipple had the man throwing his head back on the pillows, arching his neck, his veins thrown into relief, as though begging for Artemas’s mouth.
He had to oblige. Crawling over Silvanus’s body, Artemas sucked hard enough to bring up a bruise, moved slightly and then did it again. Silvanus’s fingers were leaving bruises of their own on his hips, and Artemas thrust and rubbed his throbbing cock against his mate’s torso.
“I need you in me,” Silvanus rasped, as his legs widened. “Please. I need to feel you, I need to know….”
“Are you…?”
“Already done. Artie please. I need something to anchor me to the here and now.” Silvanus spread his legs wider and Artemas wasn’t going to refuse. He’d barely topped since their first time with anal, preferring to writhe under Silvanus’s touch. But there was a desperation coursing through Silvanus’s muscles. Artemas could feel his need crackling the air around them.
Silvanus arched his back for him when Artemas grabbed a pillow. As soon as it was under his butt, his mate pulled his knees to either side of his chest, exposing himself beautifully. “Damn, Silva.” Artemas swallowed hard. To see someone so big, so strong and so powerful, offer himself up with so much trust. “I do not deserve you.”
Fortunately, his cock didn’t give a damn about worth, being deserving, or anything else at that point. There was a hole winking in his direction, and he wanted in. Taking the time to check that Silvanus was indeed stretched and slick, Artemas slathered his own cock with conjured lube, lined up, and gave a gentle thrust, planning to follow through with his ideas of a gentle loving on his mate.
Silvanus had other ideas. Heels pushed on his back, forcing Artemas to fall forward, his cock fully encased in incredible tightness, his chest aligned with his mate’s. “You look incredible like this.” Artemas reached up, brushing Silvanus’s hair from his sweaty face. Eyes darkened with lust, lips twisted as Silvanus’s body adjusted to the invasion. A new feeling blossomed in Artemas’s heart – one he couldn’t name, or think about because Silvanus wasn’t finished with him yet.
“Move mate. Pound me into the mattress, fill me with your seed. I want to feel you for days.”
A primal need, unlike anything he’d felt before, filled Artemas to the core. Pushing himself up so his hands rested on either side of Silvanus’s head, he pulled his hips back and slammed them forward again. A harsh cry, like a bird in the desert sky filled the room, as Artemas did it over, and over, and over again.
Nothing mattered in that moment – not his fathers, his brothers, the book or Crane. All Artemas could think of and feel was Silvanus’s pleasure. Usually so quiet during sex, Silvanus moaned, groaned, thrashed about, and roared to the ceiling, teasing Artemas’s instincts, causing him to set up a punishing volley of thrusts.
But he couldn’t last like that. His cock was a simple thing with simple desires. Clutch it, stroke it, and it hardened and shot. Artemas wanted Silvanus to come with him, he needed it more than his next panted breath. Calling on his magic, Artemas wove it around Silvanus’s bobbing length, teasing him, touching him, coaxing his mate’s orgasm out.
With a fierce roar that shook the light fittings, Silvanus’s whole body tensed as he climaxed. The clench of his ass muscles around Artemas’s cock was all he needed, and he bit back a sob of relief as his balls emptied deep inside his mate. The tree of life shimmered and shuffled across his back, and there was a part of Artemas’s brain that meant to ask Silvanus about that. But for now, all he could do was slump on his mate’s sweaty chest, too exhausted to move any further. Silvanus’s arms came around him, stroking his back and Artemas closed his eyes. Silvanus could take care of the cleaning side of things. He needed a nap.
/~/~/~/~/
Oh, my mate, my beautiful strong beloved mate. Silvanus’s heart sang as endorphins flew around his body. He felt a wave of magic flowing between his fingers and the markings on Artemas’s back. Tracing softly so as not to awake his now sleeping mate, Silvanus found the new shoots, the tentative branches reaching out as they slowly spread, across Artemas’s back, around his sides, and even up his neck. Silvanus smiled as he used his own powers to gently encourage and bless the new growth. I knew there was a reason why the Mother blessed Artemas with the tree. Finally, a sign the earth is moving in the right direction.
Silvanus knew he’d have to explain to his mate what was happening. The tree of life was a living organism in its own right with immense power. But in the past hundred years, it hadn’t grown at all, remaining dormant, even dying off in a few places. The Mother was tired, like all beings there was a limit to what she could do and how she could affect change. But now… now there was hope, hope for him and Artemas as a couple, and hope for the world in general.
Cleaning the pair of them with a well-placed thought, Silvanus removed the pillow from under his ass, and stretched his legs, Artemas still cradled in his arms. The silence broken only by their breathing, and a quiet hum from the tree, Silvanus let himself fall into a deep sleep.
Chapter Twenty Five
“Oh, my goodness, I can’t believe we’re in London.” A loud happy squeal pulled Silvanus from his deep sleep. Raising his head, he looked around. Artemas was gone. The bedroom was empty and fortunately Artemas had thought to close the door. Our visitors must have arrived, he thought, stumbling out of bed and into the adjoining bathroom. A quick pee, a splash of water on his face, and Silvanus was dressed in a suit similar to the one he’d worn the day before.
Opening the door, the first person Silvanus looked for was Artemas. The French doors to the patio deck had been flung wide, letting in a cold draft. Through them, Silvanus could see Nereus showing his mate Raff the landmarks they could see from the balcony. The young man’s excitement was tangible, and Silvanus smiled at his enthusiasm.
“I thought you might need this.” Artemas was there, by his side, his suit immaculately pressed, his glasses firmly in place. In his hand, a large mug of chamomile tea.
“You are an angel.” Silvanus grabbed the hand holding the cup. “Have you been up long?” The cup of tea smelled divine, but Silvanus gave all his attention to his mate.
“Not long.” Artemas’s smile was shy. “I had a good sleep, but the last thing I wanted was these three seeing us in bed.”
“Three?” Scanning the room, Silvanus spotted Teilo in the kitchen, his mouthful of cupcakes. “I see Raff brought baking.” He remembered being plied with lemon slices when he’d gone to see Nereus in his bid to woo Artemas.
“It’s his thing and it makes him happy.” Artemas inhaled slowly. “Are we okay?” he asked quietly.
“More than.” Silvanus smiled. Leaning forward, he watched Artemas’s face carefully for any signs of hesitation. He wasn’t sure what his mate’s feelings were on PDA, but Artemas met his lips softly, keeping things chaste enough for company while sealing a promise of more to come later.
“I was thinking,” Artemas said, pulling back and making sure Silvanus was holding his tea, “we should probably have the book here, if Crane is coming.”
“I was thinking about that,” Nereus said, coming in, his small mate tucked under his arm. Raff’s cheeks were bright red, and his eyes sparkled. Silvanus could see why the son of Poseidon was smitten. “Is there any way you can replicate the book, so Crane doesn’t get his hands on the original?”
“I doubt I could,” Silvanus took a sip of his tea, letting it soothe him. “I wrote that book thousands upon thousands of years ago. I barely remember what was in it. The cover was carved more recently, but even then, it was still a very long time ago and Crane already has detailed photos of it.”
“I memorized the words inside,” Artemas said, leading Silvanus to the couch and sitting close. Teilo came out of the kitchen and joined his mates on the other couch. “But the cover was more elusive. It was almost as though it was a living thing, and anytime I think of it, the picture changes.”
“The book was showing off for you.” Silvanu
s shook his head. “It is a living thing, in that I infused it with my energies as I was carving it.”
“That makes it all the more important to keep it out of Crane’s clutches,” Teilo growled. “If this vision person you talk about has connection with the gods or other magic users, there’s no telling what they could do with a power like that. It’s too risky.”
“Can I?” Silvanus didn’t need to be a mind reader to know what Artemas intended. As soon as he nodded the book appeared in Artemas’s hands.
“Can you feel anything coming from it?” Artemas held it up so the other three could see.
“It’s amazing.” Teilo reached out, as if to touch it and then thought better of it.
“No, no, it’s okay,” Silvanus said quickly. “You can touch it. In fact, I’d be happy if you did. If my book is throwing out energies to anyone and everyone, then it’s no wonder Crane wants it so much.”
Artemas seemed reluctant to give it up, but he handed the book to Teilo, who took it almost reverently. “The carving is incredible.” Teilo ran his hand over the ridges and curves of the wood. “But I’m not a magic user. I can’t feel anything but wood.”
“Let me.” Raff reached over Nereus’s lap, and gently took the book. Like Teilo, Raff stroked the cover and then opened it up to a random page, running his finger along the words. “It hums.” Raff seemed delighted with that. “It’s really faint, but if you trace the ink, it’s like it’s humming to you.”
“The ink would’ve been berries, wouldn’t it?” Artemas asked.
“Berry juice mixed with the juice from crushed yam roots.” Silvanus nodded. “There was nothing remarkable about the berries used, or the yams.”
“What about your intent when you wrote the book?” Nereus asked. He was holding it now, and like Teilo had, was stroking the cover. “I can feel something, but I couldn’t tell you what it was. Just that the book has energies of its own.”
