by M J Marstens
On my other side, Khepri takes a step forward. "I know most of you know me, and you may not believe me, but I have been working for centuries to find a way to help you out of that horror that Ra created. I have friends, Nut and Thoth, who will help hide you. I’m sure you’ve heard of Thoth, the Egyptian god of wisdom. He’s been traveling throughout the multiverses and afterlifes, helping hide demis for centuries."
I watch as skepticism and whispers roll through the cart like fog. These demigods don't believe any full god would help them. And I don't blame them. Based on what Val's told me, the divide between demis and full gods is almost worse than the divide between humans and gods, because demis are a threat.
Demis can steal a god's market share of worship. Demis can appear more relatable. They can give humans something to aspire to. Demis, like Val, can also be more lovable in a way that gods, say like the headless Hindu goddess4 that I passed in the sky on my way to the prison, can't be. Sometimes the gods are just too intimidating. And it's easier to admire and praise someone who seems just a smidge better than you are, instead of ten times as fucked up.
I'm pretty sure I see one of the demis in the back of the wagon flip Khepri the bird. I'm about to step forward and speak up, vouching for Val's intentions, when the guy who was making out with Asteio steps forward.
The Demigodling.
“My mother trusts Khepri. You should as well.” His voice is resonant in a way I don’t expect, a way that has my heart calming and me taking an involuntary step toward him.
Khepri puts a hand on my shoulder. He turns me toward him and winks as all around us, the panic subsides and smiles slide back over people’s faces.
This demigod has something. Charisma? Charm magic? Whatever it is—I want it.
Khepri leans in and whispers, “See why Ra didn’t want him around? How can you compete with that?”
I nod. “I’m glad in my line of work, I don’t have to.”
Khepri laughs softly and asks what I do. I tell him as the Demigodling charms the pants (literally) off half the male gods in the room. Only Khepri, the dazed Japanese guard hunched in the corner, Lover, and I seem able to resist him. But I notice all our eyes keep darting toward Val.
I should feel possessive. I should want to fight them all. Or at least, I think I should feel that way. A normal human guy would feel that way.
But I’m not normal.
Neither is Val.
She’s a goddess.
I notice her eyes do get stuck on the orgy several times and she bites that bottom lip in a way that makes me desperate. I notice Khepri and the Japanese guy sniffing hard in those moments. I wonder if he can smell her arousal even with all the other demis mixed in.
My thoughts are diverted when someone in the back of the wagon has a screaming orgasm and I make the mistake of looking dead on at the debauchery.
By the time we reach what Khepri claims is Nut’s hiding spot, I’m more than ready for these writhing demigods to leave because I’ve discovered, while I like human orgy pornos, demigod spooge comes in every color, shape, and texture ... and not all of those are appealing to me. (A nymph whose cum is sawdust? Where she squirts and you think a chainsaw just bit into a tree? No. Uh-uh.)
I stare straight ahead, over the twitching ears of Val’s goats, Tangy and … something else that starts with T. I’ve just started calling them TNT and singing the AC/DC song in my head to block out the grunts and strange noises going on behind me.
When the goats stop, it looks like we’re at some kind of supernatural space station, with glass bubble buildings everywhere. It’s not at all where I’d expect an Egyptian goddess to hang out. But then, I guess that’s the point.
The goats roll to a stop in front of a building surrounded by turquoise bushes. They start nibbling on the blue-green leaves as Khepri turns and tells Val, “I’ll just let Nut know we’re here.”
Then, to my shock, he transforms into a bug of some kind and flies off.
It feels like eons but is probably only minutes later when we get the demigods unloaded with a tall, lanky Egyptian woman who is wearing a pot on her head.
Once that’s done, I expect us to turn in and bed down for the night. I’m really looking forward to the second half of that thought. Because I don’t expect to be alone for once.
But Val turns to me and says, “We need to lead Ra away from all these demis. We have to give him a target to go after so they have a chance to hide.”
“Target?” I ask, even though the stubborn set of her expression makes my heart sink.
“Yeah.” She nods. “Me.”
13
Val
The demigods all wave cheerful goodbyes to us as they disappear into the glass buildings ahead. Nut stands by the wagon, arm around the Demigodling’s shoulders, with tears in her eyes. She promises to find Thoth, wherever he’s currently hiding from Ra, so that he can help all these demigods find a place.
Asteio wants to go with us to help, but seeing as he’s currently attached at the hip to the Demigodling, the one being Khepri sacrificed all to save, I shake my head.
The others do insist on coming with me, however. Khepri refuses to leave the wagon. “My fate is sealed,” he says.
I suppose that means he knows Ra will find out that Khepri betrayed him. But the intense look in Khepri’s blue eyes makes me swallow hard.
A tiny part of me wonders if he actually means something else.
Khepri just holds my gaze for a tension-filled moment, before he leads our willing hostage—Kung-Fu, the Japanese guard—into a corner of the wagon not coated in cum.
Lover, my short-term cellmate joins me and I’m less than surprised by this since he spent most of the wagon ride through time and space whispering sweet nothings in my ear—I was shocked they were actually sweet.
Whenever Dev wasn’t looking, Tupac would lean over and say things like, “You hold a stormy sky in your eyes,” or “Your skin is radiant in the starlight.” Strangely enough, his odd old-fashioned compliments kind of made my heart do a little jump and click her heels together.
My heart’s never done that for anyone but Dev.
Which makes me feel terribly guilty, so I shove the feeling aside and I try to rationalize it instead, with the fact that I think Lover just might be a little horny after all those years imprisoned—the other demigods certainly were.
Dev looked like he was about to die of embarrassment during the orgy. His ears turned fire-engine red at one point.
But for me, that just looked like a random Saturday night at my dad’s house. I’ve always had to step around writhing bodies if I wanted a midnight bowl of ice cream.
“Val, you came to my cell for a reason,” Lover insists.
“Yeah, because that’s where they put me,” I tell him.
He shakes his head. “Nope. We’re meant to be together.”
I’m about to refuse when he follows that up with, “I’m meant to help you.”
Because who can deny that I’m in over my head? Not me.
I did all this because it was wrong and I’m pissed. But underneath that, I don’t have a plan for long-term escape from the sun god, Ra. I don’t even know how I’m going to explain things to Dad. I doubt it’s gonna be a cute “Lucy, you have some ‘splaining to do,” kind of moment.
“The one upside is that I’ll probably never have to go to family dinner again,” I mutter to myself.
“What’s that?” Tupac leans closer, but I back away. I turn to dad’s goats and let out a long, very specific, secret-code yodel.
Tangy and Tanny bleat once to show they understand. Then they bolt forward so fast that all of us fall back on our asses in the wagon—except for Raiden, who was already on his.
With a loud shwook we disappear from among all the stars and a pervasive darkness presses in on us. It almost feels suffocating.
Seconds later, with a plop, we appear in the night sky in the middle of a bunch of clouds.
Next to me, Dev clutches his
heart. “What the hell was that?” he asks.
“Pop up storm,” I reply, gesturing at the storm we manifested in order to jump back to the earthly realm. “It’s the fastest way to get around.”
He just nods as he tries to fight off a heart attack. I bite my lip as I stare at him. “Dev, can we hide out at your place for a bit?” I swallow hard. “I hate to ask, but we probably could all use an hour or two of sleep before we—”
“Of course.”
That selflessness that I love about him overcomes his fear.
I smile at him and he smiles at me until the goats, having overheard our conversation, take off and we fall back on our elbows.
Mine lands in some gooey substance and I cringe. I definitely don’t want to know what it is, but I can guess.
Thankfully, seconds later, we’re all piling out of the wagon onto Devin’s roof. Surreptitiously, I rub my elbows clean on the side of the cart.
Khepri holds out a hand for Kung-Fu to take so he can help him up.
Raiden beams an adoring smile up at him. “Thanks, Bestie!” he tells Bi-Polar in an odd, euphoric manner.
Someone definitely doesn’t have their memory back yet—and I freaking shudder to think about what the guard will be like when he does recover.
Tupac rushes ahead to open the door for me and I have to bite down on a smile. He’s weirdly romantic.
Dev takes my hand again as we descend the dim stairwell and once we’re in the dark, touching, my breath hitches. I still can’t believe I kissed him. My mind whirls with awe and desperate worry. He’s here, he’s with me … but I’ve also put him in danger.
The gods will be after him—and it’s all my fault.
Dev unlocks his door and lets us in.
“Are those hemp plants?” Tupac walks in and goes straight for them. “We used to farm these regularly after the Spanish arrived.”
Dev nods and pulls me aside as Khepri enters with Raiden, who has his arms slung around the Egyptian guard in full-on comradery.
“Why don’t you both sit down,” I suggest because I can see Kung-Fu’s newfound friendship with Khepri is wearing on Bi-Polar.
Khepri carelessly shoves Raiden toward the couch and, then, shuts and locks the door. “I’m going to do a perimeter check of this space. See if I can smell anything.” He shifts into a beetle and buzzes off.
Dev pulls me with him over to the fridge and grabs a six pack of beer. He sets it on the counter.
“I think we need a drink,” he states.
“I think we need a toast, to the most magnificent demigoddess ever to exist,” Tupac grabs a beer and holds it up in my direction.
I flush as he and Dev both level me with admiring looks. My eyes drop and my cheeks grow warm, but so does the inside of my chest. My impulsive, rather pissed-off plan worked—for now—who would have thought?
“We still need to figure out how to elude Ra,” I mention. This battle is far from won.
“We will,” Tupac takes a huge drink and then studies the golden oak cupboards. “What kind of food do you have?”
“I dunno; take a look and help yourself.” Dev pulls me out of the kitchen and into the dining room just as Khepri reappears in the kitchen and resumes his human form.
“All clear,” the Egyptian guard declares.
“Great. Well, mi casa es su casa and all that jazz. One of you can take the bedroom on that side,” Dev gestures to the door next to the kitchen. “And one of you can take the couch. Val and I are gonna go crash.” He tries to sound casual but his hand crushes mine.
My nipples tighten as I realize what this means. Me and Dev. Dev and me. In his room. Together.
Yes.
I look up at Dev’s brown eyes and see they’re dark with urgency. My core tightens. We need to get out of here before Khepri or Raiden can smell my arousal.
I yank Dev down the hallway, ignoring Tupac’s questions about some of the items in the fridge. He’ll figure modern, non-prison food out.
I have more important things to address—namely, why Dev and I are still wearing clothes.
I shove open the door to his bedroom. I’ve already been here plenty of times—though he doesn’t know it.
I shove the door shut behind us and immediately strip off my prison issue sweatshirt, my boots, daisy dukes, and crop top. I’m naked in under ten seconds.
Dev gasps as his eyes roam down my figure.
And then I get nervous. Because he’s still completely dressed. “Fuck. Did you mean actually sleep?”
In response, Dev crashes into me, arms going around my waist and pulling me into him. His lips find mine and he places an aggressive, very un-Dev-like kiss on my lips as he lifts me up. He walks me to the bed and sets me gently on the edge before pulling back from our kiss.
“Not at all. I’m gonna crash into you so hard you’ll be limper than a test dummy.”
I giggle at the very unsexy and unromantic analogy, but that giggle quickly turns into a moan as his lips roam down my chest and latch onto a nipple. His fingers come up and play with my slit and I’m so glad I waxed a week ago.
Heat travels up my spine and sensation flickers across my nerves like sparkling glitter.
“I’ve wanted this for so long,” Dev admits.
Hearing that just takes my desire up a notch.
His talented fingers kick it up further as they circle my slick center.
“I’ve wanted you since the moment I saw you,” Dev confesses.
“Me too,” I admit as his fingers make me start to buck.
His tongue sneaks out and he laps at my nipple, using the same rhythm on it as his fingers use on my clit. They go faster and faster until I explode, my hands flying down to clamp Dev’s head in place as I writhe against his mouth.
When I come down, he just repeats the process until I am as limp-limbed as he claimed he’d make me.
I don’t even stir when I hear a thump in the living room.
Dev’s head whips to the side. He’s still fully clothed, and the look on his face says he wants to go investigate, but I wrap my legs around him and draw him in. “No, please—don’t go! Those three can fend for themselves and I need you, Dev. We’ve waited too long.”
My chest tightens and grows fluttery and bubbly as Dev slowly removes his shirt. He reveals the toned abs and pecs I’d always seen hinted at under his clothes before but never fully shown to me. I can’t resist, I have to lean up to drag my hands over him. And a confession leaks out my lips. “I used my spare key all the time to sneak in here and make myself come on your bed,” I tell him.
He groans and shoves me back as he makes quick work of his pants and then climbs over me.
“Tell me about it,” he whispers as he spreads my thighs apart and traces over my entrance with his cock.
“I used to lay on your pillow, so I could smell it while I fingered myself. I’d pretend you’d just gotten out of bed and were in the shower or something, and I needed to get myself ready for you before you got out so I could convince you to fuck me before you went to work.”
He moans and nips at my bottom lip. “Show me,” he commands, pulling back.
I slide my fingers down my chest to my wet slit and lubricate them before I start circling my clit.
Dev watches me with hooded eyes for a few seconds before he moans and says, “I can’t wait.” He pushes my hand aside and sheathes himself in me, sliding slowly in before rolling us sideways so that he ends up on bottom and I end up on top. His fingers creep up to tweak my nipples.
Damn. My fists curl and I reach forward to grab his bed frame so that I don’t hurt him. The orgasm that’s building inside me is intense.
I swivel my hips and his dick hits the perfect spot as I grind my clit down on him. I don’t stop moving even as my body begins to shudder. My fingers clench and I accidentally break off the top piece of the headboard as I climax.
“Fuck!” I cry, holding the wood aloft so I don’t hurt Dev even as stars flicker behind my eyelids.
I don’t ask, I keep grinding, headboard in my hands, until my orgasm subsides.
That’s when I throw the piece of mutilated wood to the side—only to spot Tupac sitting in Dev’s armchair in the corner of the bedroom. He’s pulled the chair closer to the bed and is sitting there with a bowl of popcorn in his lap, enjoying the show.
I give him an incredulous look, even as Dev, who hasn’t noticed him, pumps up into me.
Tupac stares at us as he eats another piece of popcorn. “Don’t stop. Keep going. It’s like watching Twilight in reverse. I loved Twilight.”
Dev throws a pillow at him and then, to my surprise, flips us so that he’s on top—totally reclaiming his masculinity with the smooth move. And all my fear about hurting Dev flies out the window as he begins to pound me—hard. His dick slams so deep into me that he hits my cervix. His hands reach down and encase my breasts and he tweaks my nipples as his hip bones smack against mine and make my entire body ripple with pleasure.
I gasp mindlessly, the moans tripping and escaping my lips as Dev pushes me higher and higher.
From his chair, Lover gives a breathy, “Oh yes.”
For some reason, his voyeurism just makes all of this hotter. But I don’t look at him. This is about Dev and me. This is our first time. And it’s precious.
I stare up into his eyes and my own start to blur even as he rails me.
As soon as he notices that, he slows. “Val, did I hurt—”
I lean up and grab the back of his neck. I cut him off with a kiss. A hard brutal kiss, but I’m past holding back with him. I love him.
He pumps again as our mouths nip and bite and suck ravenously at one another’s lips and his hands roam down the sheets and start to knead my ass. And then his dick hits that spot—that perfect spot.
I shatter like I’m made of glass.
Dev comes only seconds later and my heart swells even more to watch his face tilt toward the sky as he pumps into me.
