Deliverance [malexmale]

Chapter One

It didn't matter, though. I didn't need to know what the talking box said, or even what Akin said. I had been resurrected for a job. And until that job was executed, nothing else mattered, but the job. It was just frustrating when these moments of downtime, as Akin referred to it, happened. I loathed the empty days in which we were forced to sit and wait for the next event. I would much rather seek out Atlan and beat his face bloody instead of waiting for his next move, but according to Hannibal, St. John told us to do nothing until something happened-- and that infuriated me even further.

That damned demon snake had no idea how war worked. Granted, not every day was a battle, but damn it all, waiting for your enemy to make the first move? Iapetus was rolling in his grave... or his cell in Tartarus anyway.

"Do you want anymore beer, hon?" Akin's question drew my eyes to him, but I avoided his eyes directly. I felt like he was trying to read me otherwise.

"No, thanks," I replied briefly, setting aside the empty bottle, frowning at the lack of result from drinking it. What happened to the days when beer was so potent that it gave me at least a buzz? This beer was far too weak and watered down. Even Akin's deplorable sweet coffee in the morning was preferable.

"You sure? We have plenty left and Hannibal prefers whiskey to beer."

I know.

"I'm fine." I was finding it easier and easier to respond with that. Back when Iapetus had harassed me with questions, I'd be forced to tell him. The bastard read everyone like an open book and it was why he hated me so much. He'd keep up appearances in front of the other gods, and he'd even act like I was one of his favorites in front of Hannibal, but the moment we were away from them, Iapetus would put my head through a wall. And all of it because I dared to ask if I could hold Hannibal.

At the time, it'd been an innocent question. I hadn't meant hold him. I meant just embrace him as a brother, or what I had thought was merely brotherly affection. Even then, Iapetus knew what was going on in my stupid little head and had attempted to snuff that flame out. Unfortunately, he never had the chance. Zeus did it for him.

I shuddered when I thought of the Greek god that now ruled Olympus. My teeth practically chattered when I remembered the sight of him leering at me during my last vision to the cursed mountain realm of Olympus. He remembered me. He took every chance he could to taunt me with double-entendres or lecherous sneers. I wanted to vomit just thinking about it, so I jammed my fingernails into my palms, savoring the little pinches there as decent distractions. Of course, it wasn't nearly as good as real pain.

The sound of the front door creaking open made me tense, followed by a deep baritone calling out,

"Master, I'm home!"

He's home. I ground my teeth together, saying nothing as Akin gave a happy cry and leapt off the sofa faster than I'd seen any man move. I didn't turn around or look up as I heard his heavy footfalls coming into the living room where Akin met him and was probably kissing him and hugging him.

Instead, I kept my eyes on the television, pretending I knew what was going on between the random man who was dancing on his desk and the woman who was dancing with him. Was that truly how people in this era behaved? I remember Iapetus once boxing Atlas's ears for behaving as such.

Still, my main focus was on Hannibal. His voice had always given me goosebumps. A rich Atlantean accent just lightly tinged with Greek whenever he spoke his Ss. I swallowed at the sound of it as he asked Akin how he was, and by how he was, he was asking Akin if I had behaved and that sent a bolt of irritation through me. What? Was he expecting me to piss on his strange shiny wood floors? Tempting though it was, I had better things to do... like figure out why these programs called commercials kept leading to even more. I couldn't even remember what Akin was watching anymore.