'...' thoughts
/.../ telepathy

Daystar's Prophecy Part 16

Flashback

Staring dejectedly at the mountain that stood before him, Duo heaved a heavy sigh. He knew without a doubt that the artifact he had been sent to find was located somewhere near the peak. However, he did not know the exact location and he did not relish spending a cold day and night searching for it. Unfortunately, he had no choice and even though the peak looked very small from where he was standing, he knew it would be much bigger once he was closer.

With one last disgusted look, he turned and walked back to his campsite that was located in a fairy ring not twenty feet away. Once there, he slipped his heavy cloak off his shoulders and folded it carefully before placing it with his other supplies. He knew that when he left out in the morning, he would not be able to take anything with him since the flight would be difficult enough without the extra weight.

After situating his belongings, he stood and spread his wings; giving them a good stretch before fluttering them just enough to lift his feet a few inches off the ground. With a shake of his head only a second later, he allowed himself to settle back down before folding them against his back then crouched down and rummaged in his pack for a moment. Finding the glass jar that contained a soothing ointment he had packed, he pulling his wings forward, separating the third section on the right from all the rest, and examined the wing section closely. He could clearly see the four-inch tear that ran down its middle, not quite reaching the tip, and even though it was nearly three months old, it was still healing. With such a difficult flight facing him, he was afraid that the injury would not allow him to make it all the way to the peak.

Gently spreading the ointment along the tear, he winced when the still healing wound stung a bit. Working diligently to coat the area on both sides, he found himself blinking back tears as the memory of the punishment that had caused the tear assaulted him. Not satisfied with his earnest apology for returning late from an assignment, one of the council members had grabbed the section and pulled harshly, causing the injury to the durable membrane. Even then, they would not allow him to rest and heal, but had sent him out to retrieve an object a few days later, refusing him the skills of a healer before he departed.

Now, he had four days to find and retrieve this object, and since it had taken a day and a half to reach the mountain in the first place, he would have to risk the flight first thing in the morning whether his wings were ready or not. Releasing the section with a sigh, he began contemplating the likelihood of completing the task alive.

So caught up was he in his thoughts, he failed to hear the stranger's approach from the far side of the ring until the person was standing about ten feet away. Jerking his head around as he finally sensed the other's presence; he quickly stood and regarded the tall, black-haired man closely.

"Are you alright?" the man's deep voice asked, he too watching the fairy.

"I'm fine, thanks." he stated after a moment. "I didn't hear you approaching. You startled me."

"I didn't mean to, so I apologize. I was purposefully trying to not make any noise since I was hunting, not sneaking up on you." the man offered with a smile but his face fell when the boy across from him wrinkled his nose. "I'm sorry I should've realized you might find that offensive."

"Slightly." Duo said with a grimace before studying the man closely once again, his head tilted slightly to the side. "You're human, aren't you?"

"Yes. A mage actually." the man stated.

At the man's words, the longhaired fairy immediately began backing away, his eyes wide with fear.

"No, no, it's alright." the black-haired man said, trying to reassure the small boy as he raised both hands in a sign of peace. "I won't hurt you, I swear. Actually, I've never condoned the actions of my ancestors or even those mages still alive today who believe in preying on your people."

Still looking unconvinced, the fairy none-the-less stopped backing away and held his ground, watching the mage closely while preparing a fire spell in his right hand, just in case.

"Look," the man started as he began backing away himself. "I'll just go. I didn't mean to frighten you."

"I'm not scared." Duo said, his voice surprisingly steady since he could feel his hands starting to shake, he was not letting the mage know that though. Biting down hard on his fear, he forced himself to relax and allowed the spell to dissipate. "If you wanna stay, you can."

"No, this is obviously your campsite so I'll find another."

"The nearest ring isn't for another mile." Duo stated. "You'll never make it there before nightfall, even with the help of magic."

"Then I'll camp in the forest." he said plainly.

"Are you crazy?!" Duo exclaimed. Even though he did not feel comfortable having a mage so close, he could not in good conscious allow him to put himself in that type of danger. "This forest is full of bad things. You wouldn't last the night if you tried sleeping outside a ring."

"I won't put you under that much stress." the man stated emphatically. "I've already caused you enough as it is."

"Look, I can deal with you being here as long as you stay on that side of the clearing while I stay on this side." Duo explained, trying to convince not only the mage, but also himself of the decision. "I'll be leaving first thing in the morning anyways."

"If you're sure it won't bother you too much." he said hesitantly although the hopeful tone belied his true desire, he really did not want to have to camp in the forest.

"I'm sure. My name is Duo by the way." the braided fairy said as he tried to lighten the mood. "Seems kinda rude to be sharing the area and not know each other's name."

"Gaison." the man said with a smile and a bow of his head. "It's a pleasure to meet you Duo."

As per the fairy's terms, Gaison setup camp on the far side of the ring, creating a rock pit and gathering wood to build his own fire. After that, they soon fell into a comfortable, yet silent, acceptance of each other's presence and Duo returned to his earlier contemplation of how he was going to retrieve the artifact from the mountaintop. Once again pulling the injured wing section forward where he could see it clearly, he brought out the ointment since it had to be applied every few hours to keep the tear from becoming dry. Hearing the longhaired boy hiss in pain, Gaison looked up from his fire to see what the fairy was doing.

"Dammit, is this thing ever gonna heal?" Duo muttered as he applied the ointment, his frustration beginning to show. "Oww, that hurts."

"Is everything alright Duo?" Gaison called from across the clearing, the concern clear in his voice.

"Yeah." the fairy answered, giving the man a small smile for his effort. "I'm fine."

"It doesn't sound like it."

"It's nothing; just a tear in my wing that doesn't seem to wanna heal."

"Would you let me look at it?" the blue-eyed man asked cautiously and almost regretted it at seeing the near panic on the small boy's face. "It's ok, I'm a healer by trade you see, and I don't like to see other creatures in pain. I'll understand if you don't want me to touch you though."

Duo instantly berated himself for his reaction. He was always telling Solo and Hilde that they had to let go of the past and forgive the other races for their part in the war as well as what they had done to his people. Now he found himself doing the exact same thing when all Gaison wanted to do was help. "Ok," he said softly, his eyes downcast. "You can look at it although I'm not sure there's anything you can do."

"I'll know once I've seen it." Gaison explained as he crossed the clearing to sit behind the braided fairy.

"It's the third section on the right." Duo offered and the man gently moved the two top sections out of the way so he could reach the one specified. Carefully lifting it, he could not help but see the tear in the gauzy wing.

"My gods, how'd this happen." he asked as he examined the injury. "It must hurt terribly."

"It's not so bad anymore." Duo said, with a shrug of his shoulder. "It's been almost three months since it happened."

"Three months and its only healed this far?" the man said incredulously. "It should be almost complete gone by now."

"It probably would've been if I didn't use them so much."

"Duo," Gaison said patiently. "with an injury like this, you shouldn't have been flying for at least four weeks."

"It's not that easy unfortunately." Duo hedged. Gaison narrowed his eyes at hearing the boy's evasion, but guessed it was a sore subject and allowed it to drop.

"Well, lucky for you I have an ointment that should help with the healing as well as the pain."

"Thanks Gaison." Duo said with a shy smile over his shoulder.

"No problem Duo. It's what friends do." the man said then patted the fairy on the shoulder before retreating to his fire to find the promised ointment.

At first, Duo had been a little unnerved by the man's use of the word friend but as the night progressed, he truly did come to see the mage that way as they talked and shared stories as if they had known each other for much longer than a few hours. Settling down for the night, Gaison wished Duo luck with finding the artifact and they both fell asleep quickly.

********************

When the dawn came the next morning, Duo quickly checked over his things, making them ready so, if possible, he could leave as soon as he returned. Then, spreading his wings and giving them a stretch, he set off on his flight to the mountain peek. He immediately felt grateful to Gaison since the ointment the mage had used on his wings was making it much easier for him to fly and he was able to reach the peak without much difficulty. Unfortunately, as he had predicted, it took the remainder of the day and it was beginning to become dark before he located the artifact. After absorbing it, he contemplated spending the night there since the flight back in the dark would be dangerous but the thought of curling up with the warm fire was far too tempting and he quickly began his descent.

Upon reaching the fairy ring once again, Duo was shocked to find Gaison still there with a bright fire burning in the center. When asked, the man shrugged his shoulder and stated that he knew the violet-eyed fairy would be cold when he finally returned, and since he had nowhere pressing to be, he stayed to keep the fire burning. Thanking him profusely, the braided boy sat down near the flames and felt himself finally begin to thaw. Suddenly, a warm blanket was wrapped around him and he found himself smiling once again at the mage in gratitude.

They spent that night camped around the same fire since Duo no longer felt any need to fear the longhaired mage, and when the morning dawned once again the violet-eyed fairy asked the man to travel with him as far as the capitol city. Seemingly delighted to be able to spend more time with his new friend, the mage readily agreed and they set out not long after sunrise.

Over the next day and a half as they travel toward Shantari, the two became closer and their friendship grew stronger. Unfortunately, since mages were not welcomed in the capitol city, they had to part ways at the gates with both promising to keep in touch when they could. It was later the next day, after the new artifact had been transmuted and given to the council that Duo was finally able to relate the events of his trip to his two best friends, his smile bright and eyes shining as he talked. However, he was not prepared for their reactions as they scolded him for being taken in by the mage even going so far as to demand that he never see the man again. Duo being Duo though, became angry at their obvious mistrust of his instincts, and after a very intensive argument with Solo, left the city to begin his search for the next item.

For the next several months, he and Gaison met up on numerous occasions either by chance or through careful planning, mostly just to enjoy each other's company although the tall man would usually help in locating whatever artifact Duo was looking for as well. He had even gone so far as to assist the braided boy in retrieving one of them. It was following one of these retrievals nearly a year after their first meeting that Duo decided it was time for Solo and Hilde to meet the man he considered a good friend since he was sure that once they became acquainted with him, they would realize he was a great person. In all the time since he had met the mage, his best friends had done just about everything in their power to dissuade him from going anywhere near the man.

Being very cautious, they snuck through the palace without being seen and without the use of magic since the council would have sensed it if they did. Then, leaving Gaison in his private chambers to wait, Duo hurried to the room where he could finish the transmutation process, returning an hour later only to find the man and Solo arguing heatedly.

"Stay the hell away from Duo." Solo growled from his position no more than two feet from the mage.

"I think that's his decision to make, not yours." Gaison said quietly, having noticed the longhaired fairy's entrance.

"You will do as I say or...."

"Or you'll what."

"Enough!" Duo shouted as he stepped between the two. "Solo, Gaison is my guest here as well as my friend. I'd appreciate it if you'd remember that."

"Can't you see he's just playing with you, Duo?" Solo stated although his eyes never left the black-haired man.

"Stop it, please." the fairy pleaded. "If you can't be nice, I'll have to ask you to leave."

"You don't mean that." Solo said softly, his eyes wide in shock.

"Until you calm down enough to talk civilized, yes I do." Duo said sadly, placing a hand on his brother's chest. "Please Solo, you really need to cool off, and you can't do that here."

"Fine, but I'm not going very far." Solo said and with one last glare at Gaison, he left.

"I'm sorry about that." Duo said as he turned to look at the mage, his face sad. "He tends to be a bit overprotective."

"A bit? I'd say that was a lot."

Quirking a small smile, the braided fairy nodded his head. "Yeah, I know."

"So, I'm guessing that you're finished with the transmutation since you're here?"

"Yeah." Duo nodded. "We could see about getting something to eat now if you want."

"That sounds good, but what I want probably isn't on the menu." the man said as he stalked toward the longhaired fairy.

"What do you mean?" the violet-eyed boy blinked at the man. "The palace has the best cooks and can fix just about anything."

"Does that include you?" Gaison purred as he suddenly pulled the boy into his arms.

"W... what?" the fairy stammered, looking wide-eyed at the man. "Gaison what are you--"

"Something I've wanted to do for a very long time." he said before bending down and pressing his lips to the fairy's.

Shocked, Duo froze as the man moved his mouth across his own. When he felt an insistent tongue trying to pry his lips open though, he snapped out of his trance and began pushing hard against Gaison's chest.

"Stop." he said as he jerked his mouth away. "Let me go."

"Now why would I do that, my precious little fairy?" Gaison said and Duo could hear none of the warmth and kindness he was so used to hearing in the man's voice and looking up into those ice blue eyes, he was confronted with a cold, calculating leer he had never seen before. "I've waited too long as it is. Working to gain your friendship and trust, all the while having to watch this teasing little body of yours without touching."

Leaning down, Gaison ran his lips along his captive's throat, barely scraping his teeth across the skin before biting down hard at the juncture between neck and shoulder, causing Duo to cry out from the pain as he began fighting even harder.

"I know you're still too exhausted from the transmutation to fight me very much. Of course, that is how I had planned this." Gaison stated smugly, easily keeping his hold on the fairy with one arm as he slid the hand of the other down to cup Duo's bottom, squeezing roughly.

"No!" Duo screamed, as he twisted violently in the man's grasp. "Stop it, let me go."

Laughing evilly, Gaison simply picked the violet-eyed boy up and carried him to the bed in the far corner of the room. "I was beginning to think you'd never invite me here. When you did, it took everything I had not to take you right then and there, but I needed one more show from you before I knew for sure that you belonged to me completely. You had to stand up against the one person who could've destroyed all my plans, your beloved brother, Solo. When you defended me just a moment ago, I knew you were finally mine."

"Stop." Duo sobbed, shaking his head vigorously as he was being lowered onto the bed. Refusing to give in though, he continued to struggle while at the same time he felt his heart breaking from the man's words. He had completely trusted and believed in their friendship and all this time, Gaison had been lying to him. Suddenly, the anger at the betrayal swept through him and he began to fight even harder, pummeling his fists into every available surface of the man above him that he could reach. Unfortunately, he was still too weak to do much damage and Gaison was able to pin his hands above his head easily.

"Now, we won't have any of that." the black-haired mage sneered as he transferred both wrists to one hand leaving the other to trail down the fairy's damp cheek. "You're so beautiful with your tears. Soon though, you'll be begging for my touch."

Shaking his head frantically, Duo squeezed his eyes shut as he felt the man start kissing along his neck once again, biting down every now and then to leave his mark on the flawless skin. Desperately, the violet-eyed fairy tried to find a way to escape while at the same time shutting out what was being done to him. However, the situation was far beyond what he, with his limited knowledge, had the ability to comprehend, making it impossible for him to come up with a solution.

Even as Duo continued to struggle, Gaison forced his knee between the boy's legs, allowing him to settle in between while at the same time his hand began unlacing the vest that hid the fairy's flesh. Once the last of the laces were undone, he pushed the vest off the boy's chest before pulling at the ones that secured the tight leather pants, determined to see all of his little pet, while at the same time enjoying the soft sobs and pleas the longhaired fairy was making.

So set on uncovering the lusciousness before him, he did not hear the door to the chambers open or the blonde-haired elf reenter. When the large hands closed around his neck though before throwing him halfway across the room, he knew his fun had been spoiled.

Solo had done as Duo requested and allowed his anger to cool. While he still did not agree with the braided boy's decision about the mage, he knew that telling the fairy that he could not be friends with the man would more than likely cause Duo to leave again, which meant he would have to find another way of removing the man from his brother's life. Heading back to the room, he was planning to apologize to both of them, putting Duo's mind at ease while giving himself some time to figure out exactly what to do. However, when he opened the door and saw the man holding the violet-eyed boy down on the bed while the small fairy sobbed and begged him to stop, he instantly saw red and barreled across the room before grabbing the man and throwing him as far away from Duo as he could.

"No one touches him." Solo growled dangerously at Gaison while keeping his body between the bed and the mage. "Not if they want to continue living."

The braided fairy had curled up tightly the minute Gaison's weight had been removed from him, his eyes still squeezed shut and his arms wrapped protectively around him chest. When he heard the very familiar and much loved voice speaking from beside the bed though, he hesitantly cracked his eyes open. "Solo?" he breathed out in between his sobs.

The elf, sparing a glance over his shoulder at the violet-eyed boy's question, gave the fairy a reassuring smile. "It's ok now, little bit. I'll deal with him." Then turning back to face the mage, his face darkened dangerously just before he hurled himself across the room.

At first, the fight appeared to be a fair one with both opponents evenly matched, each one taking as many blows as they managed to give out. However, never known for fighting fair, the mage's next punch packed a little extra as he added a powerful shot of magic to it, knocking the green-eyed elf across the room.

Duo, who had been watching the fight apprehensively, cried out as Solo hit the wall then slumped heavily to the floor. Throwing himself from the bed, he ran across the room to kneel in front of his brother, placing his hands on the tall elf's shoulders. "Solo, are you alright?"

At first, the elf was too stunned to reply but knowing the fairy would only become more anxious if he remained silent, he raised his head and smiled wanly at the longhaired boy. "Yeah I'm ok, just winded me is all."

Dropping his forehead to the elf's chest, Duo let a soft sob escape his throat. "Please stop fighting."

"He doesn't have much of a choice precious, not unless he's ready to let you go, that is."

Turning toward the blue-eyed mage he used to call friend, Duo gave the man the best glare he could manage under the circumstances. "You used magic in the palace dumbass. That means the council will be sending guards here to see what's wrong."

"But can they arrive before I leave, taking you with me?" Gaison purred, a wicked smile curving his lips. "I think not."

Just as Gaison took a step toward the fairy, Solo exploded off the floor and tackled the man before wrapping both hands securely around his throat, cutting off his air supply. Then, tightening his hold, Solo prepared to hang on until the mage's life had completely drained away.

"No, Solo, stop!" Duo exclaimed as he wrapped both hands around one of the elf's arms, trying to pry him off the mage.

"Duo, he tried to rape you." Solo said in astonishment at the violet-eyed boy's actions. "And he'd take you away from here given the chance so he could finish the job."

"Please, Solo, don't kill. Not anyone. Not because of me." the braided fairy begged, his eyes once more filling with tears.

Leaning back, the blonde-haired elf immediately released the mage who took the opportunity to roll out of reach, coughing reflexively as he rubbed at his throat. Realizing the pain he must have been causing the fairy by trying to kill the man while he watched, he drew his small brother into his arms, ignoring the mage for the moment. "I'm sorry little bit; I didn't mean to upset you."

Unable to say anything in return, Duo found he could only cling to the elf as the stress and shock of everything that had happened began to set in. Luckily, the palace guards chose that moment to arrive as the door of his chambers slammed open and four of them poured into the room. They were soon followed by the members of the council unfortunately, who had come to investigate the disturbance as well.

"What is going on here?" the council head demanded.

"He tried to rape Duo." Solo stated simply while pointing at Gaison, who had picked himself up off the floor by that time.

"And just how did a mage get into the palace?" another member asked, his eyes trained firmly on the braided fairy.

"I... I let him in." Duo said softly.

"Guards, take this man to the prisons."

At that, Gaison gave a boisterous laugh before turning a contemptuous glare at the elven council. "Do you really think you're puny guards will be able to hold me?"

"These guards are quite well versed in earth magic I'll have you know." one member boasted.

"Good, then perhaps I'll have a worthy opponent." the mage said before throwing a lance of flame at the first of the guards, charring the man beyond recognition, and shocking everyone present that he possessed earth magic as well. Then, as he was preparing to use their distracted states to launch his next attack, he found himself incased in a wall of ice that fire could not melt. Turning surprised eyes toward the violet-eyed boy still wrapped securely in his brother's arms, he could not believe the fairy had found enough energy to generate that powerful a spell. "It seems that I've underestimated you precious. But since I cannot allow these pitiful creatures to take me alive, I must leave now. We will continue our little tryst at a later date though; you have my word on it." With that said, the mage threw up one hand and before anyone could act, he vanished.

"I demand an explanation." the council head stated once things calmed back down, his gaze immediately falling upon the fairy. "Seeker, you will accompany us to the chamber, now."

"What?!" Solo exclaimed, his arms immediately tightening around Duo's small body. "He was just attacked by that freak and you're going to fucking interrogate him? At least wait until he recovers from the shock first."

As soon as the words left the green-eyed elf's mouth, the boy in his arms convulsed and cried out in pain, his hands clutching at the back of his neck.

"Do not presume to tell us how to handle him elf, or would you prefer taking his punishment for him."

"No, pl... please don't hurt him." Duo stammered out through the pain. "I'll go with you."

When Solo looked like he might argue, the council head raised his hand to stop the elf's words. "If you say one more word, I will raise the level of pain until it is beyond bearable for him."

Biting his tongue, the elf released the small boy who stood and without a word, turned to follow the members of the council to the chamber where he would explain his actions then await whatever punishment they deemed appropriate.

End Flashback

TBC...

 

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