FSE

Furry search engine

formerly SoFurry search engine

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Disclaimer: The following will contain homosexual individuals and relationships and may be an interesting commentary on life, death, immortality, God, gods and various religions. No offense is intended, and if you cannot handle it, please discontinue reading rather than blaming me. This is copyrighted to me (mewjen(at)ymail.com), so no using it without my permission and no stealing it (any profits must be shared). This is a work of fiction. Any likenesses to persons, places, and so on, real or imagined, living or dead is purely coincidental.

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Act II - Part 6 ­- Sub-Part A

"You know I am not accustom to people inviting themselves into my residence and demanding my time." My father's tone was as condescending as ever. His body language provided volumes on how upset he was. The restraint he seemed to reserve just for me was wavering. I probably would have been worried, if I wasn't struggling to contain my rage. "I am also not accustom to my guests smelling like a whore house."

He paused for a moment, as if he expected me to apologize. He was exaggerating, and we both knew it. I made sure I was perfectly clean and presentable.

"So what brings my wayward son here from his orgy?" he asked. "Did you find a suitable replacement for your betrothed and come to share the news?"

We stood opposite one another. This was the fifth time we had met and the fourth time we were at odds. I asked explicitly to see him and him alone. I didn't want Mom involved in this, especially because I still wanted a chance to get to know her better. This was the moment when Dad and I finally had it out. This was the end. I doubted that I would ever be allowed or would desire to be in his presence again.

I blanked for a moment and quickly said the first thing that came to my mind. "First, stop scaring men into seeing me, especially straight men. I don't need your help finding a boyfriend. Let alone, I already have one."

He gave an audible snort. "From the smell, I would say that you are not very attached to that one."

"It's not like you care." I retorted, angrily.

"I promised your mother a wedding," he replied calmly. "I intend to keep that promise."

"And do I get a say in this?" I asked, showing my irritation.

"I am simply doing what you asked. Set is a fine boy. He is an acceptable replacement for the other."

I saw red. "You think so? Yet when we were engaged, you tortured and murdered him, repeatedly, until he broke up with me."

If he was phased at all with my sudden knowledge, he didn't show it. "Times change."

With his shrug, I was struggling to contain my anger. "So much for fatherly love."

"You are the deviant," he quipped.

"You son of a bitch." I felt his power pushing against me like a heavy wind, before I veered it off course. "Did you think I would not be upset when I found out that my father hurt my friends and my family?"

"I am your family."

"No, Dad. You're the monster who tortured me and anyone who got close to me!" I lunged at him, but he disappeared.

Appearing behind me, he kept his voice even, as he tried to use my momentum to force me to the ground. "I never laid a finger on Horus, even though he deserved it, for daring to claim himself as my equal."

I spun around and flung his attack back at him, converting it into a razor sharp shuriken. "Horus is the perfect ambassador and too well liked for you to touch. But then again, you just had to make me miserable to hurt him."

"Yes, you are that important, child." My shuriken shattered a foot in front of him.

I balled my fists and swung at him, using my powers to amplify each blow to his shield. "Why!" Each blow was deafening and carried a flash of pale blue light. "Couldn't! You! Just! Have Let! Jaller! Stay with me!" He stumbled backwards for just a moment, before he caught himself. "Why! Set! He was. BRAVE! STRONG! BEAUTIFUL! I LOVED HIM! Until you DESTROYED HIM!"

The field around my left hand broke, along with my fingers, as they hit his ward. I jumped back and, raising my defenses, began healing my hand.

My father seized the moment and began to push me back, as he used his powers to attack every square inch of my shield. "Why must you ask questions, when you have the answers?"

"Because I want you to feel something." I flexed my fingers, checking for any issues I might have missed. "I want you to know what you have done and for you to feel something akin to remorse."

"And what have I done to cause such feelings?"

I could feel the strain slowing my actions. "You dominated your friends. You controlled anyone who questioned you. You ruled with fear. You spread war through our family, so that no one would rise against you. You made sure that I could never be happy. You tortured your allies."

"I did what was required of me." He continued to push, as my shield shrank.

"What crime did Set or Jaller commit? You have an excuse for everyone else, but no one has questioned you about them."

He spoke after a great pause, "By defiling you, they tried to kill you."

"Is that what you believe? They didn't defile me. No man has ever raped me. I am homosexual. I would be that even if I had never met either of them."

"Stop acting like a child."

"I'm the child?" I asked. "I'm at least taking responsibility for my actions." I let my shield fall, and he hesitated just long enough for me to regain the offense.

I doubled the thickness of the shield around my hands and narrowed the tips to sharpened blades, at the cost of my defenses. The pale blue field covering my fist sunk deeper into his shield with every strike, but I could no longer block all of his attacks. Each just a light cut, but made excruciating.

"Responsibility?" he questioned. "You have done nothing to fight your condition."

"I'm how you made me," I retorted.

Then it happened. I broke through his shield just enough to hit him squarely in the jaw, sending him flying backwards. I may have over done it, just a little, since he left a rather large crater in the wall behind him.

Every relationship has a line you never cross. Apparently, I crossed that line, because the look on my father's face was something I had never seen. Pure anger, even as he stepped out unscathed.

"You want my throne!" He actually yelled. "You think you can handle it! You think you deserve it!" In his rage, I felt every bone in my body snap.

I choked as I tried to scream, collapsing onto the ground. I couldn't move. I couldn't speak. I could barely breathe. Dad's anger broke instantly, as he rushed to my side. He began the slow process of repairing the damage he caused.

When I could speak again, it was pained and barely louder than a whisper, but I knew I had to continue what I started. I needed someone in my life that I could love, and my friends needed me. "I don't want your throne or your power."

"Then, my dear boy, why are you here?" he asked. It was strange to actually hear concern in his voice. But then again, if I die now, I don't comeback.

"...love..." I was barely able to choke out the one word, as one of my lungs was punctured and then healed.

"I have already consented to your wedding," he stated, barely paying attention to his words, as his hands jumped from location to location across my body, fixing the most life threatening injury and moving onto the next.

"Knowing that Jaller could never marry me without going insane." My lungs seemed to no longer be in danger.

"Set's mouth is a little too big for his own good," was my father's response.

"So it's true...." I gasped and choked as pained shot through me, as he mended and realigned my spine.

"You doubted him.... Why?" He repositioned my head, so that I was staring up at him, as my cranium fused together again. The glance he spared my eyes showed his genuine curiosity.

"Doesn't...matter.... Release...him.... Release...them all." My vision blurred as the tears refused to fall. I fought the urge to beg him to not connect the nerves yet, but that would have been a waste of will, considering my heart was beating through him.

"But it does matter. If you do not trust your betrothed, how can you be happy?" I lost sight of him, as he returned his attention to my chest.

"You never cared about my happiness. I wanted to believe you were better than you are. That your goals were pure, even if I suffered for them...." I grunted loudly, as my pelvis reassembled itself.

"I had to send you away. I had to do what I did. You cannot be a guardian with your condition, and there are no other guardians. You protected them, and I protected you." He spoke so softly, I could barely hear him, despite being so close. I didn't know he could feel regret.

"Why does being gay matter to the Devourers?" I asked, confused.

"They feed on deviancy, nonconformity, free will," he said bitterly. "The guardians were created as a poison to them. However, none were supposed to be of my lineage. My blood unmakes the poison. To them you look, you smell, and you sound like a guardian, but you can be consumed by them. That means the only safeguard you had was acting the part. I am sorry that you feel you suffered, but you could have made an attempt."

"I am who I am," I replied. "Free will does not mean there is always a choice. You cannot make someone straight who isn't, and you know that to be true."

"Depends on your definition of straight," my father mumbled, assuming I could not hear him.

He leaned back, finishing with my last limb and let out a relieved sigh. "Okay. How are you feeling? Any remaining pain?"

I started flexing my muscles, trying to source any problems. When everything checked out, I began slowly stretching and moving. My legs worked. All toes were accounted for. My arms were functional and my fingers held together. My neck and spine seemed fine. So, I started the slow process of sitting up. I rolled onto my side just fine. I twisted my spine and propped myself on my elbow. I put my hand to the floor. I pushed outwards and went crashing back down, as the bones in my hand cracked under the use of force.

Dad caught me before I hit marble and helped me to an upright position. Afterwards, he gently took my hand in his own and carefully repositioned and repaired the damaged bones and tissue. "I accept who you are, and there is no longer any need to change that. I love you, Son. Nothing will ever change that...and I never have and never will be ashamed of you."

I can't describe what I felt. Maybe I am being childish, but there are some things that need to be said out loud, or else you will assume the worst, especially when you have an endless eternity to fret.

"So, Dad, will you free Jaller and the rest?" It seemed like now was the best chance of getting him to agree.

"No."

Should've seen that coming.

"Really? After that? Why not?" My hands were healed, so I pushed myself to my feet.

Dad took his time standing up, making it even longer, as he beat the dust from his pant legs. "My reasons have not changed."

"So we are beginning this again?" To be honest I didn't know if I could. I was already using my reserves, and I was never trained to fight magick.

"Must we?" Dad said warily. "I have no desire for a physical altercation."

"Words will do nothing, and I have to do something to defend those you've wronged," I replied.

"How will this end? I do not want you to die." It almost sounded like a plead.

"Then tell me," I said, wary, "what is your reason for keeping them imprisoned?"

"I do not want you with him," Dad stated simply.

"Jaller? What about the rest-"

BOOM!

I was unprepared. There was a blinding flash of light. Then my father's arms were outstretched, absorbing the pressure wave that came from behind me, capable of destroying us and half the building. I was forced forward, my father catching me, as he protected me from the fireball.

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Author's Note: Well, it is the shortest chapter, but I could not help breaking it here. From a chapter-based philosophy, what comes next is a separate chapter. The paragraph after "BOOM" is the beginning of the next part. It did not seem like boom by itself was enough. I probably have not earned what comes next and the setup is subtle, so I am going to leave you with this: There is truth and existence in all myths and religions.

Thank you for reading this chapter. While you are here, please rate, favorite, and comment. Your feedback is the only way I know if the various parts and concepts are working or confusing.